6 U.s.c. 748

§ 748

TITLE 6—DOMESTIC SECURITY

evant public and private sector national voluntary consensus standards development organizations.
(Pub. L. 109–295, title VI, § 647, Oct. 4, 2006, 120
Stat. 1426.)
§ 748. Training and exercises
(a) National training program
(1) In general
Beginning not later than 180 days after October 4, 2006, the Administrator, in coordination
with the heads of appropriate Federal agencies, the National Council on Disability, and
the National Advisory Council, shall carry out
a national training program to implement the
national preparedness goal, National Incident
Management System, National Response Plan,
and other related plans and strategies.
(2) Training partners
In developing and implementing the national training program, the Administrator
shall—
(A) work with government training facilities, academic institutions, private organizations, and other entities that provide specialized, state-of-the-art training for emergency managers or emergency response providers; and
(B) utilize, as appropriate, training courses
provided by community colleges, State and
local public safety academies, State and private universities, and other facilities.
(b) National exercise program
(1) In general
Beginning not later than 180 days after October 4, 2006, the Administrator, in coordination
with the heads of appropriate Federal agencies, the National Council on Disability, and
the National Advisory Council, shall carry out
a national exercise program to test and evaluate the national preparedness goal, National
Incident Management System, National Response Plan, and other related plans and strategies.
(2) Requirements
The national exercise program—
(A) shall be—
(i) as realistic as practicable, based on
current risk assessments, including credible threats, vulnerabilities, and consequences, and designed to stress the national preparedness system;
(ii) designed, as practicable, to simulate
the partial or complete incapacitation of a
State, local, or tribal government;
(iii) carried out, as appropriate, with a
minimum degree of notice to involved parties regarding the timing and details of
such exercises, consistent with safety considerations;
(iv) designed to provide for the systematic evaluation of readiness and enhance
operational understanding of the incident
command system and relevant mutual aid
agreements;
(v) designed to address the unique requirements of populations with special
needs, including the elderly; and

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(vi) designed to promptly develop afteraction reports and plans for quickly incorporating lessons learned into future operations; and
(B) shall include a selection of model exercises that State, local, and tribal governments can readily adapt for use and provide
assistance to State, local, and tribal governments with the design, implementation, and
evaluation of exercises (whether a model exercise program or an exercise designed locally) that—
(i) conform to the requirements under
subparagraph (A);
(ii) are consistent with any applicable
State, local, or tribal strategy or plan; and
(iii) provide for systematic evaluation of
readiness.
(3) National level exercises
The Administrator shall periodically, but
not less than biennially, perform national exercises for the following purposes:
(A) To test and evaluate the capability of
Federal, State, local, and tribal governments to detect, disrupt, and prevent threatened or actual catastrophic acts of terrorism, especially those involving weapons of
mass destruction.
(B) To test and evaluate the readiness of
Federal, State, local, and tribal governments to respond and recover in a coordinated and unified manner to catastrophic incidents.
(Pub. L. 109–295, title VI, § 648, Oct. 4, 2006, 120
Stat. 1427; Pub. L. 110–53, title IV, §§ 402, 403,
Aug. 3, 2007, 121 Stat. 302, 303.)
AMENDMENTS
2007—Subsec. (b)(2)(A)(iv) to (vi). Pub. L. 110–53, § 402,
added cls. (iv) to (vi) and struck out former cls. (iv) and
(v) which read as follows:
‘‘(iv) designed to provide for systematic evaluation of
readiness; and
‘‘(v) designed to address the unique requirements of
populations with special needs; and’’.
Subsec. (b)(2)(B). Pub. L. 110–53, § 403, in introductory
provisions, substituted ‘‘shall include a selection of
model exercises that State, local, and tribal governments can readily adapt for use and provide assistance
to State, local, and tribal governments with the design,
implementation, and evaluation of exercises (whether a
model exercise program or an exercise designed locally)’’ for ‘‘shall provide assistance to State, local,
and tribal governments with the design, implementation, and evaluation of exercises’’.

§ 749. Comprehensive assessment system
(a) Establishment
The Administrator, in coordination with the
National Council on Disability and the National
Advisory Council, shall establish a comprehensive system to assess, on an ongoing basis, the
Nation’s prevention capabilities and overall preparedness, including operational readiness.
(b) Performance metrics and measures
The Administrator shall ensure that each
component of the national preparedness system,
National Incident Management System, National Response Plan, and other related plans
and strategies, and the reports required under