Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act (PKEMRA) of 2006

120 STAT. 1394

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

Training’’, there is appropriated an additional $2,500,000, to remain
available until expended for National Special Security Events.
SEC. 560. Transfer authority contained in section 505 of the
Homeland Security Act, as amended by title VI of this Act, shall
be used in accordance with the provisions of section 1531(a)(2)
of title 31, United States Code.
Post-Katrina
Emergency
Management
Reform Act of
2006.
6 USC 701 note.

TITLE VI—NATIONAL EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT
SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ‘‘Post-Katrina Emergency
Management Reform Act of 2006’’.
6 USC 701.

SEC. 602. DEFINITIONS.

In this title—
(1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Administrator of
the Agency;
(2) the term ‘‘Agency’’ means the Federal Emergency
Management Agency;
(3) the term ‘‘appropriate committees of Congress’’ means—
(A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
(B) those committees of the House of Representatives
that the Speaker of the House of Representatives determines appropriate;
(4) the term ‘‘catastrophic incident’’ means any natural
disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster that
results in extraordinary levels of casualties or damage or
disruption severely affecting the population (including mass
evacuations), infrastructure, environment, economy, national
morale, or government functions in an area;
(5) the term ‘‘Department’’ means the Department of Homeland Security;
(6) the terms ‘‘emergency’’ and ‘‘major disaster’’ have the
meanings given the terms in section 102 of the Robert T.
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5122);
(7) the term ‘‘emergency management’’ means the governmental function that coordinates and integrates all activities
necessary to build, sustain, and improve the capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, or mitigate
against threatened or actual natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
or other man-made disasters;
(8) the term ‘‘emergency response provider’’ has the
meaning given the term in section 2 of the Homeland Security
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101), as amended by this Act;
(9) the term ‘‘Federal coordinating officer’’ means a Federal
coordinating officer as described in section 302 of the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5143);
(10) the term ‘‘individual with a disability’’ has the meaning
given the term in section 3 of the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102);

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

120 STAT. 1395

(11) the terms ‘‘local government’’ and ‘‘State’’ have the
meaning given the terms in section 2 of the Homeland Security
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101);
(12) the term ‘‘National Incident Management System’’
means a system to enable effective, efficient, and collaborative
incident management;
(13) the term ‘‘National Response Plan’’ means the National
Response Plan or any successor plan prepared under section
502(a)(6) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (as amended
by this Act);
(14) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of Homeland
Security;
(15) the term ‘‘surge capacity’’ means the ability to rapidly
and substantially increase the provision of search and rescue
capabilities, food, water, medicine, shelter and housing, medical
care, evacuation capacity, staffing (including disaster assistance
employees), and other resources necessary to save lives and
protect property during a catastrophic incident; and
(16) the term ‘‘tribal government’’ means the government
of an Indian tribe or authorized tribal organization, or in Alaska
a Native village or Alaska Regional Native Corporation.

Subtitle A—Federal Emergency
Management Agency
SEC. 611. STRUCTURING THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
AGENCY.

Title V of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 311
et seq.) is amended—
(1) by striking the title heading and inserting the following:

‘‘TITLE V—NATIONAL EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT’’;
(2) by striking section 501;
(3) by striking section 503;
(4) by striking section 507;
(5) by striking section 510 (relating to urban and other
high risk area communications capabilities);
(6) by redesignating sections 504, 505, 508, and 509 as
sections 517, 518, 519, and 520, respectively;
(7) by redesignating section 510 (relating to procurement
of security countermeasures for the strategic national stockpile)
as section 521;
(8) by redesignating section 502 as section 504;
(9) by redesignating section 506 as section 502 and transferring that section to before section 504, as redesignated by
paragraph (8) of this section;
(10) by inserting before section 502, as redesignated and
transferred by paragraph (9) of this section, the following:
‘‘SEC. 501. DEFINITIONS.

‘‘In this title—
‘‘(1) the term ‘Administrator’ means the Administrator of
the Agency;

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120 STAT. 1396

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006
‘‘(2) the term ‘Agency’ means the Federal Emergency
Management Agency;
‘‘(3) the term ‘catastrophic incident’ means any natural
disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster that
results in extraordinary levels of casualties or damage or
disruption severely affecting the population (including mass
evacuations), infrastructure, environment, economy, national
morale, or government functions in an area;
‘‘(4) the term ‘Federal coordinating officer’ means a Federal
coordinating officer as described in section 302 of the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5143);
‘‘(5) the term ‘interoperable’ has the meaning given the
term ‘interoperable communications’ under section 7303(g)(1)
of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of
2004 (6 U.S.C. 194(g)(1));
‘‘(6) the term ‘National Incident Management System’
means a system to enable effective, efficient, and collaborative
incident management;
‘‘(7) the term ‘National Response Plan’ means the National
Response Plan or any successor plan prepared under section
502(a)(6);
‘‘(8) the term ‘Regional Administrator’ means a Regional
Administrator appointed under section 507;
‘‘(9) the term ‘Regional Office’ means a Regional Office
established under section 507;
‘‘(10) the term ‘surge capacity’ means the ability to rapidly
and substantially increase the provision of search and rescue
capabilities, food, water, medicine, shelter and housing, medical
care, evacuation capacity, staffing (including disaster assistance
employees), and other resources necessary to save lives and
protect property during a catastrophic incident; and
‘‘(11) the term ‘tribal government’ means the government
of any entity described in section 2(10)(B).’’;
(11) by inserting after section 502, as redesignated and
transferred by paragraph (9) of this section, the following:

6 USC 313.

‘‘SEC. 503. FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is in the Department the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, headed by an Administrator.
‘‘(b) MISSION.—
‘‘(1) PRIMARY MISSION.—The primary mission of the Agency
is to reduce the loss of life and property and protect the Nation
from all hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
and other man-made disasters, by leading and supporting the
Nation in a risk-based, comprehensive emergency management
system of preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and
mitigation.
‘‘(2) SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES.—In support of the primary mission of the Agency, the Administrator shall—
‘‘(A) lead the Nation’s efforts to prepare for, protect
against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate against
the risk of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other
man-made disasters, including catastrophic incidents;
‘‘(B) partner with State, local, and tribal governments
and emergency response providers, with other Federal

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120 STAT. 1397

agencies, with the private sector, and with nongovernmental organizations to build a national system of emergency management that can effectively and efficiently utilize the full measure of the Nation’s resources to respond
to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other manmade disasters, including catastrophic incidents;
‘‘(C) develop a Federal response capability that, when
necessary and appropriate, can act effectively and rapidly
to deliver assistance essential to saving lives or protecting
or preserving property or public health and safety in a
natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster;
‘‘(D) integrate the Agency’s emergency preparedness,
protection, response, recovery, and mitigation responsibilities to confront effectively the challenges of a natural
disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster;
‘‘(E) develop and maintain robust Regional Offices that
will work with State, local, and tribal governments, emergency response providers, and other appropriate entities
to identify and address regional priorities;
‘‘(F) under the leadership of the Secretary, coordinate
with the Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Director
of Customs and Border Protection, the Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the National Operations
Center, and other agencies and offices in the Department
to take full advantage of the substantial range of resources
in the Department;
‘‘(G) provide funding, training, exercises, technical
assistance, planning, and other assistance to build tribal,
local, State, regional, and national capabilities (including
communications capabilities), necessary to respond to a
natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster; and
‘‘(H) develop and coordinate the implementation of a
risk-based, all-hazards strategy for preparedness that
builds those common capabilities necessary to respond to
natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made
disasters while also building the unique capabilities necessary to respond to specific types of incidents that pose
the greatest risk to our Nation.
‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATOR.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall be appointed
by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate.
‘‘(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Administrator shall be
appointed from among individuals who have—
‘‘(A) a demonstrated ability in and knowledge of emergency management and homeland security; and
‘‘(B) not less than 5 years of executive leadership and
management experience in the public or private sector.
‘‘(3) REPORTING.—The Administrator shall report to the
Secretary, without being required to report through any other
official of the Department.
‘‘(4) PRINCIPAL ADVISOR ON EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator is the principal
advisor to the President, the Homeland Security Council,

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120 STAT. 1398

6 USC 314.

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and the Secretary for all matters relating to emergency
management in the United States.
‘‘(B) ADVICE AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In presenting advice with respect
to any matter to the President, the Homeland Security
Council, or the Secretary, the Administrator shall, as
the Administrator considers appropriate, inform the
President, the Homeland Security Council, or the Secretary, as the case may be, of the range of emergency
preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation options with respect to that matter.
‘‘(ii) ADVICE ON REQUEST.—The Administrator, as
the principal advisor on emergency management, shall
provide advice to the President, the Homeland Security
Council, or the Secretary on a particular matter when
the President, the Homeland Security Council, or the
Secretary requests such advice.
‘‘(iii) RECOMMENDATIONS TO CONGRESS.—After
informing the Secretary, the Administrator may make
such recommendations to Congress relating to emergency management as the Administrator considers
appropriate.
‘‘(5) CABINET STATUS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President may designate the
Administrator to serve as a member of the Cabinet in
the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other
man-made disasters.
‘‘(B) RETENTION OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as affecting the authority of the
Secretary under this Act.’’;
(12) in section 504, as redesignated by paragraph (8) of
this section—
(A) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘authority and’’
before ‘‘responsibilities’’;
(B) by striking the matter preceding paragraph (1)
and inserting the following:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall provide Federal
leadership necessary to prepare for, protect against, respond to,
recover from, or mitigate against a natural disaster, act of terrorism,
or other man-made disaster, including—’’;
(C) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end;
and
(D) by striking paragraph (7) and inserting the following:
‘‘(7) helping ensure the acquisition of operable and interoperable communications capabilities by Federal, State, local,
and tribal governments and emergency response providers;
‘‘(8) assisting the President in carrying out the functions
under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) and carrying out all
functions and authorities given to the Administrator under
that Act;
‘‘(9) carrying out the mission of the Agency to reduce the
loss of life and property and protect the Nation from all hazards
by leading and supporting the Nation in a risk-based, comprehensive emergency management system of—

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‘‘(A) mitigation, by taking sustained actions to reduce
or eliminate long-term risks to people and property from
hazards and their effects;
‘‘(B) preparedness, by planning, training, and building
the emergency management profession to prepare effectively for, mitigate against, respond to, and recover from
any hazard;
‘‘(C) response, by conducting emergency operations to
save lives and property through positioning emergency
equipment, personnel, and supplies, through evacuating
potential victims, through providing food, water, shelter,
and medical care to those in need, and through restoring
critical public services; and
‘‘(D) recovery, by rebuilding communities so individuals, businesses, and governments can function on their
own, return to normal life, and protect against future hazards;
‘‘(10) increasing efficiencies, by coordinating efforts relating
to preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation;
‘‘(11) helping to ensure the effectiveness of emergency
response providers in responding to a natural disaster, act
of terrorism, or other man-made disaster;
‘‘(12) supervising grant programs administered by the
Agency;
‘‘(13) administering and ensuring the implementation of
the National Response Plan, including coordinating and
ensuring the readiness of each emergency support function
under the National Response Plan;
‘‘(14) coordinating with the National Advisory Council
established under section 508;
‘‘(15) preparing and implementing the plans and programs
of the Federal Government for—
‘‘(A) continuity of operations;
‘‘(B) continuity of government; and
‘‘(C) continuity of plans;
‘‘(16) minimizing, to the extent practicable, overlapping
planning and reporting requirements applicable to State, local,
and tribal governments and the private sector;
‘‘(17) maintaining and operating within the Agency the
National Response Coordination Center or its successor;
‘‘(18) developing a national emergency management system
that is capable of preparing for, protecting against, responding
to, recovering from, and mitigating against catastrophic
incidents;
‘‘(19) assisting the President in carrying out the functions
under the national preparedness goal and the national
preparedness system and carrying out all functions and authorities of the Administrator under the national preparedness
System;
‘‘(20) carrying out all authorities of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency and the Directorate of Preparedness of
the Department as transferred under section 505; and
‘‘(21) otherwise carrying out the mission of the Agency
as described in section 503(b).
‘‘(b) ALL-HAZARDS APPROACH.—In carrying out the responsibilities under this section, the Administrator shall coordinate the
implementation of a risk-based, all-hazards strategy that builds

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those common capabilities necessary to prepare for, protect against,
respond to, recover from, or mitigate against natural disasters,
acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters, while also building
the unique capabilities necessary to prepare for, protect against,
respond to, recover from, or mitigate against the risks of specific
types of incidents that pose the greatest risk to the Nation.’’; and
(13) by inserting after section 504, as redesignated by paragraph (8) of this section, the following:
6 USC 315.

‘‘SEC. 505. FUNCTIONS TRANSFERRED.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (b), there
are transferred to the Agency the following:
‘‘(1) All functions of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency, including existing responsibilities for emergency alert
systems and continuity of operations and continuity of government plans and programs as constituted on June 1, 2006,
including all of its personnel, assets, components, authorities,
grant programs, and liabilities, and including the functions
of the Under Secretary for Federal Emergency Management
relating thereto.
‘‘(2) The Directorate of Preparedness, as constituted on
June 1, 2006, including all of its functions, personnel, assets,
components, authorities, grant programs, and liabilities, and
including the functions of the Under Secretary for Preparedness
relating thereto.
‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—The following within the Preparedness Directorate shall not be transferred:
‘‘(1) The Office of Infrastructure Protection.
‘‘(2) The National Communications System.
‘‘(3) The National Cybersecurity Division.
‘‘(4) The Office of the Chief Medical Officer.
‘‘(5) The functions, personnel, assets, components, authorities, and liabilities of each component described under paragraphs (1) through (4).
6 USC 316.

‘‘SEC. 506. PRESERVING THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
AGENCY.

‘‘(a) DISTINCT ENTITY.—The Agency shall be maintained as
a distinct entity within the Department.
‘‘(b) REORGANIZATION.—Section 872 shall not apply to the
Agency, including any function or organizational unit of the Agency.
‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON CHANGES TO MISSIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not substantially
or significantly reduce the authorities, responsibilities, or functions of the Agency or the capability of the Agency to perform
those missions, authorities, responsibilities, except as otherwise
specifically provided in an Act enacted after the date of enactment of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act
of 2006.
‘‘(2) CERTAIN TRANSFERS PROHIBITED.—No asset, function,
or mission of the Agency may be diverted to the principal
and continuing use of any other organization, unit, or entity
of the Department, except for details or assignments that do
not reduce the capability of the Agency to perform its missions.
‘‘(d) REPROGRAMMING AND TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—In reprogramming or transferring funds, the Secretary shall comply with any
applicable provisions of any Act making appropriations for the

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Department for fiscal year 2007, or any succeeding fiscal year,
relating to the reprogramming or transfer of funds.
‘‘SEC. 507. REGIONAL OFFICES.

6 USC 317.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are in the Agency 10 regional offices,
as identified by the Administrator.
‘‘(b) MANAGEMENT OF REGIONAL OFFICES.—
‘‘(1) REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR.—Each Regional Office shall
be headed by a Regional Administrator who shall be appointed
by the Administrator, after consulting with State, local, and
tribal government officials in the region. Each Regional
Administrator shall report directly to the Administrator and
be in the Senior Executive Service.
‘‘(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each Regional Administrator shall
be appointed from among individuals who have a demonstrated ability in and knowledge of emergency management and homeland security.
‘‘(B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting a Regional
Administrator for a Regional Office, the Administrator shall
consider the familiarity of an individual with the geographical area and demographic characteristics of the population served by such Regional Office.
‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Regional Administrator shall work
in partnership with State, local, and tribal governments, emergency managers, emergency response providers, medical providers, the private sector, nongovernmental organizations,
multijurisdictional councils of governments, and regional planning commissions and organizations in the geographical area
served by the Regional Office to carry out the responsibilities
of a Regional Administrator under this section.
‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The responsibilities of a Regional
Administrator include—
‘‘(A) ensuring effective, coordinated, and integrated
regional preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and
mitigation activities and programs for natural disasters,
acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters (including
planning, training, exercises, and professional development);
‘‘(B) assisting in the development of regional capabilities needed for a national catastrophic response system;
‘‘(C) coordinating the establishment of effective regional
operable and interoperable emergency communications
capabilities;
‘‘(D) staffing and overseeing 1 or more strike teams
within the region under subsection (f), to serve as the
focal point of the Federal Government’s initial response
efforts for natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other
man-made disasters within that region, and otherwise
building Federal response capabilities to respond to natural
disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters
within that region;
‘‘(E) designating an individual responsible for the
development of strategic and operational regional plans
in support of the National Response Plan;

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‘‘(F) fostering the development of mutual aid and other
cooperative agreements;
‘‘(G) identifying critical gaps in regional capabilities
to respond to populations with special needs;
‘‘(H) maintaining and operating a Regional Response
Coordination Center or its successor; and
‘‘(I) performing such other duties relating to such
responsibilities as the Administrator may require.
‘‘(3) TRAINING AND EXERCISE REQUIREMENTS.—
‘‘(A) TRAINING.—The Administrator shall require each
Regional Administrator to undergo specific training periodically to complement the qualifications of the Regional
Administrator. Such training, as appropriate, shall include
training with respect to the National Incident Management
System, the National Response Plan, and such other subjects as determined by the Administrator.
‘‘(B) EXERCISES.—The Administrator shall require each
Regional Administrator to participate as appropriate in
regional and national exercises.
‘‘(d) AREA OFFICES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is an Area Office for the Pacific
and an Area Office for the Caribbean, as components in the
appropriate Regional Offices.
‘‘(2) ALASKA.—The Administrator shall establish an Area
Office in Alaska, as a component in the appropriate Regional
Office.
‘‘(e) REGIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Each Regional Administrator shall
establish a Regional Advisory Council.
‘‘(2) NOMINATIONS.—A State, local, or tribal government
located within the geographic area served by the Regional
Office may nominate officials, including Adjutants General and
emergency managers, to serve as members of the Regional
Advisory Council for that region.
‘‘(3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each Regional Advisory Council
shall—
‘‘(A) advise the Regional Administrator on emergency
management issues specific to that region;
‘‘(B) identify any geographic, demographic, or other
characteristics peculiar to any State, local, or tribal government within the region that might make preparedness,
protection, response, recovery, or mitigation more complicated or difficult; and
‘‘(C) advise the Regional Administrator of any weaknesses or deficiencies in preparedness, protection, response,
recovery, and mitigation for any State, local, and tribal
government within the region of which the Regional
Advisory Council is aware.
‘‘(f) REGIONAL OFFICE STRIKE TEAMS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In coordination with other relevant Federal agencies, each Regional Administrator shall oversee multiagency strike teams authorized under section 303 of the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5144) that shall consist of—
‘‘(A) a designated Federal coordinating officer;
‘‘(B) personnel trained in incident management;

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‘‘(C) public affairs, response and recovery, and communications support personnel;
‘‘(D) a defense coordinating officer;
‘‘(E) liaisons to other Federal agencies;
‘‘(F) such other personnel as the Administrator or
Regional Administrator determines appropriate; and
‘‘(G) individuals from the agencies with primary
responsibility for each of the emergency support functions
in the National Response Plan.
‘‘(2) OTHER DUTIES.—The duties of an individual assigned
to a Regional Office strike team from another relevant agency
when such individual is not functioning as a member of the
strike team shall be consistent with the emergency preparedness activities of the agency that employs such individual.
‘‘(3) LOCATION OF MEMBERS.—The members of each
Regional Office strike team, including representatives from
agencies other than the Department, shall be based primarily
within the region that corresponds to that strike team.
‘‘(4) COORDINATION.—Each Regional Office strike team shall
coordinate the training and exercises of that strike team with
the State, local, and tribal governments and private sector
and nongovernmental entities which the strike team shall support when a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other manmade disaster occurs.
‘‘(5) PREPAREDNESS.—Each Regional Office strike team
shall be trained as a unit on a regular basis and equipped
and staffed to be well prepared to respond to natural disasters,
acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters, including
catastrophic incidents.
‘‘(6) AUTHORITIES.—If the Administrator determines that
statutory authority is inadequate for the preparedness and
deployment of individuals in strike teams under this subsection,
the Administrator shall report to Congress regarding the additional statutory authorities that the Administrator determines
are necessary.

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‘‘SEC. 508. NATIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL.

6 USC 318.

‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days after the date
of enactment of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform
Act of 2006, the Secretary shall establish an advisory body under
section 871(a) to ensure effective and ongoing coordination of Federal preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation
for natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters, to be known as the National Advisory Council.
‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The National Advisory Council shall
advise the Administrator on all aspects of emergency management.
The National Advisory Council shall incorporate State, local, and
tribal government and private sector input in the development
and revision of the national preparedness goal, the national
preparedness system, the National Incident Management System,
the National Response Plan, and other related plans and strategies.
‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The members of the National Advisory
Council shall be appointed by the Administrator, and shall,
to the extent practicable, represent a geographic (including
urban and rural) and substantive cross section of officials,
emergency managers, and emergency response providers from

Deadline.

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State, local, and tribal governments, the private sector, and
nongovernmental organizations, including as appropriate—
‘‘(A) members selected from the emergency management field and emergency response providers, including
fire service, law enforcement, hazardous materials
response, emergency medical services, and emergency
management personnel, or organizations representing such
individuals;
‘‘(B) health scientists, emergency and inpatient medical
providers, and public health professionals;
‘‘(C) experts from Federal, State, local, and tribal
governments, and the private sector, representing standards-setting and accrediting organizations, including representatives from the voluntary consensus codes and standards development community, particularly those with
expertise in the emergency preparedness and response
field;
‘‘(D) State, local, and tribal government officials with
expertise in preparedness, protection, response, recovery,
and mitigation, including Adjutants General;
‘‘(E) elected State, local, and tribal government executives;
‘‘(F) experts in public and private sector infrastructure
protection, cybersecurity, and communications;
‘‘(G) representatives of individuals with disabilities and
other populations with special needs; and
‘‘(H) such other individuals as the Administrator determines to be appropriate.
‘‘(2) COORDINATION WITH THE DEPARTMENTS OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES AND TRANSPORTATION.—In the selection of
members of the National Advisory Council who are health
or emergency medical services professionals, the Administrator
shall work with the Secretary of Health and Human Services
and the Secretary of Transportation.
‘‘(3) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—The Administrator shall designate 1 or more officers of the Federal Government to serve
as ex officio members of the National Advisory Council.
‘‘(4) TERMS OF OFFICE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph
(B), the term of office of each member of the National
Advisory Council shall be 3 years.
‘‘(B) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—Of the members initially
appointed to the National Advisory Council—
‘‘(i) one-third shall be appointed for a term of 1
year; and
‘‘(ii) one-third shall be appointed for a term of
2 years.
‘‘(d) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 871(a) and subject to paragraph (2), the Federal Advisory Committee Act
(5 U.S.C. App.), including subsections (a), (b), and (d) of section
10 of such Act, and section 552b(c) of title 5, United States
Code, shall apply to the National Advisory Council.
‘‘(2) TERMINATION.—Section 14(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the National
Advisory Council.

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‘‘SEC. 509. NATIONAL INTEGRATION CENTER.

6 USC 319.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the Agency a
National Integration Center.
‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, through the National
Integration Center, and in consultation with other Federal
departments and agencies and the National Advisory Council,
shall ensure ongoing management and maintenance of the
National Incident Management System, the National Response
Plan, and any successor to such system or plan.
‘‘(2) SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES.—The National Integration
Center shall periodically review, and revise as appropriate,
the National Incident Management System and the National
Response Plan, including—
‘‘(A) establishing, in consultation with the Director of
the Corporation for National and Community Service, a
process to better use volunteers and donations;
‘‘(B) improving the use of Federal, State, local, and
tribal resources and ensuring the effective use of emergency
response providers at emergency scenes; and
‘‘(C) revising the Catastrophic Incident Annex, finalizing and releasing the Catastrophic Incident Supplement
to the National Response Plan, and ensuring that both
effectively address response requirements in the event of
a catastrophic incident.
‘‘(c) INCIDENT MANAGEMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(A) NATIONAL RESPONSE PLAN.—The Secretary, acting
through the Administrator, shall ensure that the National
Response Plan provides for a clear chain of command to
lead and coordinate the Federal response to any natural
disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster.
‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATOR.—The chain of the command specified in the National Response Plan shall—
‘‘(i) provide for a role for the Administrator consistent with the role of the Administrator as the principal emergency management advisor to the President,
the Homeland Security Council, and the Secretary
under section 503(c)(4) and the responsibility of the
Administrator under the Post-Katrina Emergency
Management Reform Act of 2006, and the amendments
made by that Act, relating to natural disasters, acts
of terrorism, and other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(ii) provide for a role for the Federal Coordinating
Officer consistent with the responsibilities under section 302(b) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5143(b)).
‘‘(2) PRINCIPAL FEDERAL OFFICIAL.—The Principal Federal
Official (or the successor thereto) shall not—
‘‘(A) direct or replace the incident command structure
established at the incident; or
‘‘(B) have directive authority over the Senior Federal
Law Enforcement Official, Federal Coordinating Officer,
or other Federal and State officials.

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120 STAT. 1406
6 USC 320.

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

‘‘SEC. 510. CREDENTIALING AND TYPING.

‘‘The Administrator shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the administrators of the Emergency Management
Assistance Compact, State, local, and tribal governments, and
organizations that represent emergency response providers, to
collaborate on developing standards for deployment capabilities,
including credentialing of personnel and typing of resources likely
needed to respond to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other
man-made disasters.
6 USC 321.

‘‘SEC. 511. THE NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE SIMULATION AND ANALYSIS CENTER.

‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center’ means the National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center established under section
1016(d) of the USA PATRIOT Act (42 U.S.C. 5195c(d)).
‘‘(b) AUTHORITY.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is in the Department the National
Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center which shall
serve as a source of national expertise to address critical infrastructure protection and continuity through support for activities related to—
‘‘(A) counterterrorism, threat assessment, and risk
mitigation; and
‘‘(B) a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other manmade disaster.
‘‘(2) INFRASTRUCTURE MODELING.—
‘‘(A) PARTICULAR SUPPORT.—The support provided
under paragraph (1) shall include modeling, simulation,
and analysis of the systems and assets comprising critical
infrastructure, in order to enhance preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation activities.
‘‘(B) RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER AGENCIES.—Each Federal agency and department with critical infrastructure
responsibilities under Homeland Security Presidential
Directive 7, or any successor to such directive, shall establish a formal relationship, including an agreement
regarding information sharing, between the elements of
such agency or department and the National Infrastructure
Simulation and Analysis Center, through the Department.
‘‘(C) PURPOSE.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The purpose of the relationship
under subparagraph (B) shall be to permit each Federal
agency and department described in subparagraph (B)
to take full advantage of the capabilities of the National
Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center
(particularly vulnerability and consequence analysis),
consistent with its work load capacity and priorities,
for real-time response to reported and projected natural
disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters.
‘‘(ii) RECIPIENT OF CERTAIN SUPPORT.—Modeling,
simulation, and analysis provided under this subsection shall be provided to relevant Federal agencies
and departments, including Federal agencies and

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departments with critical infrastructure responsibilities under Homeland Security Presidential Directive
7, or any successor to such directive.
‘‘SEC. 512. EVACUATION PLANS AND EXERCISES.

6 USC 321a.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
and subject to subsection (d), grants made to States or local or
tribal governments by the Department through the State Homeland
Security Grant Program or the Urban Area Security Initiative
may be used to—
‘‘(1) establish programs for the development and maintenance of mass evacuation plans under subsection (b) in the
event of a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other manmade disaster;
‘‘(2) prepare for the execution of such plans, including the
development of evacuation routes and the purchase and stockpiling of necessary supplies and shelters; and
‘‘(3) conduct exercises of such plans.
‘‘(b) PLAN DEVELOPMENT.—In developing the mass evacuation
plans authorized under subsection (a), each State, local, or tribal
government shall, to the maximum extent practicable—
‘‘(1) establish incident command and decision making processes;
‘‘(2) ensure that State, local, and tribal government plans,
including evacuation routes, are coordinated and integrated;
‘‘(3) identify primary and alternative evacuation routes and
methods to increase evacuation capabilities along such routes
such as conversion of two-way traffic to one-way evacuation
routes;
‘‘(4) identify evacuation transportation modes and capabilities, including the use of mass and public transit capabilities,
and coordinating and integrating evacuation plans for all populations including for those individuals located in hospitals,
nursing homes, and other institutional living facilities;
‘‘(5) develop procedures for informing the public of evacuation plans before and during an evacuation, including
individuals—
‘‘(A) with disabilities or other special needs;
‘‘(B) with limited English proficiency; or
‘‘(C) who might otherwise have difficulty in obtaining
such information; and
‘‘(6) identify shelter locations and capabilities.
‘‘(c) ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may establish any
guidelines, standards, or requirements determined appropriate
to administer this section and to ensure effective mass evacuation planning for State, local, and tribal areas.
‘‘(2) REQUESTED ASSISTANCE.—The Administrator shall
make assistance available upon request of a State, local, or
tribal government to assist hospitals, nursing homes, and other
institutions that house individuals with special needs to establish, maintain, and exercise mass evacuation plans that are
coordinated and integrated into the plans developed by that
State, local, or tribal government under this section.
‘‘(d) MULTIPURPOSE FUNDS.—Nothing in this section may be
construed to preclude a State, local, or tribal government from
using grant funds in a manner that enhances preparedness for

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

a natural or man-made disaster unrelated to an act of terrorism,
if such use assists such government in building capabilities for
terrorism preparedness.
6 USC 321b.

‘‘SEC. 513. DISABILITY COORDINATOR.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—After consultation with organizations representing individuals with disabilities, the National Council on
Disabilities, and the Interagency Coordinating Council on Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities, established under Executive
Order No. 13347 (6 U.S.C. 312 note), the Administrator shall
appoint a Disability Coordinator. The Disability Coordinator shall
report directly to the Administrator, in order to ensure that the
needs of individuals with disabilities are being properly addressed
in emergency preparedness and disaster relief.
‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Disability Coordinator shall be
responsible for—
‘‘(1) providing guidance and coordination on matters related
to individuals with disabilities in emergency planning requirements and relief efforts in the event of a natural disaster,
act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster;
‘‘(2) interacting with the staff of the Agency, the National
Council on Disabilities, the Interagency Coordinating Council
on Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities established
under Executive Order No. 13347 (6 U.S.C. 312 note), other
agencies of the Federal Government, and State, local, and tribal
government authorities regarding the needs of individuals with
disabilities in emergency planning requirements and relief
efforts in the event of a natural disaster, act of terrorism,
or other man-made disaster;
‘‘(3) consulting with organizations that represent the
interests and rights of individuals with disabilities about the
needs of individuals with disabilities in emergency planning
requirements and relief efforts in the event of a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster;
‘‘(4) ensuring the coordination and dissemination of best
practices and model evacuation plans for individuals with
disabilities;
‘‘(5) ensuring the development of training materials and
a curriculum for training of emergency response providers,
State, local, and tribal government officials, and others on
the needs of individuals with disabilities;
‘‘(6) promoting the accessibility of telephone hotlines and
websites regarding emergency preparedness, evacuations, and
disaster relief;
‘‘(7) working to ensure that video programming distributors,
including broadcasters, cable operators, and satellite television
services, make emergency information accessible to individuals
with hearing and vision disabilities;
‘‘(8) ensuring the availability of accessible transportation
options for individuals with disabilities in the event of an
evacuation;
‘‘(9) providing guidance and implementing policies to ensure
that the rights and wishes of individuals with disabilities
regarding post-evacuation residency and relocation are
respected;
‘‘(10) ensuring that meeting the needs of individuals with
disabilities are included in the components of the national

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preparedness system established under section 644 of the PostKatrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006; and
‘‘(11) any other duties as assigned by the Administrator.
‘‘SEC. 514. DEPARTMENT AND AGENCY OFFICIALS.

6 USC 321c.

‘‘(a) DEPUTY ADMINISTRATORS.—The President may appoint, by
and with the advice and consent of the Senate, not more than
4 Deputy Administrators to assist the Administrator in carrying
out this title.
‘‘(b) CYBERSECURITY AND COMMUNICATIONS.—There is in the
Department an Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity and Communications.
‘‘(c) UNITED STATES FIRE ADMINISTRATION.—The Administrator
of the United States Fire Administration shall have a rank equivalent to an assistant secretary of the Department.
‘‘SEC. 515. NATIONAL OPERATIONS CENTER.

6 USC 321d.

‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘situational awareness’ means information gathered from a variety of sources that,
when communicated to emergency managers and decision makers,
can form the basis for incident management decisionmaking.
‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The National Operations Center is the
principal operations center for the Department and shall—
‘‘(1) provide situational awareness and a common operating
picture for the entire Federal Government, and for State, local,
and tribal governments as appropriate, in the event of a natural
disaster, act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster; and
‘‘(2) ensure that critical terrorism and disaster-related
information reaches government decision-makers.
‘‘SEC. 516. CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER.

6 USC 321e.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is in the Department a Chief Medical
Officer, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate.
‘‘(b) QUALIFICATIONS.—The individual appointed as Chief Medical Officer shall possess a demonstrated ability in and knowledge
of medicine and public health.
‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Chief Medical Officer shall have
the primary responsibility within the Department for medical issues
related to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other manmade disasters, including—
‘‘(1) serving as the principal advisor to the Secretary and
the Administrator on medical and public health issues;
‘‘(2) coordinating the biodefense activities of the Department;
‘‘(3) ensuring internal and external coordination of all medical preparedness and response activities of the Department,
including training, exercises, and equipment support;
‘‘(4) serving as the Department’s primary point of contact
with the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense,
the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Veterans Affairs,
and other Federal departments or agencies, on medical and
public health issues;
‘‘(5) serving as the Department’s primary point of contact
for State, local, and tribal governments, the medical community,
and others within and outside the Department, with respect
to medical and public health matters;

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006
‘‘(6) discharging, in coordination with the Under Secretary
for Science and Technology, the responsibilities of the Department related to Project Bioshield; and
‘‘(7) performing such other duties relating to such responsibilities as the Secretary may require.’’.

SEC. 612. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

6 USC 313 note.

(a) EXECUTIVE SCHEDULE.—
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—Section 5313 of title 5, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency.’’.
(2) DEPUTY ADMINISTRATORS.—Section 5314 of title 5,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
‘‘Deputy Administrators, Federal Emergency Management
Agency.’’.
(3) CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER.—Section 5315 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘Chief Medical Officer, Department of Homeland Security.’’.
(b) OFFICERS OF THE DEPARTMENT.—Section 103(a) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 113(a)) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the following:
‘‘(5) An Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.’’;
(2) by striking paragraph (2); and
(3) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (10) (as
amended by this subsection) as paragraphs (2) through (9),
respectively.
(c) REFERENCES.—Any reference to the Director of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, in any law, rule, regulation, certificate, directive, instruction, or other official paper shall be considered to refer and apply to the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
(d) DEFINITION.—Section 2(6) of the Homeland Security Act
of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101(6)) is amended by inserting ‘‘fire,’’ after
‘‘safety,’’.
(e) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in section 1(b)
of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is
amended by striking the items relating to title V and sections
501 through 509 and inserting the following:
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.

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501.
502.
503.
504.
505.
506.
507.
508.
509.
510.
511.
512.
513.
514.
515.
516.
517.
518.

‘‘TITLE V—NATIONAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
Definitions.
Definition.
Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Authorities and responsibilities.
Functions transferred.
Preserving the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Regional Offices.
National Advisory Council.
National Integration Center.
Credentialing and typing.
The National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center.
Evacuation plans and exercises.
Disability Coordinator.
Department and Agency officials.
National Operations Center.
Chief Medical Officer.
Nuclear incident response.
Conduct of certain public health-related activities.

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‘‘Sec. 519. Use of national private sector networks in emergency response.
‘‘Sec. 520. Use of commercially available technology, goods, and services.
‘‘Sec. 521. Procurement of security countermeasures for strategic national stockpile.’’.

(f) INTERIM ACTIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—During the period beginning on the date
of enactment of this Act and ending on March 31, 2007, the
Secretary, the Under Secretary for Preparedness, and the
Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall
take such actions as are necessary to provide for the orderly
implementation of any amendment under this subtitle that
takes effect on March 31, 2007.
(2) REFERENCES.—Any reference to the Administrator of
the Federal Emergency Management Agency in this title or
an amendment by this title shall be considered to refer and
apply to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency until March 31, 2007.
SEC. 613. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

6 USC 311 note.

6 USC 313 note.

6 USC 701 note.

Nothing in this title shall alter or otherwise affect the authorities and activities of the National Weather Service to protect life
and property, including under the Act of October 1, 1890 (26 Stat.
653-55).
SEC. 614. EFFECTIVE DATE.

6 USC 701 note.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (b), this
title and the amendments made by this title shall take effect
on the date of enactment of this Act.
(b) EXCEPTIONS.—The following shall take effect on March 31,
2007:
(1) The amendments made by section 611(11).
(2) The amendments made by section 611(12).
(3) Sections 505, 507, 508, and 514 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as amended by section 611(13) of this Act.
(4) The amendments made by subsection (a).
(5) The amendments made by subsection (b)(1).

Subtitle B—Personnel Provisions
CHAPTER 1—FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
AGENCY PERSONNEL
SEC. 621. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart I of part III of title 5, United States
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘CHAPTER 101—FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
AGENCY PERSONNEL
‘‘Sec.
‘‘10101.
‘‘10102.
‘‘10103.
‘‘10104.
‘‘10105.
‘‘10106.

Definitions.
Strategic human capital plan.
Career paths.
Recruitment bonuses.
Retention bonuses.
Quarterly report on vacancy rate in employee positions.

‘‘§ 10101. Definitions
‘‘For purposes of this chapter—

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‘‘(1) the term ‘Agency’ means the Federal Emergency
Management Agency;
‘‘(2) the term ‘Administrator’ means the Administrator of
the Federal Emergency Management Agency;
‘‘(3) the term ‘appropriate committees of Congress’ has the
meaning given the term in section 602 of the Post-Katrina
Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006;
‘‘(4) the term ‘Department’ means the Department of Homeland Security; and
‘‘(5) the term ‘Surge Capacity Force’ refers to the Surge
Capacity Force, described under section 624 of the Post-Katrina
Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006.

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‘‘§ 10102. Strategic human capital plan
‘‘(a) PLAN DEVELOPMENT.—Not later than 6 months after the
date of enactment of this chapter, the Administrator shall develop
and submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a strategic
human capital plan to shape and improve the workforce of the
Agency.
‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—The strategic human capital plan shall
include—
‘‘(1) a workforce gap analysis, including an assessment
of—
‘‘(A) the critical skills and competencies that will be
needed in the workforce of the Agency to support the mission and responsibilities of, and effectively manage, the
Agency during the 10-year period beginning on the date
of enactment of this chapter;
‘‘(B) the skills and competencies of the workforce of
the Agency on the day before the date of enactment of
this chapter and projected trends in that workforce, based
on expected losses due to retirement and other attrition;
and
‘‘(C) the staffing levels of each category of employee,
including gaps in the workforce of the Agency on the day
before the date of enactment of this chapter and in the
projected workforce of the Agency that should be addressed
to ensure that the Agency has continued access to the
critical skills and competencies described in subparagraph
(A);
‘‘(2) a plan of action for developing and reshaping the
workforce of the Agency to address the gaps in critical skills
and competencies identified under paragraph (1)(C), including—
‘‘(A) specific recruitment and retention goals, including
the use of the bonus authorities under this chapter as
well as other bonus authorities (including the program
objective of the Agency to be achieved through such goals);
‘‘(B) specific strategies for developing, training,
deploying, compensating, and motivating and retaining the
Agency workforce and its ability to fulfill the Agency’s
mission and responsibilities (including the program objectives of the Department and the Agency to be achieved
through such strategies);
‘‘(C) specific strategies for recruiting individuals who
have served in multiple State agencies with emergency
management responsibilities; and

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‘‘(D) specific strategies for the development, training,
and coordinated and rapid deployment of the Surge
Capacity Force; and
‘‘(3) a discussion that—
‘‘(A) details the number of employees of the Department
not employed by the Agency serving in the Surge Capacity
Force and the qualifications or credentials of such individuals;
‘‘(B) details the number of individuals not employed
by the Department serving in the Surge Capacity Force
and the qualifications or credentials of such individuals;
‘‘(C) describes the training given to the Surge Capacity
Force during the calendar year preceding the year of
submission of the plan under subsection (c);
‘‘(D) states whether the Surge Capacity Force is able
to adequately prepare for, respond to, and recover from
natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made
disasters, including catastrophic incidents; and
‘‘(E) describes any additional authorities or resources
necessary to address any deficiencies in the Surge Capacity
Force.
‘‘(c) ANNUAL UPDATES.—Not later than May 1, 2007, and May
1st of each of the next 5 succeeding years, the Administrator shall
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress an update of
the strategic human capital plan, including an assessment by the
Administrator, using results-oriented performance measures, of the
progress of the Department and the Agency in implementing the
strategic human capital plan.
‘‘§ 10103. Career paths
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall—
‘‘(1) ensure that appropriate career paths for personnel
of the Agency are identified, including the education, training,
experience, and assignments necessary for career progression
within the Agency; and
‘‘(2) publish information on the career paths described in
paragraph (1).
‘‘(b) EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND EXPERIENCE.—The Administrator shall ensure that all personnel of the Agency are provided
the opportunity to acquire the education, training, and experience
necessary to qualify for promotion within the Agency, including,
as appropriate, the opportunity to participate in the Rotation Program established under section 844 of the Homeland Security Act
of 2002.
‘‘(c) POLICY.—The Administrator shall establish a policy for
assigning Agency personnel to positions that provides for a balance
between—
‘‘(1) the need for such personnel to serve in career
enhancing positions; and
‘‘(2) the need to require service in a position for a sufficient
period of time to provide the stability necessary—
‘‘(A) to carry out the duties of that position; and
‘‘(B) for responsibility and accountability for actions
taken in that position.

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‘‘§ 10104. Recruitment bonuses
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may pay a bonus to an
individual in order to recruit the individual for a position within
the Agency that would otherwise be difficult to fill in the absence
of such a bonus. Upon completion of the strategic human capital
plan, such bonuses shall be paid in accordance with that plan.
‘‘(b) BONUS AMOUNT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of a bonus under this section
shall be determined by the Administrator, but may not exceed
25 percent of the annual rate of basic pay of the position
involved.
‘‘(2) FORM OF PAYMENT.—A bonus under this section shall
be paid in the form of a lump-sum payment and shall not
be considered to be part of basic pay.
‘‘(c) SERVICE AGREEMENTS.—Payment of a bonus under this
section shall be contingent upon the employee entering into a written service agreement with the Agency. The agreement shall
include—
‘‘(1) the period of service the individual shall be required
to complete in return for the bonus; and
‘‘(2) the conditions under which the agreement may be
terminated before the agreed-upon service period has been completed, and the effect of the termination.
‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY.—A bonus under this section may not be paid
to an individual who is appointed to or holds—
‘‘(1) a position to which an individual is appointed by the
President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate;
‘‘(2) a position in the Senior Executive Service as a noncareer appointee (as defined in section 3132(a)); or
‘‘(3) a position which has been excepted from the competitive service by reason of its confidential, policy-determining,
policy-making, or policy-advocating character.
‘‘(e) TERMINATION.—The authority to pay bonuses under this
section shall terminate 5 years after the date of enactment of
this chapter.
‘‘(f) REPORTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Agency shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress, annually for each of the 5 years
during which this section is in effect, a report on the operation
of this section.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under this subsection shall include, with respect to the period covered by
such report, a description of how the authority to pay bonuses
under this section was used by the Agency, including—
‘‘(A) the number and dollar amount of bonuses paid
to individuals holding positions within each pay grade,
pay level, or other pay classification; and
‘‘(B) a determination of the extent to which such
bonuses furthered the purposes of this section.
‘‘§ 10105. Retention bonuses
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Administrator may pay, on a case-bycase basis, a bonus under this section to an employee of the Agency
if—
‘‘(1) the unusually high or unique qualifications of the
employee or a special need of the Agency for the employee’s
services makes it essential to retain the employee; and

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‘‘(2) the Administrator determines that, in the absence
of such a bonus, the employee would be likely to leave—
‘‘(A) the Federal service; or
‘‘(B) for a different position in the Federal service.
‘‘(b) SERVICE AGREEMENT.—Payment of a bonus under this section is contingent upon the employee entering into a written service
agreement with the Agency to complete a period of service with
the Agency. Such agreement shall include—
‘‘(1) the period of service the individual shall be required
to complete in return for the bonus; and
‘‘(2) the conditions under which the agreement may be
terminated before the agreed-upon service period has been completed, and the effect of the termination.
‘‘(c) BONUS AMOUNT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of a bonus under this section
shall be determined by the Administrator, but may not exceed
25 percent of the annual rate of basic pay of the position
involved.
‘‘(2) FORM OF PAYMENT.—A bonus under this section shall
be paid in the form of a lump-sum payment and shall not
be considered to be part of basic pay.
‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—A bonus under this section—
‘‘(1) may not be based on any period of service which
is the basis for a recruitment bonus under section 10104;
‘‘(2) may not be paid to an individual who is appointed
to or holds—
‘‘(A) a position to which an individual is appointed
by the President, by and with the advice and consent
of the Senate;
‘‘(B) a position in the Senior Executive Service as a
noncareer appointee (as defined in section 3132(a)); or
‘‘(C) a position which has been excepted from the
competitive service by reason of its confidential, policydetermining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character;
and
‘‘(3) upon completion of the strategic human capital plan,
shall be paid in accordance with that plan.
‘‘(e) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority to grant
bonuses under this section shall expire 5 years after the date
of enactment of this chapter.
‘‘(f) REPORTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Personnel Management
shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress,
annually for each of the first 5 years during which this section
is in effect, a report on the operation of this section.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under this subsection shall include, with respect to the period covered by
such report, a description of how the authority to pay bonuses
under this section was used by the Agency, including, with
respect to each such agency—
‘‘(A) the number and dollar amount of bonuses paid
to individuals holding positions within each pay grade,
pay level, or other pay classification; and
‘‘(B) a determination of the extent to which such
bonuses furthered the purposes of this section.

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‘‘§ 10106. Quarterly report on vacancy rate in employee positions
‘‘(a) INITIAL REPORT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 months after the date
of enactment of this chapter, the Administrator shall develop
and submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report
on the vacancies in employee positions of the Agency.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The report under this subsection shall
include—
‘‘(A) vacancies of each category of employee position;
‘‘(B) the number of applicants for each vacancy for
which public notice has been given;
‘‘(C) the length of time that each vacancy has been
pending;
‘‘(D) hiring-cycle time for each vacancy that has been
filled; and
‘‘(E) a plan for reducing the hiring-cycle time and
reducing the current and anticipated vacancies with highlyqualified personnel.
‘‘(b) QUARTERLY UPDATES.—Not later than 3 months after
submission of the initial report, and every 3 months thereafter
until 5 years after the date of enactment of this chapter, the
Administrator shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress an update of the report under subsection (a), including an
assessment by the Administrator of the progress of the Agency
in filling vacant employee positions of the Agency.’’.
(b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis
for part III title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting
after the item relating to chapter 99 the following:
‘‘101 Federal Emergency Management Agency Personnel ..................................10101’’.
SEC. 622. ESTABLISHMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY ROTATION PROGRAM AT THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Title VIII of the Homeland Security Act
of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 361 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
843 the following:
6 USC 414.

‘‘SEC. 844. HOMELAND SECURITY ROTATION PROGRAM.

‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall establish the
Homeland Security Rotation Program (in this section referred
to as the ‘Rotation Program’) for employees of the Department.
The Rotation Program shall use applicable best practices,
including those from the Chief Human Capital Officers Council.
‘‘(2) GOALS.—The Rotation Program established by the Secretary shall—
‘‘(A) be established in accordance with the Human
Capital Strategic Plan of the Department;
‘‘(B) provide middle and senior level employees in the
Department the opportunity to broaden their knowledge
through exposure to other components of the Department;
‘‘(C) expand the knowledge base of the Department
by providing for rotational assignments of employees to
other components;
‘‘(D) build professional relationships and contacts
among the employees in the Department;

Deadline.

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‘‘(E) invigorate the workforce with exciting and professionally rewarding opportunities;
‘‘(F) incorporate Department human capital strategic
plans and activities, and address critical human capital
deficiencies, recruitment and retention efforts, and succession planning within the Federal workforce of the Department; and
‘‘(G) complement and incorporate (but not replace) rotational programs within the Department in effect on the
date of enactment of this section.
‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Human Capital Officer
shall administer the Rotation Program.
‘‘(B) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Chief Human Capital
Officer shall—
‘‘(i) provide oversight of the establishment and
implementation of the Rotation Program;
‘‘(ii) establish a framework that supports the goals
of the Rotation Program and promotes cross-disciplinary rotational opportunities;
‘‘(iii) establish eligibility for employees to participate in the Rotation Program and select participants
from employees who apply;
‘‘(iv) establish incentives for employees to participate in the Rotation Program, including promotions
and employment preferences;
‘‘(v) ensure that the Rotation Program provides
professional education and training;
‘‘(vi) ensure that the Rotation Program develops
qualified employees and future leaders with broadbased experience throughout the Department;
‘‘(vii) provide for greater interaction among
employees in components of the Department; and
‘‘(viii) coordinate with rotational programs within
the Department in effect on the date of enactment
of this section.
‘‘(4) ALLOWANCES, PRIVILEGES, AND BENEFITS.—All allowances, privileges, rights, seniority, and other benefits of
employees participating in the Rotation Program shall be preserved.
‘‘(5) REPORTING.—Not later than 180 days after the date
of the establishment of the Rotation Program, the Secretary
shall submit a report on the status of the Rotation Program,
including a description of the Rotation Program, the number
of employees participating, and how the Rotation Program is
used in succession planning and leadership development to
the appropriate committees of Congress.’’.
(b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1(b)
of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 843 the
following:
‘‘Sec. 844. Homeland Security Rotation Program.’’.

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SEC. 623. HOMELAND SECURITY EDUCATION PROGRAM.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Title VIII of the Homeland Security Act
of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 361 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
844 (as added by section 622 of this Act) the following:
6 USC 415.

‘‘SEC. 845. HOMELAND SECURITY EDUCATION PROGRAM.

‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator, shall establish a graduate-level Homeland Security
Education Program in the National Capital Region to provide educational opportunities to senior Federal officials and selected State
and local officials with homeland security and emergency management responsibilities. The Administrator shall appoint an individual
to administer the activities under this section.
‘‘(b) LEVERAGING OF EXISTING RESOURCES.—To maximize efficiency and effectiveness in carrying out the Program, the Administrator shall use existing Department-reviewed Master’s Degree curricula in homeland security, including curricula pending accreditation, together with associated learning materials, quality assessment tools, digital libraries, exercise systems and other educational
facilities, including the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium, the National Fire Academy, and the Emergency Management
Institute. The Administrator may develop additional educational
programs, as appropriate.
‘‘(c) STUDENT ENROLLMENT.—
‘‘(1) SOURCES.—The student body of the Program shall
include officials from Federal, State, local, and tribal governments, and from other sources designated by the Administrator.
‘‘(2) ENROLLMENT PRIORITIES AND SELECTION CRITERIA.—
The Administrator shall establish policies governing student
enrollment priorities and selection criteria that are consistent
with the mission of the Program.
‘‘(3) DIVERSITY.—The Administrator shall take reasonable
steps to ensure that the student body represents racial, gender,
and ethnic diversity.
‘‘(d) SERVICE COMMITMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Before any employee selected for the
Program may be assigned to participate in the program, the
employee shall agree in writing—
‘‘(A) to continue in the service of the agency sponsoring
the employee during the 2-year period beginning on the
date on which the employee completes the program, unless
the employee is involuntarily separated from the service
of that agency for reasons other than a reduction in force;
and
‘‘(B) to pay to the Government the amount of the
additional expenses incurred by the Government in connection with the employee’s education if the employee is voluntarily separated from the service to the agency before the
end of the period described in subparagraph (A).
‘‘(2) PAYMENT OF EXPENSES.—
‘‘(A) EXEMPTION.—An employee who leaves the service
of the sponsoring agency to enter into the service of another
agency in any branch of the Government shall not be
required to make a payment under paragraph (1)(B), unless
the head of the agency that sponsored the education of
the employee notifies that employee before the date on

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which the employee enters the service of the other agency
that payment is required under that paragraph.
‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—If an employee is required
to make a payment under paragraph (1)(B), the agency
that sponsored the education of the employee shall determine the amount of the payment, except that such amount
may not exceed the pro rata share of the expenses incurred
for the time remaining in the 2-year period.
‘‘(3) RECOVERY OF PAYMENT.—If an employee who is
required to make a payment under this subsection does not
make the payment, a sum equal to the amount of the expenses
incurred by the Government for the education of that employee
is recoverable by the Government from the employee or his
estate by—
‘‘(A) setoff against accrued pay, compensation, amount
of retirement credit, or other amount due the employee
from the Government; or
‘‘(B) such other method as is provided by lay for the
recovery of amounts owing to the Government.’’.
(b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1(b)
of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. et seq.), as amended
by section 622, is amended by inserting after the item relating
to section 844 the following:
‘‘Sec. 845. Homeland Security Education Program.’’.
SEC. 624. SURGE CAPACITY FORCE.

6 USC 711.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall prepare and
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a plan to
establish and implement a Surge Capacity Force for deployment
of individuals to respond to natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
and other man-made disasters, including catastrophic incidents.
(2) AUTHORITY.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph
(B), the plan shall provide for individuals in the Surge
Capacity Force to be trained and deployed under the
authorities set forth in the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act.
(B) EXCEPTION.—If the Administrator determines that
the existing authorities are inadequate for the training
and deployment of individuals in the Surge Capacity Force,
the Administrator shall report to Congress as to the additional statutory authorities that the Administrator determines necessary.
(b) EMPLOYEES DESIGNATED TO SERVE.—The plan shall include
procedures under which the Secretary shall designate employees
of the Department who are not employees of the Agency and shall,
in conjunction with the heads of other Executive agencies, designate
employees of those other Executive agencies, as appropriate, to
serve on the Surge Capacity Force.
(c) CAPABILITIES.—The plan shall ensure that the Surge
Capacity Force—
(1) includes a sufficient number of individuals credentialed
in accordance with section 510 of the Homeland Security Act
of 2002, as amended by this Act, that are capable of deploying

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Plan.

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rapidly and efficiently after activation to prepare for, respond
to, and recover from natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and
other man-made disasters, including catastrophic incidents; and
(2) includes a sufficient number of full-time, highly trained
individuals credentialed in accordance with section 510 of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002, as amended by this Act, to
lead and manage the Surge Capacity Force.
(d) TRAINING.—The plan shall ensure that the Administrator
provides appropriate and continuous training to members of the
Surge Capacity Force to ensure such personnel are adequately
trained on the Agency’s programs and policies for natural disasters,
acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters.
(e) NO IMPACT ON AGENCY PERSONNEL CEILING.—Surge
Capacity Force members shall not be counted against any personnel
ceiling applicable to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
(f) EXPENSES.—The Administrator may provide members of the
Surge Capacity Force with travel expenses, including per diem
in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of agencies
under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,
for the purpose of participating in any training that relates to
service as a member of the Surge Capacity Force.
(g) IMMEDIATE IMPLEMENTATION OF SURGE CAPACITY FORCE
INVOLVING FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—As soon as practicable after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall develop
and implement—
(1) the procedures under subsection (b); and
(2) other elements of the plan needed to establish the
portion of the Surge Capacity Force consisting of individuals
designated under those procedures.
CHAPTER 2—EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT CAPABILITIES
SEC. 631. STATE CATASTROPHIC INCIDENT ANNEX.

Section 613 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5196b) is amended—
(1) in subsection (b)(3) by inserting ‘‘including a catastrophic incident annex,’’ after ‘‘plans,’’; and
(2) by redesignating subsections (c) through (g) and subsections (d) through (h), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
‘‘(c) CATASTROPHIC INCIDENT ANNEX.—
‘‘(1) CONSISTENCY.—A catastrophic incident annex submitted under subsection (b)(3) shall be—
‘‘(A) modeled after the catastrophic incident annex of
the National Response Plan; and
‘‘(B) consistent with the national preparedness goal
established under section 643 of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006, the National
Incident Management System, the National Response Plan,
and other related plans and strategies.
‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—In developing a catastrophic incident
annex submitted under subsection (b)(3), a State shall consult
with and seek appropriate comments from local governments,
emergency response providers, locally governed multijurisdictional councils of government, and regional planning commissions.’’.

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6 USC 721.

SEC. 632. EVACUATION PREPAREDNESS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

The Administrator, in coordination with the heads of other
appropriate Federal agencies, shall provide evacuation preparedness
technical assistance to State, local, and tribal governments,
including the preparation of hurricane evacuation studies and technical assistance in developing evacuation plans, assessing storm
surge estimates, evacuation zones, evacuation clearance times,
transportation capacity, and shelter capacity.
SEC. 633. EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAMS.

Section 303 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5144) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘sec. 303.’’ and all that follows through ‘‘The
President shall’’ and inserting the following:
‘‘SEC. 303. EMERGENCY SUPPORT AND RESPONSE TEAMS.

‘‘(a) EMERGENCY SUPPORT TEAMS.—The President shall’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(b) EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAMS.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—In carrying out subsection (a), the
President, acting through the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, shall establish—
‘‘(A) at a minimum 3 national response teams; and
‘‘(B) sufficient regional response teams, including
Regional Office strike teams under section 507 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002; and
‘‘(C) other response teams as may be necessary to
meet the incident management responsibilities of the Federal Government.
‘‘(2) TARGET CAPABILITY LEVEL.—The Director shall ensure
that specific target capability levels, as defined pursuant to
the guidelines established under section 646(a) of the PostKatrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006, are established for Federal emergency response teams.
‘‘(3) PERSONNEL.—The President, acting through the
Director, shall ensure that the Federal emergency response
teams consist of adequate numbers of properly planned, organized, equipped, trained, and exercised personnel to achieve
the established target capability levels. Each emergency
response team shall work in coordination with State and local
officials and onsite personnel associated with a particular
incident.
‘‘(4) READINESS REPORTING.—The Director shall evaluate
team readiness on a regular basis and report team readiness
levels in the report required under section 652(a) of the PostKatrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006.’’.
6 USC 722.

SEC. 634. URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RESPONSE SYSTEM.

(a) IN GENERAL.—There is in the Agency a system known
as the Urban Search and Rescue Response System.
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out the system for fiscal year 2008,
an amount equal to the amount appropriated for the system for
fiscal year 2007 and an additional $20,000,000.
SEC. 635. METROPOLITAN MEDICAL RESPONSE GRANT PROGRAM.

6 USC 723.

(a) IN GENERAL.—There is a Metropolitan Medical Response
Program.

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(b) PURPOSES.—The program shall include each purpose of the
program as it existed on June 1, 2006.
(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out the program for fiscal year 2008,
an amount equal to the amount appropriated for the program
for fiscal year 2007 and an additional $30,000,000.
6 USC 724.

SEC. 636. LOGISTICS.

The Administrator shall develop an efficient, transparent, and
flexible logistics system for procurement and delivery of goods and
services necessary for an effective and timely response to natural
disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters and
for real-time visibility of items at each point throughout the logistics
system.
6 USC 725.

Deadline.

SEC. 637. PREPOSITIONED EQUIPMENT PROGRAM.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish a
prepositioned equipment program to preposition standardized emergency equipment in at least 11 locations to sustain and replenish
critical assets used by State, local, and tribal governments in
response to (or rendered inoperable by the effects of) natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters.
(b) NOTICE.—The Administrator shall notify State, local, and
tribal officials in an area in which a location for the prepositioned
equipment program will be closed not later than 60 days before
the date of such closure.
SEC. 638. HURRICANE KATRINA AND HURRICANE RITA RECOVERY
OFFICES.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In order to provide all eligible Federal
assistance to individuals and State, local, and tribal governments
affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita in a customerfocused, expeditious, effective, and consistent manner, the Administrator shall establish, in coordination with the appropriate States,
a recovery office. The Administrator may establish recovery offices
for each of the following States, if necessary:
(1) Mississippi.
(2) Louisiana.
(3) Alabama.
(4) Texas.
(b) STRUCTURE.—Each recovery office shall have an executive
director, appointed by the Administrator, and a senior management
team.
(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each executive director, in coordination
with State, local, and tribal governments, private sector entities,
and nongovernmental organizations, including faith-based and other
community humanitarian relief entities, shall provide assistance
in a timely and effective manner to residents of the Gulf Coast
region for recovering from Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita.
(d) STAFFING.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each recovery office shall be staffed by
multi-year term, temporary employees and permanent
employees.
(2) STAFFING LEVELS.—Staffing levels of a recovery office
shall be commensurate with current and projected workload
and shall be evaluated on a regular basis.
(e) PERFORMANCE MEASURES.—To ensure that each recovery
office is meeting its objectives, the Administrator shall identify

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performance measures that are specific, measurable, achievable,
relevant, and timed, including—
(1) public assistance program project worksheet completion
rates; and
(2) public assistance reimbursement times.
(f) CLOSEOUT INCENTIVES.—The Administrator shall provide
incentives for the timely closeout of public assistance projects under
sections 406 and 407 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5172 and 5173).
(g) TERMINATION.—Each recovery office shall terminate at the
discretion of the Administrator.
SEC. 639. BASIC LIFE SUPPORTING FIRST AID AND EDUCATION.

6 USC 726.

The Administrator shall enter into agreements with organizations to provide funds to emergency response providers to provide
education and training in life supporting first aid to children.
SEC. 640. IMPROVEMENTS TO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS.

TECHNOLOGY SYSthe Chief Information Officer of the Department, shall take appropriate measures
to update and improve the information technology systems of the
Agency, including measures to—
(1) ensure that the multiple information technology systems
of the Agency (including the National Emergency Management
Information System, the Logistics Information Management
System III, and the Automated Deployment Database) are,
to the extent practicable, fully compatible and can share and
access information, as appropriate, from each other;
(2) ensure technology enhancements reach the headquarters and regional offices of the Agency in a timely fashion,
to allow seamless integration;
(3) develop and maintain a testing environment that
ensures that all system components are properly and thoroughly tested before their release;
(4) ensure that the information technology systems of the
Agency have the capacity to track disaster response personnel,
mission assignments task orders, commodities, and supplies
used in response to a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or
other man-made disaster;
(5) make appropriate improvements to the National Emergency Management Information System to address shortcomings in such system on the date of enactment of this Act;
and
(6) provide training, manuals, and guidance on information
technology systems to personnel, including disaster response
personnel, to help ensure employees can properly use information technology systems.
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate
committees of Congress a report describing the implementation
of this section, including a description of any actions taken, improvements made, and remaining problems and a description of any
additional funding needed to make necessary and appropriate
improvements to the information technology systems of the Agency.

6 USC 727.

(a) MEASURES TO IMPROVE INFORMATION
TEMS.—The Administrator, in coordination with

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6 USC 728.

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

SEC. 640a. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.

In the event of circumstances requiring an evacuation, sheltering, or mass relocation, the Administrator may disclose information in any individual assistance database of the Agency in accordance with section 552a(b) of title 5, United States Code (commonly
referred to as the ‘‘Privacy Act’’), to any law enforcement agency
of the Federal Government or a State, local, or tribal government
in order to identify illegal conduct or address public safety or
security issues, including compliance with sex offender notification
laws.

Subtitle C—Comprehensive Preparedness
System
CHAPTER 1—NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS SYSTEM
6 USC 741.

SEC. 641. DEFINITIONS.

In this chapter:
(1) CAPABILITY.—The term ‘‘capability’’ means the ability
to provide the means to accomplish one or more tasks under
specific conditions and to specific performance standards. A
capability may be achieved with any combination of properly
planned, organized, equipped, trained, and exercised personnel
that achieves the intended outcome.
(2) HAZARD.—The term ‘‘hazard’’ has the meaning given
that term under section 602(a)(1) of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5195a).
(3) MISSION ASSIGNMENT.—The term ‘‘mission assignment’’
means a work order issued to a Federal agency by the Agency,
directing completion by that agency of a specified task and
setting forth funding, other managerial controls, and guidance.
(4) NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS GOAL.—The term ‘‘national
preparedness goal’’ means the national preparedness goal established under section 643.
(5) NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘national
preparedness system’’ means the national preparedness system
established under section 644.
(6) NATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘national
training program’’ means the national training program established under section 648(a).
(7) OPERATIONAL READINESS.—The term ‘‘operational readiness’’ means the capability of an organization, an asset, a
system, or equipment to perform the missions or functions
for which it is organized or designed.
(8) PERFORMANCE MEASURE.—The term ‘‘performance
measure’’ means a quantitative or qualitative characteristic
used to gauge the results of an outcome compared to its
intended purpose.
(9) PERFORMANCE METRIC.—The term ‘‘performance metric’’
means a particular value or characteristic used to measure
the outcome that is generally expressed in terms of a baseline
and a target.
(10) PREVENTION.—The term ‘‘prevention’’ means any
activity undertaken to avoid, prevent, or stop a threatened
or actual act of terrorism.

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120 STAT. 1425

SEC. 642. NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS.

6 USC 742.

In order to prepare the Nation for all hazards, including natural
disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters, the
President, consistent with the declaration of policy under section
601 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5195) and title V of the Homeland Security
Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 311 et seq.), as amended by this Act, shall
develop a national preparedness goal and a national preparedness
system.
SEC. 643. NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS GOAL.

6 USC 743.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President, acting through the
Administrator, shall complete, revise, and update, as necessary,
a national preparedness goal that defines the target level of
preparedness to ensure the Nation’s ability to prevent, respond
to, recover from, and mitigate against natural disasters, acts of
terrorism, and other man-made disasters.
(b) NATIONAL INCIDENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND NATIONAL
RESPONSE PLAN.—The national preparedness goal, to the greatest
extent practicable, shall be consistent with the National Incident
Management System and the National Response Plan.
SEC. 644. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS SYSTEM.

6 USC 744.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President, acting through the
Administrator, shall develop a national preparedness system to
enable the Nation to meet the national preparedness goal.
(b) COMPONENTS.—The national preparedness system shall
include the following components:
(1) Target capabilities and preparedness priorities.
(2) Equipment and training standards.
(3) Training and exercises.
(4) Comprehensive assessment system.
(5) Remedial action management program.
(6) Federal response capability inventory.
(7) Reporting requirements.
(8) Federal preparedness.
(c) NATIONAL PLANNING SCENARIOS.—The national preparedness system may include national planning scenarios.
SEC. 645. NATIONAL PLANNING SCENARIOS.

6 USC 745.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in coordination with the
heads of appropriate Federal agencies and the National Advisory
Council, may develop planning scenarios to reflect the relative
risk requirements presented by all hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters, in order
to provide the foundation for the flexible and adaptive development
of target capabilities and the identification of target capability
levels to meet the national preparedness goal.
(b) DEVELOPMENT.—In developing, revising, and replacing
national planning scenarios, the Administrator shall ensure that
the scenarios—
(1) reflect the relative risk of all hazards and illustrate
the potential scope, magnitude, and complexity of a broad range
of representative hazards; and
(2) provide the minimum number of representative scenarios necessary to identify and define the tasks and target
capabilities required to respond to all hazards.

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6 USC 746.

SEC. 646. TARGET CAPABILITIES AND PREPAREDNESS PRIORITIES.

Deadline.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF GUIDELINES ON TARGET CAPABILITIES.—
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Administrator, in coordination with the heads of appropriate
Federal agencies, the National Council on Disability, and the
National Advisory Council, shall complete, revise, and update, as
necessary, guidelines to define risk-based target capabilities for
Federal, State, local, and tribal government preparedness that will
enable the Nation to prevent, respond to, recover from, and mitigate
against all hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
and other man-made disasters.
(b) DISTRIBUTION OF GUIDELINES.—The Administrator shall
ensure that the guidelines are provided promptly to the appropriate
committees of Congress and the States.
(c) OBJECTIVES.—The Administrator shall ensure that the
guidelines are specific, flexible, and measurable.
(d) TERRORISM RISK ASSESSMENT.—With respect to analyzing
and assessing the risk of acts of terrorism, the Administrator shall
consider—
(1) the variables of threat, vulnerability, and consequences
related to population (including transient commuting and
tourist populations), areas of high population density, critical
infrastructure, coastline, and international borders; and
(2) the most current risk assessment available from the
Chief Intelligence Officer of the Department of the threats
of terrorism against the United States.
(e) PREPAREDNESS PRIORITIES.—In establishing the guidelines
under subsection (a), the Administrator shall establish preparedness
priorities that appropriately balance the risk of all hazards,
including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made
disasters, with the resources required to prevent, respond to, recover
from, and mitigate against the hazards.
(f) MUTUAL AID AGREEMENTS.—The Administrator may provide
support for the development of mutual aid agreements within
States.

6 USC 747.

SEC. 647. EQUIPMENT AND TRAINING STANDARDS.

(a) EQUIPMENT STANDARDS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in coordination with
the heads of appropriate Federal agencies and the National
Advisory Council, shall support the development, promulgation,
and updating, as necessary, of national voluntary consensus
standards for the performance, use, and validation of equipment
used by Federal, State, local, and tribal governments and nongovernmental emergency response providers.
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The national voluntary consensus
standards shall—
(A) be designed to achieve equipment and other
capabilities consistent with the national preparedness goal,
including the safety and health of emergency response
providers;
(B) to the maximum extent practicable, be consistent
with existing national voluntary consensus standards;
(C) take into account, as appropriate, threats that may
not have been contemplated when the existing standards
were developed; and

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(D) focus on maximizing operability, interoperability,
interchangeability, durability, flexibility, efficiency, efficacy, portability, sustainability, and safety.
(b) TRAINING STANDARDS.—The Administrator shall—
(1) support the development, promulgation, and regular
updating, as necessary, of national voluntary consensus standards for training; and
(2) ensure that the training provided under the national
training program is consistent with the standards.
(c) CONSULTATION WITH STANDARDS ORGANIZATIONS.—In carrying out this section, the Administrator shall consult with representatives of relevant public and private sector national voluntary
consensus standards development organizations.
SEC. 648. TRAINING AND EXERCISES.

6 USC 748.

(a) NATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 180 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, 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
the date of enactment of this Act, 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 systematic evaluation
of readiness; and

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Deadline.

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(v) designed to address the unique requirements
of populations with special needs; and
(B) shall provide assistance to State, local, and tribal
governments with the design, implementation, and evaluation of exercises 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.

6 USC 749.

SEC. 649. 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 section 652 is developed, revised, and updated with
clear and quantifiable performance metrics, measures, and outcomes.
(c) CONTENTS.—The assessment system established under subsection (a) shall assess—
(1) compliance with the national preparedness system,
National Incident Management System, National Response
Plan, and other related plans and strategies;
(2) capability levels at the time of assessment against target
capability levels defined pursuant to the guidelines established
under section 646(a);
(3) resource needs to meet the desired target capability
levels defined pursuant to the guidelines established under
section 646(a); and
(4) performance of training, exercises, and operations.
6 USC 750.

SEC. 650. REMEDIAL ACTION MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.

The Administrator, in coordination with the National Council
on Disability and the National Advisory Council, shall establish
a remedial action management program to—
(1) analyze training, exercises, and real-world events to
identify and disseminate lessons learned and best practices;
(2) generate and disseminate, as appropriate, after action
reports to participants in exercises and real-world events; and
(3) conduct remedial action tracking and long-term trend
analysis.

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SEC. 651. FEDERAL RESPONSE CAPABILITY INVENTORY.

6 USC 751.

(a) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with section 611(h)(1)(C) of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance
Act (42 U.S.C. 5196(h)(1)(C), the Administrator shall accelerate
the completion of the inventory of Federal response capabilities.
(b) CONTENTS.—The inventory shall include—
(1) for each capability—
(A) the performance parameters of the capability;
(B) the timeframe within which the capability can be
brought to bear on an incident; and
(C) the readiness of the capability to respond to all
hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and
other man-made disasters; and
(2) emergency communications assets maintained by the
Federal Government and, if appropriate, State, local, and tribal
governments and the private sector.
(c) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.—The Administrator, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, shall develop a list of organizations and functions within the Department of Defense that may
be used, pursuant to the authority provided under the National
Response Plan and sections 402, 403, and 502 of the Robert T.
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
5170a, 5170b, 5192), to provide support to civil authorities during
natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters.
(d) DATABASE.—The Administrator shall establish an inventory
database to allow—
(1) real-time exchange of information regarding capabilities,
readiness, or the compatibility of equipment;
(2) easy identification and rapid deployment during an
incident; and
(3) the sharing of inventories with other Federal agencies,
as appropriate.
SEC. 652. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

6 USC 752.

(a) FEDERAL PREPAREDNESS REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 12 months after the date
of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Administrator, in coordination with the heads of appropriate Federal
agencies, shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the Nation’s level of preparedness for all
hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and
other man-made disasters.
(2) CONTENTS.—Each report shall include—
(A) an assessment of how Federal assistance supports
the national preparedness system;
(B) the results of the comprehensive assessment carried
out under section 649;
(C) a review of the inventory described in section
651(a); and
(D) an assessment of resource needs to meet preparedness priorities established under section 646(e), including—
(i) an estimate of the amount of Federal, State,
local, and tribal expenditures required to attain the
preparedness priorities; and
(ii) the extent to which the use of Federal assistance during the preceding fiscal year achieved the
preparedness priorities.

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(b) CATASTROPHIC RESOURCE REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall develop and
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress annually
an estimate of the resources of the Agency and other Federal
agencies needed for and devoted specifically to developing the
capabilities of Federal, State, local, and tribal governments
necessary to respond to a catastrophic incident.
(2) CONTENTS.—Each estimate under paragraph (1) shall
include the resources both necessary for and devoted to—
(A) planning;
(B) training and exercises;
(C) Regional Office enhancements;
(D) staffing, including for surge capacity during a catastrophic incident;
(E) additional logistics capabilities;
(F) other responsibilities under the catastrophic
incident annex and the catastrophic incident supplement
of the National Response Plan;
(G) State, local, and tribal government catastrophic
incident preparedness; and
(H) covering increases in the fixed costs or expenses
of the Agency, including rent or property acquisition costs
or expenses, taxes, contributions to the working capital
fund of the Department, and security costs for the year
after the year in which such estimate is submitted.
(c) STATE PREPAREDNESS REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 15 months after the date
of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, a State
receiving Federal preparedness assistance administered by the
Department shall submit a report to the Administrator on
the State’s level of preparedness.
(2) CONTENTS.—Each report shall include—
(A) an assessment of State compliance with the
national preparedness system, National Incident Management System, National Response Plan, and other related
plans and strategies;
(B) an assessment of current capability levels and a
description of target capability levels; and
(C) an assessment of resource needs to meet the
preparedness priorities established under section 646(e),
including—
(i) an estimate of the amount of expenditures
required to attain the preparedness priorities; and
(ii) the extent to which the use of Federal assistance during the preceding fiscal year achieved the
preparedness priorities.

6 USC 753.

SEC. 653. FEDERAL PREPAREDNESS.

(a) AGENCY RESPONSIBILITY.—In support of the national
preparedness system, the President shall ensure that each Federal
agency with coordinating, primary, or supporting responsibilities
under the National Response Plan—
(1) has the operational capability to meet the national
preparedness goal, including—
(A) the personnel to make and communicate decisions;
(B) organizational structures that are assigned,
trained, and exercised for the missions of the agency;

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(C) sufficient physical resources; and
(D) the command, control, and communication channels
to make, monitor, and communicate decisions;
(2) complies with the National Incident Management
System;
(3) develops, trains, and exercises rosters of response personnel to be deployed when the agency is called upon to support
a Federal response; and
(4) develops deliberate operational plans and the corresponding capabilities, including crisis planning, to respond
effectively to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other
man-made disasters in support of the National Response Plan
to ensure a coordinated Federal response.
(b) OPERATIONAL PLANS.—An operations plan developed under
subsection (a)(4) shall meet the following requirements:
(1) The operations plan shall be coordinated under a unified
system with a common terminology, approach, and framework.
(2) The operations plan shall be developed, in coordination
with State, local, and tribal government officials, to address
both regional and national risks.
(3) The operations plan shall contain, as appropriate, the
following elements:
(A) Concepts of operations.
(B) Critical tasks and responsibilities.
(C) Detailed resource and personnel requirements,
together with sourcing requirements.
(D) Specific provisions for the rapid integration of the
resources and personnel of the agency into the overall
response.
(4) The operations plan shall address, as appropriate, the
following matters:
(A) Support of State, local, and tribal governments
in conducting mass evacuations, including—
(i) transportation and relocation;
(ii) short- and long-term sheltering and accommodation;
(iii) provisions for populations with special needs,
keeping families together, and expeditious location of
missing children; and
(iv) policies and provisions for pets.
(B) The preparedness and deployment of public health
and medical resources, including resources to address the
needs of evacuees and populations with special needs.
(C) The coordination of interagency search and rescue
operations, including land, water, and airborne search and
rescue operations.
(D) The roles and responsibilities of the Senior Federal
Law Enforcement Official with respect to other law enforcement entities.
(E) The protection of critical infrastructure.
(F) The coordination of maritime salvage efforts among
relevant agencies.
(G) The coordination of Department of Defense and
National Guard support of civilian authorities.
(H) To the extent practicable, the utilization of Department of Defense, National Air and Space Administration,

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and
commercial aircraft and satellite remotely sensed imagery.
(I) The coordination and integration of support from
the private sector and nongovernmental organizations.
(J) The safe disposal of debris, including hazardous
materials, and, when practicable, the recycling of debris.
(K) The identification of the required surge capacity.
(L) Specific provisions for the recovery of affected
geographic areas.
(c) MISSION ASSIGNMENTS.—To expedite the provision of assistance under the National Response Plan, the President shall ensure
that the Administrator, in coordination with Federal agencies with
responsibilities under the National Response Plan, develops
prescripted mission assignments, including logistics, communications, mass care, health services, and public safety.
(d) CERTIFICATION.—The President shall certify on an annual
basis that each Federal agency with coordinating, primary, or supporting responsibilities under the National Response Plan complies
with subsections (a) and (b).
(e) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be construed
to limit the authority of the Secretary of Defense with regard
to—
(1) the command, control, training, planning, equipment,
exercises, or employment of Department of Defense forces; or
(2) the allocation of Department of Defense resources.
6 USC 754.

SEC. 654. USE OF EXISTING RESOURCES.

In establishing the national preparedness goal and national
preparedness system, the Administrator shall use existing preparedness documents, planning tools, and guidelines to the extent practicable and consistent with this Act.
CHAPTER 2—ADDITIONAL PREPAREDNESS
6 USC 761.

SEC. 661. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE COMPACT GRANTS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may make grants to
administer the Emergency Management Assistance Compact consented to by the Joint Resolution entitled ‘‘Joint Resolution granting
the consent of Congress to the Emergency Management Assistance
Compact’’ (Public Law 104–321; 110 Stat. 3877).
(b) USES.—A grant under this section shall be used—
(1) to carry out recommendations identified in the Emergency Management Assistance Compact after-action reports for
the 2004 and 2005 hurricane season;
(2) to administer compact operations on behalf of all
member States and territories;
(3) to continue coordination with the Agency and appropriate Federal agencies;
(4) to continue coordination with State, local, and tribal
government entities and their respective national organizations;
and
(5) to assist State and local governments, emergency
response providers, and organizations representing such providers with credentialing emergency response providers and
the typing of emergency response resources.
(c) COORDINATION.—The Administrator shall consult with the
Administrator of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact

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to ensure effective coordination of efforts in responding to requests
for assistance.
(d) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to be appropriated
to carry out this section $4,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. Such
sums shall remain available until expended.
SEC. 662. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE GRANTS.

6 USC 762.

There is authorized to be appropriated for the Emergency
Management Performance Grants Program for fiscal year 2008,
an amount equal to the amount appropriated for the program
for fiscal year 2007 and an additional $175,000,000.
SEC. 663. TRANSFER OF NOBLE TRAINING CENTER.

6 USC 763.

The Noble Training Center is transferred to the Center for
Domestic Preparedness. The Center for Domestic Preparedness
shall integrate the Noble Training Center into the program structure of the Center for Domestic Preparedness.
SEC. 664. NATIONAL EXERCISE SIMULATION CENTER.

The President shall establish a national exercise simulation
center that—
(1) uses a mix of live, virtual, and constructive simulations
to—
(A) prepare elected officials, emergency managers,
emergency response providers, and emergency support providers at all levels of government to operate cohesively;
(B) provide a learning environment for the homeland
security personnel of all Federal agencies;
(C) assist in the development of operational procedures
and exercises, particularly those based on catastrophic
incidents; and
(D) allow incident commanders to exercise decisionmaking in a simulated environment; and
(2) uses modeling and simulation for training, exercises,
and command and control functions at the operational level.

President.
6 USC 764.

Subtitle D—Emergency Communications
SEC. 671. EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS.

(a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the ‘‘21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006’’.
(b) IN GENERAL.—The Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C.
101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new
title:

21st Century
Emergency
Communications
Act of 2006.
6 USC 101 note.

‘‘TITLE XVIII—EMERGENCY
COMMUNICATIONS
‘‘SEC. 1801. OFFICE OF EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS.

6 USC 571.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the Department an
Office of Emergency Communications.
‘‘(b) DIRECTOR.—The head of the office shall be the Director
for Emergency Communications. The Director shall report to the
Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity and Communications.

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‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Director for Emergency Communications shall—
‘‘(1) assist the Secretary in developing and implementing
the program described in section 7303(a)(1) of the Intelligence
Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (6 U.S.C.
194(a)(1)), except as provided in section 314;
‘‘(2) administer the Department’s responsibilities and
authorities relating to the SAFECOM Program, excluding elements related to research, development, testing, and evaluation
and standards;
‘‘(3) administer the Department’s responsibilities and
authorities relating to the Integrated Wireless Network program;
‘‘(4) conduct extensive, nationwide outreach to support and
promote the ability of emergency response providers and relevant government officials to continue to communicate in the
event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other manmade disasters;
‘‘(5) conduct extensive, nationwide outreach and foster the
development of interoperable emergency communications
capabilities by State, regional, local, and tribal governments
and public safety agencies, and by regional consortia thereof;
‘‘(6) provide technical assistance to State, regional, local,
and tribal government officials with respect to use of interoperable emergency communications capabilities;
‘‘(7) coordinate with the Regional Administrators regarding
the activities of Regional Emergency Communications
Coordination Working Groups under section 1805;
‘‘(8) promote the development of standard operating procedures and best practices with respect to use of interoperable
emergency communications capabilities for incident response,
and facilitate the sharing of information on such best practices
for achieving, maintaining, and enhancing interoperable emergency communications capabilities for such response;
‘‘(9) coordinate, in cooperation with the National Communications System, the establishment of a national response
capability with initial and ongoing planning, implementation,
and training for the deployment of communications equipment
for relevant State, local, and tribal governments and emergency
response providers in the event of a catastrophic loss of local
and regional emergency communications services;
‘‘(10) assist the President, the National Security Council,
the Homeland Security Council, and the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget in ensuring the continued operation
of the telecommunications functions and responsibilities of the
Federal Government, excluding spectrum management;
‘‘(11) establish, in coordination with the Director of the
Office for Interoperability and Compatibility, requirements for
interoperable emergency communications capabilities, which
shall be nonproprietary where standards for such capabilities
exist, for all public safety radio and data communications systems and equipment purchased using homeland security assistance administered by the Department, excluding any alert and
warning device, technology, or system;
‘‘(12) review, in consultation with the Assistant Secretary
for Grants and Training, all interoperable emergency communications plans of Federal, State, local, and tribal governments,

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including Statewide and tactical interoperability plans, developed pursuant to homeland security assistance administered
by the Department, but excluding spectrum allocation and
management related to such plans;
‘‘(13) develop and update periodically, as appropriate, a
National Emergency Communications Plan under section 1802;
‘‘(14) perform such other duties of the Department necessary to support and promote the ability of emergency response
providers and relevant government officials to continue to
communicate in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
and other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(15) perform other duties of the Department necessary
to achieve the goal of and maintain and enhance interoperable
emergency communications capabilities.
‘‘(d) PERFORMANCE OF PREVIOUSLY TRANSFERRED FUNCTIONS.—
The Secretary shall transfer to, and administer through, the
Director for Emergency Communications the following programs
and responsibilities:
‘‘(1) The SAFECOM Program, excluding elements related
to research, development, testing, and evaluation and standards.
‘‘(2) The responsibilities of the Chief Information Officer
related to the implementation of the Integrated Wireless Network.
‘‘(3) The Interoperable Communications Technical Assistance Program.
‘‘(e) COORDINATION.—The Director for Emergency Communications shall coordinate—
‘‘(1) as appropriate, with the Director of the Office for
Interoperability and Compatibility with respect to the responsibilities described in section 314; and
‘‘(2) with the Administrator of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency with respect to the responsibilities
described in this title.
‘‘(f) SUFFICIENCY OF RESOURCES PLAN.—
‘‘(1) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after the date of
enactment of this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the resources and staff necessary to carry
out fully the responsibilities under this title.
‘‘(2) COMPTROLLER GENERAL REVIEW.—The Comptroller
General shall review the validity of the report submitted by
the Secretary under paragraph (1). Not later than 60 days
after the date on which such report is submitted, the Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a report containing
the findings of such review.

VerDate 14-DEC-2004

Reports.
Deadline.

‘‘SEC. 1802. NATIONAL EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS PLAN.

6 USC 572.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the Director
for Emergency Communications, and in cooperation with the
Department of National Communications System (as appropriate),
shall, in cooperation with State, local, and tribal governments,
Federal departments and agencies, emergency response providers,
and the private sector, develop not later than 180 days after the
completion of the baseline assessment under section 1803, and
periodically update, a National Emergency Communications Plan
to provide recommendations regarding how the United States
should—

Deadline.

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

‘‘(1) support and promote the ability of emergency response
providers and relevant government officials to continue to
communicate in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
and other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(2) ensure, accelerate, and attain interoperable emergency
communications nationwide.
‘‘(b)
COORDINATION.—The
Emergency
Communications
Preparedness Center under section 1806 shall coordinate the
development of the Federal aspects of the National Emergency
Communications Plan.
‘‘(c) CONTENTS.—The National Emergency Communications
Plan shall—
‘‘(1) include recommendations developed in consultation
with the Federal Communications Commission and the
National Institute of Standards and Technology for a process
for expediting national voluntary consensus standards for emergency communications equipment for the purchase and use
by public safety agencies of interoperable emergency communications equipment and technologies;
‘‘(2) identify the appropriate capabilities necessary for
emergency response providers and relevant government officials
to continue to communicate in the event of natural disasters,
acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters;
‘‘(3) identify the appropriate interoperable emergency
communications capabilities necessary for Federal, State, local,
and tribal governments in the event of natural disasters, acts
of terrorism, and other man-made disasters;
‘‘(4) recommend both short-term and long-term solutions
for ensuring that emergency response providers and relevant
government officials can continue to communicate in the event
of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made
disasters;
‘‘(5) recommend both short-term and long-term solutions
for deploying interoperable emergency communications systems
for Federal, State, local, and tribal governments throughout
the Nation, including through the provision of existing and
emerging technologies;
‘‘(6) identify how Federal departments and agencies that
respond to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other manmade disasters can work effectively with State, local, and tribal
governments, in all States, and with other entities;
‘‘(7) identify obstacles to deploying interoperable emergency
communications capabilities nationwide and recommend shortterm and long-term measures to overcome those obstacles,
including recommendations for multijurisdictional coordination
among Federal, State, local, and tribal governments;
‘‘(8) recommend goals and timeframes for the deployment
of emergency, command-level communications systems based
on new and existing equipment across the United States and
develop a timetable for the deployment of interoperable emergency communications systems nationwide; and
‘‘(9) recommend appropriate measures that emergency
response providers should employ to ensure the continued operation of relevant governmental communications infrastructure
in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other
man-made disasters.

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120 STAT. 1437

‘‘SEC. 1803. ASSESSMENTS AND REPORTS.

6 USC 573.

‘‘(a) BASELINE ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this section and not less than every 5 years
thereafter, the Secretary, acting through the Director for Emergency
Communications, shall conduct an assessment of Federal, State,
local, and tribal governments that—
‘‘(1) defines the range of capabilities needed by emergency
response providers and relevant government officials to continue to communicate in the event of natural disasters, acts
of terrorism, and other man-made disasters;
‘‘(2) defines the range of interoperable emergency communications capabilities needed for specific events;
‘‘(3) assesses the current available capabilities to meet such
communications needs;
‘‘(4) identifies the gap between such current capabilities
and defined requirements; and
‘‘(5) includes a national interoperable emergency communications inventory to be completed by the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Chairman
of the Federal Communications Commission that—
‘‘(A) identifies for each Federal department and
agency—
‘‘(i) the channels and frequencies used;
‘‘(ii) the nomenclature used to refer to each channel
or frequency used; and
‘‘(iii) the types of communications systems and
equipment used; and
‘‘(B) identifies the interoperable emergency communications systems in use by public safety agencies in the United
States.
‘‘(b) CLASSIFIED ANNEX.—The baseline assessment under this
section may include a classified annex including information provided under subsection (a)(5)(A).
‘‘(c) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—In conducting the baseline assessment
under this section, the Secretary may incorporate findings from
assessments conducted before, or ongoing on, the date of enactment
of this title.
‘‘(d) PROGRESS REPORTS.—Not later than one year after the
date of enactment of this section and biennially thereafter, the
Secretary, acting through the Director for Emergency Communications, shall submit to Congress a report on the progress of the
Department in achieving the goals of, and carrying out its responsibilities under, this title, including—
‘‘(1) a description of the findings of the most recent baseline
assessment conducted under subsection (a);
‘‘(2) a determination of the degree to which interoperable
emergency communications capabilities have been attained to
date and the gaps that remain for interoperability to be
achieved;
‘‘(3) an evaluation of the ability to continue to communicate
and to provide and maintain interoperable emergency communications by emergency managers, emergency response providers, and relevant government officials in the event of—
‘‘(A) natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other manmade disasters, including Incidents of National Significance
declared by the Secretary under the National Response
Plan; and

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120 STAT. 1438

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006
‘‘(B) a catastrophic loss of local and regional communications services;
‘‘(4) a list of best practices relating to the ability to continue
to communicate and to provide and maintain interoperable
emergency communications in the event of natural disasters,
acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(A) an evaluation of the feasibility and desirability
of the Department developing, on its own or in conjunction
with the Department of Defense, a mobile communications
capability, modeled on the Army Signal Corps, that could
be deployed to support emergency communications at the
site of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other manmade disasters.

6 USC 574.

‘‘SEC. 1804. COORDINATION OF DEPARTMENT EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS GRANT PROGRAMS.

‘‘(a) COORDINATION OF GRANTS AND STANDARDS PROGRAMS.—
The Secretary, acting through the Director for Emergency Communications, shall ensure that grant guidelines for the use of homeland
security assistance administered by the Department relating to
interoperable emergency communications are coordinated and consistent with the goals and recommendations in the National Emergency Communications Plan under section 1802.
‘‘(b) DENIAL OF ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Grants and Planning, and in consultation
with the Director for Emergency Communications, may prohibit
any State, local, or tribal government from using homeland
security assistance administered by the Department to achieve,
maintain, or enhance emergency communications capabilities,
if—
‘‘(A) such government has not complied with the
requirement to submit a Statewide Interoperable Communications Plan as required by section 7303(f) of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (6
U.S.C. 194(f));
‘‘(B) such government has proposed to upgrade or purchase new equipment or systems that do not meet or exceed
any applicable national voluntary consensus standards and
has not provided a reasonable explanation of why such
equipment or systems will serve the needs of the applicant
better than equipment or systems that meet or exceed
such standards; and
‘‘(C) as of the date that is 3 years after the date
of the completion of the initial National Emergency
Communications Plan under section 1802, national voluntary consensus standards for interoperable emergency
communications capabilities have not been developed and
promulgated.
‘‘(2) STANDARDS.—The Secretary, in coordination with the
Federal Communications Commission, the National Institute
of Standards and Technology, and other Federal departments
and agencies with responsibility for standards, shall support
the development, promulgation, and updating as necessary of
national voluntary consensus standards for interoperable emergency communications.

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120 STAT. 1439

‘‘SEC. 1805. REGIONAL EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATION.

6 USC 575.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in each Regional Office
a Regional Emergency Communications Coordination Working
Group (in this section referred to as an ‘RECC Working Group’).
Each RECC Working Group shall report to the relevant Regional
Administrator and coordinate its activities with the relevant
Regional Advisory Council.
‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—Each RECC Working Group shall consist
of the following:
‘‘(1)
NON-FEDERAL.—Organizations
representing
the
interests of the following:
‘‘(A) State officials.
‘‘(B) Local government officials, including sheriffs.
‘‘(C) State police departments.
‘‘(D) Local police departments.
‘‘(E) Local fire departments.
‘‘(F) Public safety answering points (9–1–1 services).
‘‘(G) State emergency managers, homeland security
directors, or representatives of State Administrative Agencies.
‘‘(H) Local emergency managers or homeland security
directors.
‘‘(I) Other emergency response providers as appropriate.
‘‘(2) FEDERAL.—Representatives from the Department, the
Federal Communications Commission, and other Federal
departments and agencies with responsibility for coordinating
interoperable emergency communications with or providing
emergency support services to State, local, and tribal governments.
‘‘(c) COORDINATION.—Each RECC Working Group shall coordinate its activities with the following:
‘‘(1) Communications equipment manufacturers and vendors (including broadband data service providers).
‘‘(2) Local exchange carriers.
‘‘(3) Local broadcast media.
‘‘(4) Wireless carriers.
‘‘(5) Satellite communications services.
‘‘(6) Cable operators.
‘‘(7) Hospitals.
‘‘(8) Public utility services.
‘‘(9) Emergency evacuation transit services.
‘‘(10) Ambulance services.
‘‘(11) HAM and amateur radio operators.
‘‘(12) Representatives from other private sector entities and
nongovernmental organizations as the Regional Administrator
determines appropriate.
‘‘(d) DUTIES.—The duties of each RECC Working Group shall
include—
‘‘(1) assessing the survivability, sustainability, and interoperability of local emergency communications systems to meet
the goals of the National Emergency Communications Plan;
‘‘(2) reporting annually to the relevant Regional Administrator, the Director for Emergency Communications, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, and the
Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information of

Establishment.

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120 STAT. 1440

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006
the Department of Commerce on the status of its region in
building robust and sustainable interoperable voice and data
emergency communications networks and, not later than 60
days after the completion of the initial National Emergency
Communications Plan under section 1802, on the progress of
the region in meeting the goals of such plan;
‘‘(3) ensuring a process for the coordination of effective
multijurisdictional, multi-agency emergency communications
networks for use during natural disasters, acts of terrorism,
and other man-made disasters through the expanded use of
emergency management and public safety communications
mutual aid agreements; and
‘‘(4) coordinating the establishment of Federal, State, local,
and tribal support services and networks designed to address
the immediate and critical human needs in responding to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters.

6 USC 576.

‘‘SEC. 1806. EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS PREPAREDNESS CENTER.

‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Emergency
Communications Preparedness Center (in this section referred to
as the ‘Center’).
‘‘(b) OPERATION.—The Secretary, the Chairman of the Federal
Communications Commission, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Commerce, the Attorney General of the United States,
and the heads of other Federal departments and agencies or their
designees shall jointly operate the Center in accordance with the
Memorandum of Understanding entitled, ‘Emergency Communications Preparedness Center (ECPC) Charter’.
‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—The Center shall—
‘‘(1) serve as the focal point for interagency efforts and
as a clearinghouse with respect to all relevant intergovernmental information to support and promote (including specifically by working to avoid duplication, hindrances, and counteractive efforts among the participating Federal departments and
agencies)—
‘‘(A) the ability of emergency response providers and
relevant government officials to continue to communicate
in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and
other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(B) interoperable emergency communications;
‘‘(2) prepare and submit to Congress, on an annual basis,
a strategic assessment regarding the coordination efforts of
Federal departments and agencies to advance—
‘‘(A) the ability of emergency response providers and
relevant government officials to continue to communicate
in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and
other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(B) interoperable emergency communications;
‘‘(3) consider, in preparing the strategic assessment under
paragraph (2), the goals stated in the National Emergency
Communications Plan under section 1802; and
‘‘(4) perform such other functions as are provided in the
Emergency Communications Preparedness Center (ECPC)
Charter described in subsection (b)(1).

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120 STAT. 1441

‘‘SEC. 1807. URBAN AND OTHER HIGH RISK AREA COMMUNICATIONS
CAPABILITIES.

6 USC 577.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation with the
Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and the
Secretary of Defense, and with appropriate State, local, and tribal
government officials, shall provide technical guidance, training, and
other assistance, as appropriate, to support the rapid establishment
of consistent, secure, and effective interoperable emergency communications capabilities in the event of an emergency in urban and
other areas determined by the Secretary to be at consistently high
levels of risk from natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other
man-made disasters.
‘‘(b) MINIMUM CAPABILITIES.—The interoperable emergency
communications capabilities established under subsection (a) shall
ensure the ability of all levels of government, emergency response
providers, the private sector, and other organizations with emergency response capabilities—
‘‘(1) to communicate with each other in the event of an
emergency;
‘‘(2) to have appropriate and timely access to the Information Sharing Environment described in section 1016 of the
National Security Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 (6 U.S.C.
321); and
‘‘(3) to be consistent with any applicable State or Urban
Area homeland strategy or plan.
‘‘SEC. 1808. DEFINITION.

6 USC 578.

‘‘In this title, the term ‘interoperable’ has the meaning given
the term ‘interoperable communications’ under section 7303(g)(1)
of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004
(6 U.S.C. 194(g)(1)).’’.
(c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents in section
1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.)
is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘TITLE XVIII—EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.
‘‘Sec.

1801.
1802.
1803.
1804.
1805.
1806.
1807.
1808.

Office for Emergency Communications.
National Emergency Communications Plan.
Assessments and reports.
Coordination of Federal emergency communications grant programs.
Regional emergency communications coordination.
Emergency Communications Preparedness Center.
Urban and other high risk area communications capabilities.
Definition.’’.

SEC. 672. OFFICE FOR INTEROPERABILITY AND COMPATIBILITY.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Homeland Security Act of
2002 (6 U.S.C. 181 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
‘‘SEC. 314. OFFICE FOR INTEROPERABILITY AND COMPATIBILITY.

6 USC 195.

‘‘(a) CLARIFICATION OF RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Director of the
Office for Interoperability and Compatibility shall—
‘‘(1) assist the Secretary in developing and implementing
the science and technology aspects of the program described
in subparagraphs (D), (E), (F), and (G) of section 7303(a)(1)
of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of
2004 (6 U.S.C. 194(a)(1));

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

‘‘(2) in coordination with the Federal Communications
Commission, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and other Federal departments and agencies with
responsibility for standards, support the creation of national
voluntary consensus standards for interoperable emergency
communications;
‘‘(3) establish a comprehensive research, development,
testing, and evaluation program for improving interoperable
emergency communications;
‘‘(4) establish, in coordination with the Director for Emergency Communications, requirements for interoperable emergency communications capabilities, which shall be nonproprietary where standards for such capabilities exist, for all public
safety radio and data communications systems and equipment
purchased using homeland security assistance administered by
the Department, excluding any alert and warning device, technology, or system;
‘‘(5) carry out the Department’s responsibilities and
authorities relating to research, development, testing, evaluation, or standards-related elements of the SAFECOM Program;
‘‘(6) evaluate and assess new technology in real-world
environments to achieve interoperable emergency communications capabilities;
‘‘(7) encourage more efficient use of existing resources,
including equipment, to achieve interoperable emergency
communications capabilities;
‘‘(8) test public safety communications systems that are
less prone to failure, support new nonvoice services, use spectrum more efficiently, and cost less than existing systems;
‘‘(9) coordinate with the private sector to develop solutions
to improve emergency communications capabilities and achieve
interoperable emergency communications capabilities; and
‘‘(10) conduct pilot projects, in coordination with the
Director for Emergency Communications, to test and demonstrate technologies, including data and video, that enhance—
‘‘(A) the ability of emergency response providers and
relevant government officials to continue to communicate
in the event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and
other man-made disasters; and
‘‘(B) interoperable emergency communications capabilities.
‘‘(b) COORDINATION.—The Director of the Office for Interoperability and Compatibility shall coordinate with the Director for
Emergency Communications with respect to the SAFECOM program.
‘‘(c) SUFFICIENCY OF RESOURCES.—The Secretary shall provide
the Office for Interoperability and Compatibility the resources and
staff necessary to carry out the responsibilities under this section.’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents in section
1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.)
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 313
the following:
‘‘Sec. 314. Office for Interoperability and Compatibility.’’.

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SEC.

673.

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

120 STAT. 1443

INTEROPERABILITY

(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Homeland Security Act of
2002 (6 U.S.C. 181 et seq.), as amended by this Act, is amended
by adding at the end the following:
‘‘SEC.

315.

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

INTEROPERABILITY

6 USC 195a.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary for Science and Technology, acting through the Director of the Office for Interoperability
and Compatibility, shall establish a comprehensive research and
development program to support and promote—
‘‘(1) the ability of emergency response providers and relevant government officials to continue to communicate in the
event of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other manmade disasters; and
‘‘(2) interoperable emergency communications capabilities
among emergency response providers and relevant government
officials, including by—
‘‘(A) supporting research on a competitive basis,
including through the Directorate of Science and Technology and Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects
Agency; and
‘‘(B) considering the establishment of a Center of Excellence under the Department of Homeland Security Centers
of Excellence Program focused on improving emergency
response providers’ communication capabilities.
‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the program established under
subsection (a) include—
‘‘(1) supporting research, development, testing, and evaluation on emergency communication capabilities;
‘‘(2) understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the
public safety communications systems in use;
‘‘(3) examining how current and emerging technology can
make emergency response providers more effective, and how
Federal, State, local, and tribal government agencies can use
this technology in a coherent and cost-effective manner;
‘‘(4) investigating technologies that could lead to long-term
advancements in emergency communications capabilities and
supporting research on advanced technologies and potential
systemic changes to dramatically improve emergency communications; and
‘‘(5) evaluating and validating advanced technology concepts, and facilitating the development and deployment of interoperable emergency communication capabilities.
‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘interoperable’, with respect to emergency communications, has the
meaning given the term in section 1808.’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents in section
1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.)
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 314,
as added by this Act, the following:
‘‘Sec. 315. Emergency communications interoperability research and development.’’.

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SEC. 674. 911 AND E911 SERVICES REPORT.

Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
shall submit a report to Congress on the status of efforts of State,
local, and tribal governments to develop plans for rerouting 911
and E911 services in the event that public safety answering points
are disabled during natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other
man-made disasters.
6 USC 571 note.

SEC. 675. SAVINGS CLAUSE.

Nothing in this subtitle shall be construed to transfer to the
Office of Emergency Communications any function, personnel, asset,
component, authority, grant program, or liability of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency as constituted on June 1, 2006.

Subtitle E—Stafford Act Amendments
SEC. 681. GENERAL FEDERAL ASSISTANCE.

(a) MAJOR DISASTERS.—Section 402 of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170a)
is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘efforts’’ and inserting
‘‘response or recovery efforts, including precautionary evacuations’’;
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking the semicolon and inserting
‘‘, including precautionary evacuations and recovery;’’;
(3) in paragraph (3)—
(A) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end;
and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(F) recovery activities, including disaster impact
assessments and planning;’’;
(4) in paragraph (4), by striking the period and inserting
‘‘; and’’; and
(5) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(5) provide accelerated Federal assistance and Federal
support where necessary to save lives, prevent human suffering,
or mitigate severe damage, which may be provided in the
absence of a specific request and in which case the President—
‘‘(A) shall, to the fullest extent practicable, promptly
notify and coordinate with officials in a State in which
such assistance or support is provided; and
‘‘(B) shall not, in notifying and coordinating with a
State under subparagraph (A), delay or impede the rapid
deployment, use, and distribution of critical resources to
victims of a major disaster.’’.
(b) EMERGENCIES.—Section 502 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5192) is
amended—
(1) in subsection (a)—
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking the semicolon and
inserting ‘‘, including precautionary evacuations;’’;
(B) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon;
(C) in paragraph (7), by striking the period and
inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

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120 STAT. 1445

(D) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(8) provide accelerated Federal assistance and Federal
support where necessary to save lives, prevent human suffering,
or mitigate severe damage, which may be provided in the
absence of a specific request and in which case the President—
‘‘(A) shall, to the fullest extent practicable, promptly
notify and coordinate with a State in which such assistance
or support is provided; and
‘‘(B) shall not, in notifying and coordinating with a
State under subparagraph (A), delay or impede the rapid
deployment, use, and distribution of critical resources to
victims of an emergency.’’;
(2) in subsection (b), by striking the period and inserting
‘‘, including precautionary evacuations.’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(c) GUIDELINES.—The President shall promulgate and maintain
guidelines to assist Governors in requesting the declaration of an
emergency in advance of a natural or man-made disaster (including
for the purpose of seeking assistance with special needs and other
evacuation efforts) under this section by defining the types of assistance available to affected States and the circumstances under which
such requests are likely to be approved.’’.
SEC. 682. NATIONAL DISASTER RECOVERY STRATEGY.

President.

6 USC 771.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in coordination with the
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the Administrator
of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of the Treasury,
the Secretary of Transportation, the Administrator of the Small
Business Administration, the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs
of the Department of the Interior, and the heads of other appropriate Federal agencies, State, local, and tribal government officials
(including through the National Advisory Council), and representatives of appropriate nongovernmental organizations shall develop,
coordinate, and maintain a National Disaster Recovery Strategy
to serve as a guide to recovery efforts after major disasters and
emergencies.
(b) CONTENTS.—The National Disaster Recovery Strategy
shall—
(1) outline the most efficient and cost-effective Federal
programs that will meet the recovery needs of States, local
and tribal governments, and individuals and households
affected by a major disaster;
(2) clearly define the role, programs, authorities, and
responsibilities of each Federal agency that may be of assistance
in providing assistance in the recovery from a major disaster;
(3) promote the use of the most appropriate and costeffective building materials (based on the hazards present in
an area) in any area affected by a major disaster, with the
goal of encouraging the construction of disaster-resistant
buildings; and
(4) describe in detail the programs that may be offered
by the agencies described in paragraph (2), including—
(A) discussing funding issues;
(B) detailing how responsibilities under the National
Disaster Recovery Strategy will be shared; and

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006
(C) addressing other matters concerning the cooperative effort to provide recovery assistance.
(c) REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to
the appropriate committees of Congress a report describing
in detail the National Disaster Recovery Strategy and any
additional authorities necessary to implement any portion of
the National Disaster Recovery Strategy.
(2) UPDATE.—The Administrator shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report updating the report
submitted under paragraph (1)—
(A) on the same date that any change is made to
the National Disaster Recovery Strategy; and
(B) on a periodic basis after the submission of the
report under paragraph (1), but not less than once every
5 years after the date of the submission of the report
under paragraph (1).

6 USC 772.

SEC. 683. NATIONAL DISASTER HOUSING STRATEGY.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in coordination with representatives of the Federal agencies, governments, and organizations listed in subsection (b)(2) of this section, the National Advisory
Council, the National Council on Disability, and other entities at
the Administrator’s discretion, shall develop, coordinate, and maintain a National Disaster Housing Strategy.
(b) CONTENTS.—The National Disaster Housing Strategy shall—
(1) outline the most efficient and cost effective Federal
programs that will best meet the short-term and long-term
housing needs of individuals and households affected by a major
disaster;
(2) clearly define the role, programs, authorities, and
responsibilities of each entity in providing housing assistance
in the event of a major disaster, including—
(A) the Agency;
(B) the Department of Housing and Urban Development;
(C) the Department of Agriculture;
(D) the Department of Veterans Affairs;
(E) the Department of Health and Human Services;
(F) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
(G) any other Federal agency that may provide housing
assistance in the event of a major disaster;
(H) the American Red Cross; and
(I) State, local, and tribal governments;
(3) describe in detail the programs that may be offered
by the entities described in paragraph (2), including—
(A) outlining any funding issues;
(B) detailing how responsibilities under the National
Disaster Housing Strategy will be shared; and
(C) addressing other matters concerning the cooperative effort to provide housing assistance during a major
disaster;
(4) consider methods through which housing assistance
can be provided to individuals and households where employment and other resources for living are available;

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(5) describe programs directed to meet the needs of special
needs and low-income populations and ensure that a sufficient
number of housing units are provided for individuals with
disabilities;
(6) describe plans for the operation of clusters of housing
provided to individuals and households, including access to
public services, site management, security, and site density;
(7) describe plans for promoting the repair or rehabilitation
of existing rental housing, including through lease agreements
or other means, in order to improve the provision of housing
to individuals and households under section 408 of the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5174); and
(8) describe any additional authorities necessary to carry
out any portion of the strategy.
(c) GUIDANCE.—The Administrator should develop and make
publicly available guidance on—
(1) types of housing assistance available under the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) to individuals and households affected
by an emergency or major disaster;
(2) eligibility for such assistance (including, where appropriate, the continuation of such assistance); and
(3) application procedures for such assistance.
(d) REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to
the appropriate committees of Congress a report describing
in detail the National Disaster Housing Strategy, including
programs directed to meeting the needs of special needs populations.
(2) UPDATED REPORT.—The Administrator shall submit to
the appropriate committees of Congress a report updating the
report submitted under paragraph (1)—
(A) on the same date that any change is made to
the National Disaster Housing Strategy; and
(B) on a periodic basis after the submission of the
report under paragraph (1), but not less than once every
5 years after the date of the submission of the report
under paragraph (1).
SEC. 684. HAZARD MITIGATION GRANT PROGRAM FORMULA.

The third sentence of section 404(a) of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170c(a))
is amended by striking ‘‘7.5 percent’’ and inserting ‘‘15 percent
for amounts not more than $2,000,000,000, 10 percent for amounts
of more than $2,000,000,000 and not more than $10,000,000,000,
and 7.5 percent on amounts of more than $10,000,000,000 and
not more than $35,333,000,000’’.
SEC. 685. HOUSING ASSISTANCE.

Section 408(c)(4) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174) is amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘or semi-permanent’’ after ‘‘permanent’’;
and
(2) by striking ‘‘remote’’.

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

SEC. 686. MAXIMUM AMOUNT UNDER INDIVIDUAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.

Section 408(c) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174(c)) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (2)(C); and
(2) in paragraph (3)—
(A) by striking subparagraph (B); and
(B) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (B).
SEC. 687. COORDINATING OFFICERS.

Section 302 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5143(b)) is amended by adding
after subsection (c) the following:
‘‘(d) Where the area affected by a major disaster or emergency
includes parts of more than 1 State, the President, at the discretion
of the President, may appoint a single Federal coordinating officer
for the entire affected area, and may appoint such deputy Federal
coordinating officers to assist the Federal coordinating officer as
the President determines appropriate.’’.
SEC. 688. DEFINITIONS.

Section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122) is amended—
(1) by amending paragraph (9) to read as follows:
‘‘(9) PRIVATE NONPROFIT FACILITY.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘private nonprofit facility’
means private nonprofit educational, utility, irrigation,
emergency, medical, rehabilitational, and temporary or
permanent custodial care facilities (including those for the
aged and disabled) and facilities on Indian reservations,
as defined by the President.
‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL FACILITIES.—In addition to the facilities described in subparagraph (A), the term ‘private nonprofit facility’ includes any private nonprofit facility that
provides essential services of a governmental nature to
the general public (including museums, zoos, performing
arts facilities, community arts centers, libraries, homeless
shelters, senior citizen centers, rehabilitation facilities,
shelter workshops, and facilities that provide health and
safety services of a governmental nature), as defined by
the President.’’;
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through (9) as paragraphs (7) through (10), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
‘‘(6) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.—The term ‘individual
with a disability’ means an individual with a disability as
defined in section 3(2) of the Americans with Disabilities Act
of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102(2)).’’.
SEC. 689. INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.
Deadline.
6 USC 773.

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(a) GUIDELINES.—Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, and in coordination with the National
Advisory Council, the National Council on Disability, the Interagency Coordinating Council on Preparedness and Individuals With
Disabilities established under Executive Order No. 13347 (6 U.S.C.
312 note), and the Disability Coordinator (established under section
513 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as added by this Act),

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the Administrator shall develop guidelines to accommodate individuals with disabilities, which shall include guidelines for—
(1) the accessibility of, and communications and programs
in, shelters, recovery centers, and other facilities; and
(2) devices used in connection with disaster operations,
including first aid stations, mass feeding areas, portable
payphone stations, portable toilets, and temporary housing.
(b) ESSENTIAL ASSISTANCE.—Section 403(a) of the Robert T.
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
5170b(a)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘durable medical equipment,’’ after ‘‘medicine’’; and
(2) in paragraph (3)—
(A) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘‘durable medical
equipment,’’ after ‘‘medicine’’;
(B) in subparagraph (H), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end;
(C) in subparagraph (I), by striking the period and
inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(J) provision of rescue, care, shelter, and essential
needs—
‘‘(i) to individuals with household pets and service
animals; and
‘‘(ii) to such pets and animals.’’.
(c) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND HOUSEHOLDS.—
Section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174) is amended—
(1) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ‘‘, or with respect
to individuals with disabilities, rendered inaccessible or
uninhabitable,’’ after ‘‘uninhabitable’’; and
(2) in subsection (d)(1)(A)—
(A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon;
(B) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and
(C) by inserting after clause (i) the following:
‘‘(ii) meets the physical accessibility requirements
for individuals with disabilities; and’’.
SEC. 689a. NONDISCRIMINATION IN DISASTER ASSISTANCE.

Section 308(a) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5151(a)) is amended by
inserting ‘‘disability, English proficiency,’’ after ‘‘age,’’.
SEC. 689b. REUNIFICATION.

6 USC 774.

(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
(1) CHILD LOCATOR CENTER.—The term ‘‘Child Locator
Center’’ means the National Emergency Child Locator Center
established under subsection (b).
(2) DECLARED EVENT.—The term ‘‘declared event’’ means
a major disaster or emergency.
(3) DISPLACED ADULT.—The term ‘‘displaced adult’’ means
an individual 21 years of age or older who is displaced from
the habitual residence of that individual as a result of a
declared event.
(4) DISPLACED CHILD.—The term ‘‘displaced child’’ means
an individual under 21 years of age who is displaced from
the habitual residence of that individual as a result of a
declared event.
(b) NATIONAL EMERGENCY CHILD LOCATOR CENTER.—

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120 STAT. 1450
Deadline.

Communications
and telecommunications
Website.

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in coordination
with the Attorney General of the United States, shall establish
within the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
the National Emergency Child Locator Center. In establishing
the National Emergency Child Locator Center, the Administrator shall establish procedures to make all relevant information available to the National Emergency Child Locator Center
in a timely manner to facilitate the expeditious identification
and reunification of children with their families.
(2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Child Locator Center
are to—
(A) enable individuals to provide to the Child Locator
Center the name of and other identifying information about
a displaced child or a displaced adult who may have
information about the location of a displaced child;
(B) enable individuals to receive information about
other sources of information about displaced children and
displaced adults; and
(C) assist law enforcement in locating displaced children.
(3) RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES.—The responsibilities and
duties of the Child Locator Center are to—
(A) establish a toll-free telephone number to receive
reports of displaced children and information about displaced adults that may assist in locating displaced children;
(B) create a website to provide information about displaced children;
(C) deploy its staff to the location of a declared event
to gather information about displaced children;
(D) assist in the reunification of displaced children
with their families;
(E) provide information to the public about additional
resources for disaster assistance;
(F) work in partnership with Federal, State, and local
law enforcement agencies;
(G) provide technical assistance in locating displaced
children;
(H) share information on displaced children and displaced adults with governmental agencies and nongovernmental organizations providing disaster assistance;
(I) use its resources to gather information about displaced children;
(J) refer reports of displaced adults to—
(i) an entity designated by the Attorney General
to provide technical assistance in locating displaced
adults; and
(ii) the National Emergency Family Registry and
Locator System as defined under section 689c(a);
(K) enter into cooperative agreements with Federal
and State agencies and other organizations such as the
American Red Cross as necessary to implement the mission
of the Child Locator Center; and
(L) develop an emergency response plan to prepare
for the activation of the Child Locator Center.
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 403(1) of the Missing
Children’s Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5772(1)) is amended—

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(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end;
(2) in subparagraph (B), by adding ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon;
and
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
‘‘(C) the individual is an individual under 21 years
of age who is displaced from the habitual residence of
that individual as a result of an emergency or major disaster (as those terms are defined in section 102 of the
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122)).’’.
(d) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee
on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on the
Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report describing in
detail the status of the Child Locator Center, including funding
issues and any difficulties or issues in establishing the Center
or completing the cooperative agreements described in subsection
(b)(3)(K).
SEC. 689c. NATIONAL EMERGENCY FAMILY REGISTRY AND LOCATOR
SYSTEM.

6 USC 775.

(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—
(1) the term ‘‘displaced individual’’ means an individual
displaced by an emergency or major disaster; and
(2) the term ‘‘National Emergency Family Registry and
Locator System’’ means the National Emergency Family Registry and Locator System established under subsection (b).
(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish a
National Emergency Family Registry and Locator System to help
reunify families separated after an emergency or major disaster.
(c) OPERATION OF SYSTEM.—The National Emergency Family
Registry and Locator System shall—
(1) allow a displaced adult (including medical patients)
to voluntarily register (and allow an adult that is the parent
or guardian of a displaced child to register such child), by
submitting personal information to be entered into a database
(such as the name, current location of residence, and any other
relevant information that could be used by others seeking to
locate that individual);
(2) ensure that information submitted under paragraph
(1) is accessible to those individuals named by a displaced
individual and to those law enforcement officials;
(3) be accessible through the Internet and through a tollfree number, to receive reports of displaced individuals; and
(4) include a means of referring displaced children to the
National Emergency Child Locator Center established under
section 689b.
(d) PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION.—Not later than 210 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall
establish a mechanism to inform the public about the National
Emergency Family Registry and Locator System and its potential
usefulness for assisting to reunite displaced individuals with their
families.

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PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

(e) COORDINATION.—Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall enter a memorandum
of understanding with the Department of Justice, the National
Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Department of
Health and Human Services, and the American Red Cross and
other relevant private organizations that will enhance the sharing
of information to facilitate reuniting displaced individuals (including
medical patients) with their families.
(f) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate
committees of Congress a report describing in detail the status
of the National Emergency Family Registry and Locator System,
including any difficulties or issues in establishing the System,
including funding issues.

Deadline.

SEC. 689d. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND HOUSEHOLDS.

Section 408(c)(1)(A) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174(c)(1)(A)) is
amended—
(1) in clause (i), by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Such
assistance may include the payment of the cost of utilities,
excluding telephone service.’’; and
(2) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘security deposits,’’ after
‘‘hookups,’’.
SEC. 689e. DISASTER RELATED INFORMATION SERVICES.

Subtitle A of title VI of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5195 et seq.) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
42 USC 5196f.

‘‘SEC. 616. DISASTER RELATED INFORMATION SERVICES.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Consistent with section 308(a), the Director
of Federal Emergency Management Agency shall—
‘‘(1) identify, in coordination with State and local governments, population groups with limited English proficiency and
take into account such groups in planning for an emergency
or major disaster;
‘‘(2) ensure that information made available to individuals
affected by a major disaster or emergency is made available
in formats that can be understood by—
‘‘(A) population groups identified under paragraph (1);
and
‘‘(B) individuals with disabilities or other special needs;
and
‘‘(3) develop and maintain an informational clearinghouse
of model language assistance programs and best practices for
State and local governments in providing services related to
a major disaster or emergency.
‘‘(b) GROUP SIZE.—For purposes of subsection (a), the Director
of Federal Emergency Management Agency shall define the size
of a population group.’’.
SEC. 689f. TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE AND CASE MANAGEMENT
SERVICES TO INDIVIDUALS AND HOUSEHOLDS.

Title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170 et seq.), is amended by adding
at the end the following:

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‘‘SEC. 425. TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND
HOUSEHOLDS.

42 USC 5189c.

‘‘The President may provide transportation assistance to
relocate individuals displaced from their predisaster primary residences as a result of an incident declared under this Act or otherwise transported from their predisaster primary residences under
section 403(a)(3) or 502, to and from alternative locations for short
or long-term accommodation or to return an individual or household
to their predisaster primary residence or alternative location, as
determined necessary by the President.
‘‘SEC. 426. CASE MANAGEMENT SERVICES.

42 USC 5189d.

‘‘The President may provide case management services,
including financial assistance, to State or local government agencies
or qualified private organizations to provide such services, to victims
of major disasters to identify and address unmet needs.’’.
SEC. 689g. DESIGNATION OF SMALL STATE AND RURAL ADVOCATE.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (15 U.S.C. 5141 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘SEC. 326. DESIGNATION OF SMALL STATE AND RURAL ADVOCATE.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President shall designate in the Federal
Emergency Management Agency a Small State and Rural Advocate.
‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Small State and Rural Advocate
shall be an advocate for the fair treatment of small States and
rural communities in the provision of assistance under this Act.
‘‘(c) DUTIES.—The Small State and Rural Advocate shall—
‘‘(1) participate in the disaster declaration process under
section 401 and the emergency declaration process under section 501, to ensure that the needs of rural communities are
being addressed;
‘‘(2) assist small population States in the preparation of
requests for major disaster or emergency declarations; and
‘‘(3) conduct such other activities as the Director of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency considers appropriate.’’.
(b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to
the appropriate committees of Congress a report detailing the extent
to which disaster declaration regulations—
(1) meet the particular needs of States with populations
of less than 1,500,000 individuals; and
(2) comply with statutory restrictions on the use of arithmetic formulas and sliding scales based on income or population.
(c) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section or the
amendments made by this section shall be construed to authorize
major disaster or emergency assistance that is not authorized as
of the date of enactment of this Act.

42 USC 5165d.

42 USC 5165d
note.

SEC. 689h. REPAIR, RESTORATION, AND REPLACEMENT OF DAMAGED
PRIVATE NONPROFIT EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES.

Section 406(a)(3)(B) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5172(a)(3)(B)) is amended
by inserting ‘‘education,’’ after ‘‘communications,’’.

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6 USC 776.

PUBLIC LAW 109–295—OCT. 4, 2006

SEC. 689i. INDIVIDUALS AND HOUSEHOLDS PILOT PROGRAM.

(a) PILOT PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The President, acting through the
Administrator, in coordination with State, local, and tribal
governments, shall establish and conduct a pilot program. The
pilot program shall be designed to make better use of existing
rental housing, located in areas covered by a major disaster
declaration, in order to provide timely and cost-effective temporary housing assistance to individuals and households eligible
for assistance under section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174)
where alternative housing options are less available or less
cost-effective.
(2) ADMINISTRATION.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of the pilot program
under this section, the Administrator may—
(i) enter into lease agreements with owners of
multi-family rental property located in areas covered
by a major disaster declaration to house individuals
and households eligible for assistance under section
408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174);
(ii) make improvements to properties under such
lease agreements;
(iii) use the pilot program where the program is
cost effective in that the cost to the Government for
the lease agreements is in proportion to the savings
to the Government by not providing alternative
housing; and
(iv) limit repairs to those required to ensure that
the housing units shall meet Federal housing quality
standards.
(B) IMPROVEMENTS TO LEASED PROPERTIES.—Under the
terms of any lease agreement for a property described
under subparagraph (A)(ii), the value of the contribution
of the Agency to such improvements—
(i) shall be deducted from the value of the lease
agreement; and
(ii) may not exceed the value of the lease agreement.
(3) CONSULTATION.—In administering the pilot program
under this section, the Administrator may consult with State,
local, and tribal governments.
(4) REPORT.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than March 31, 2009, the
Administrator shall submit to the appropriate committees
of Congress a report regarding the effectiveness of the
pilot program.
(B) CONTENTS.—The Administrator shall include in the
report—
(i) an assessment of the effectiveness of the pilot
program under this section, including an assessment
of cost-savings to the Federal Government and any
benefits to individuals and households eligible for
assistance under section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5174) under the pilot program;

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(ii) findings and conclusions of the Administrator
with respect to the pilot program;
(iii) an assessment of additional authorities needed
to aid the Agency in its mission of providing disaster
housing assistance to individuals and households
eligible for assistance under section 408 of the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance
Act (42 U.S.C. 5174), either under the pilot program
under this section or other potential housing programs;
and
(iv) any recommendations of the Administrator for
additional authority to continue or make permanent
the pilot program.
(b) PILOT PROGRAM PROJECT APPROVAL.—The Administrator
shall not approve a project under the pilot program after December
31, 2008.
SEC. 689j. PUBLIC ASSISTANCE PILOT PROGRAM.

6 USC 777.

(a) PILOT PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The President, acting through the
Administrator, and in coordination with State and local governments, shall establish and conduct a pilot program to—
(A) reduce the costs to the Federal Government of
providing assistance to States and local governments under
sections 403(a)(3)(A), 406, and 407 of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
1570b(a)(3), 5172, 5172);
(B) increase flexibility in the administration of sections
403(a)(3)(A), 406, and 407 of that Act; and
(C) expedite the provision of assistance to States and
local governments provided under sections 403(a)(3)(A),
406, and 407 of that Act.
(2) PARTICIPATION.—Only States and local governments
that elect to participate in the pilot program may participate
in the pilot program for a particular project.
(3) INNOVATIVE ADMINISTRATION.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the pilot program,
the Administrator shall establish new procedures to administer assistance provided under the sections referred to
in paragraph (1).
(B) NEW PROCEDURES.—The new procedures established under subparagraph (A) may include 1 or more
of the following:
(i) Notwithstanding section 406(c)(1)(A) of the
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 1571(c)(1)(A)), providing an
option for a State or local government to elect to receive
an in-lieu contribution in an amount equal to 90 percent of the Federal share of the Federal estimate of
the cost of repair, restoration, reconstruction, or
replacement of a public facility owned or controlled
by the State or local government and of management
expenses.
(ii) Making grants on the basis of estimates agreed
to by the local government (or where no local government is involved, by the State government) and the

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Administrator to provide financial incentives and disincentives for the local government (or where no local
government is involved, for the State government) for
the timely or cost effective completion of projects under
sections 403(a)(3)(A), 406, and 407 of that Act.
(iii) Increasing the Federal share for removal of
debris and wreckage for States and local governments
that have a debris management plan approved by the
Administrator and have pre-qualified 1 or more debris
and wreckage removal contractors before the date of
declaration of the major disaster.
(iv) Using a sliding scale for the Federal share
for removal of debris and wreckage based on the time
it takes to complete debris and wreckage removal.
(v) Using a financial incentive to recycle debris.
(vi) Reimbursing base wages for employees and
extra hires of a State or local government involved
in or administering debris and wreckage removal.
(4) WAIVER.—The Administrator may waive such regulations or rules applicable to the provisions of assistance under
the sections referred to in paragraph (1) as the Administrator
determines are necessary to carry out the pilot program under
this section.
(b) REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than March 31, 2009, the
Administrator shall submit to the appropriate committees of
Congress a report regarding the effectiveness of the pilot program under this section.
(2) CONTENTS.—The report submitted under paragraph (1)
shall include—
(A) an assessment by the Administrator of any
administrative or financial benefits of the pilot program;
(B) an assessment by the Administrator of the effect,
including any savings in time and cost, of the pilot program;
(C) any identified legal or other obstacles to increasing
the amount of debris recycled after a major disaster;
(D) any other findings and conclusions of the Administrator with respect to the pilot program; and
(E) any recommendations of the Administrator for additional authority to continue or make permanent the pilot
program.
(c) DEADLINE FOR INITIATION OF IMPLEMENTATION.—The
Administrator shall initiate implementation of the pilot program
under this section not later than 90 days after the date of enactment
of this Act.
(d) PILOT PROGRAM PROJECT DURATION.—The Administrator
may not approve a project under the pilot program under this
section after December 31, 2008.
SEC. 689k. DISPOSAL OF UNUSED TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 408(d)(2)(B) of the
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act
(42 U.S.C. 5174(d)(2)(B)), if the Administrator authorizes the disposal of an unused temporary housing unit that is owned by the
Agency on the date of enactment of this Act and is not used
to house individuals or households under section 408 of the Robert
T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

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5174) after that date, such unit shall be disposed of under subchapter III of chapter 5 of subtitle I of title 40, United States
Code.
(b) TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS.—Housing units described in subsection (a) shall be disposed of in coordination with the Department
of the Interior or other appropriate agencies in order to transfer
such units to tribal governments if appropriate.

Subtitle F—Prevention of Fraud, Waste,
and Abuse
SEC. 691. ADVANCE CONTRACTING.

6 USC 791.

(a) INITIAL REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit a
report under paragraph (2) identifying—
(A) recurring disaster response requirements, including
specific goods and services, for which the Agency is capable
of contracting for in advance of a natural disaster or act
of terrorism or other man-made disaster in a cost effective
manner;
(B) recurring disaster response requirements, including
specific goods and services, for which the Agency can not
contract in advance of a natural disaster or act of terrorism
or other man-made disaster in a cost effective manner;
and
(C) a contracting strategy that maximizes the use of
advance contracts to the extent practical and cost-effective.
(2) SUBMISSION.—The report under paragraph (1) shall be
submitted to the appropriate committees of Congress.
(b) ENTERING INTO CONTRACTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall enter into
1 or more contracts for each type of goods or services identified
under subsection (a)(1)(A), and in accordance with the contracting strategy identified in subsection (a)(1)(C). Any contract
for goods or services identified in subsection (a)(1)(A) previously
awarded may be maintained in fulfilling this requirement.
(2) CONSIDERED FACTORS.—Before entering into any contract under this subsection, the Administrator shall consider
section 307 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5150), as amended by this
Act.
(3) PRENEGOTIATED FEDERAL CONTRACTS FOR GOODS AND
SERVICES.—The Administrator, in coordination with State and
local governments and other Federal agencies, shall establish
a process to ensure that Federal prenegotiated contracts for
goods and services are coordinated with State and local governments, as appropriate.
(4) PRENEGOTIATED STATE AND LOCAL CONTRACTS FOR
GOODS AND SERVICES.—The Administrator shall encourage
State and local governments to establish prenegotiated contracts with vendors for goods and services in advance of natural
disasters and acts of terrorism or other man-made disasters.
(c) MAINTENANCE OF CONTRACTS.—After the date described
under subsection (b), the Administrator shall have the responsibility

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to maintain contracts for appropriate levels of goods and services
in accordance with subsection (a)(1)(C).
(d) REPORT ON CONTRACTS NOT USING COMPETITIVE PROCEDURES.—At the end of each fiscal quarter, beginning with the first
fiscal quarter occurring at least 90 days after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Administrator shall submit a report on each disaster
assistance contract entered into by the Agency by other than
competitive procedures to the appropriate committees of Congress.
6 USC 792.

SEC. 692. LIMITATIONS ON TIERING OF SUBCONTRACTORS.

(a) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall promulgate regulations
applicable to contracts described in subsection (c) to minimize the
excessive use by contractors of subcontractors or tiers of subcontractors to perform the principal work of the contract.
(b) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENT.—At a minimum, the regulations
promulgated under subsection (a) shall preclude a contractor from
using subcontracts for more than 65 percent of the cost of the
contract or the cost of any individual task or delivery order (not
including overhead and profit), unless the Secretary determines
that such requirement is not feasible or practicable.
(c) COVERED CONTRACTS.—This section applies to any costreimbursement type contract or task or delivery order in an amount
greater than the simplified acquisition threshold (as defined by
section 4 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C.
403)) entered into by the Department to facilitate response to or
recovery from a natural disaster or act of terrorism or other manmade disaster.
6 USC 793.

SEC. 693. OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY OF FEDERAL DISASTER
EXPENDITURES.

(a) AUTHORITY OF ADMINISTRATOR TO DESIGNATE FUNDS FOR
OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES.—The Administrator may designate up to
1 percent of the total amount provided to a Federal agency for
a mission assignment as oversight funds to be used by the recipient
agency for performing oversight of activities carried out under the
Agency reimbursable mission assignment process. Such funds shall
remain available until expended.
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—
(1) TYPES OF OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES.—Oversight funds may
be used for the following types of oversight activities related
to Agency mission assignments:
(A) Monitoring, tracking, and auditing expenditures
of funds.
(B) Ensuring that sufficient management and internal
control mechanisms are available so that Agency funds
are spent appropriately and in accordance with all
applicable laws and regulations.
(C) Reviewing selected contracts and other activities.
(D) Investigating allegations of fraud involving Agency
funds.
(E) Conducting and participating in fraud prevention
activities with other Federal, State, and local government
personnel and contractors.
(2) PLANS AND REPORTS.—Oversight funds may be used
to issue the plans required under subsection (e) and the reports
required under subsection (f).
(c) RESTRICTION ON USE OF FUNDS.—Oversight funds may not
be used to finance existing agency oversight responsibilities related

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to direct agency appropriations used for disaster response, relief,
and recovery activities.
(d) METHODS OF OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Oversight activities may be carried out
by an agency under this section either directly or by contract.
Such activities may include evaluations and financial and
performance audits.
(2) COORDINATION OF OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES.—To the extent
practicable, evaluations and audits under this section shall
be performed by the inspector general of the agency.
(e) DEVELOPMENT OF OVERSIGHT PLANS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—If an agency receives oversight funds
for a fiscal year, the head of the agency shall prepare a plan
describing the oversight activities for disaster response, relief,
and recovery anticipated to be undertaken during the subsequent fiscal year.
(2) SELECTION OF OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES.—In preparing the
plan, the head of the agency shall select oversight activities
based upon a risk assessment of those areas that present the
greatest risk of fraud, waste, and abuse.
(3) SCHEDULE.—The plan shall include a schedule for conducting oversight activities, including anticipated dates of
completion.
(f) FEDERAL DISASTER ASSISTANCE ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTS.—
A Federal agency receiving oversight funds under this section shall
submit annually to the Administrator and the appropriate committees of Congress a consolidated report regarding the use of such
funds, including information summarizing oversight activities and
the results achieved.
(g) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘oversight funds’’
means funds referred to in subsection (a) that are designated for
use in performing oversight activities.
SEC. 694. USE OF LOCAL FIRMS AND INDIVIDUALS.

The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) is amended by striking section
307 and inserting the following:
‘‘SEC. 307. USE OF LOCAL FIRMS AND INDIVIDUALS.

42 USC 5150.

‘‘(a) CONTRACTS OR AGREEMENTS WITH PRIVATE ENTITIES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the expenditure of Federal funds for
debris clearance, distribution of supplies, reconstruction, and
other major disaster or emergency assistance activities which
may be carried out by contract or agreement with private
organizations, firms, or individuals, preference shall be given,
to the extent feasible and practicable, to those organizations,
firms, and individuals residing or doing business primarily
in the area affected by such major disaster or emergency.
‘‘(2) CONSTRUCTION.—This subsection shall not be considered to restrict the use of Department of Defense resources
under this Act in the provision of assistance in a major disaster.
‘‘(3) SPECIFIC GEOGRAPHIC AREA.—In carrying out this section, a contract or agreement may be set aside for award
based on a specific geographic area.
‘‘(b) IMPLEMENTATION.—
‘‘(1) CONTRACTS NOT TO ENTITIES IN AREA.—Any expenditure of Federal funds for debris clearance, distribution of supplies, reconstruction, and other major disaster or emergency

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assistance activities which may be carried out by contract or
agreement with private organizations, firms, or individuals,
not awarded to an organization, firm, or individual residing
or doing business primarily in the area affected by such major
disaster shall be justified in writing in the contract file.
‘‘(2) TRANSITION.—Following the declaration of an emergency or major disaster, an agency performing response, relief,
and reconstruction activities shall transition work performed
under contracts in effect on the date on which the President
declares the emergency or major disaster to organizations,
firms, and individuals residing or doing business primarily
in any area affected by the major disaster or emergency, unless
the head of such agency determines that it is not feasible
or practicable to do so.
‘‘(c) PRIOR CONTRACTS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to require any Federal agency to breach or renegotiate
any contract in effect before the occurrence of a major disaster
or emergency.’’.
6 USC 794.

SEC. 695. LIMITATION ON LENGTH OF CERTAIN NONCOMPETITIVE
CONTRACTS.

(a) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall promulgate regulations
applicable to contracts described in subsection (c) to restrict the
contract period of any such contract entered into using procedures
other than competitive procedures pursuant to the exception provided in paragraph (2) of section 303(c) of the Federal Property
and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 253(c)) to the
minimum contract period necessary—
(1) to meet the urgent and compelling requirements of
the work to be performed under the contract; and
(2) to enter into another contract for the required goods
or services through the use of competitive procedures.
(b) SPECIFIC CONTRACT PERIOD.—The regulations promulgated
under subsection (a) shall require the contract period to not to
exceed 150 days, unless the Secretary determines that exceptional
circumstances apply.
(c) COVERED CONTRACTS.—This section applies to any contract
in an amount greater than the simplified acquisition threshold
(as defined by section 4 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy
Act (41 U.S.C. 403)) entered into by the Department to facilitate
response to or recovery from a natural disaster, act of terrorism,
or other man-made disaster.
6 USC 795.

SEC. 696. FRAUD, WASTE, AND ABUSE CONTROLS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall ensure that—
(1) all programs within the Agency administering Federal
disaster relief assistance develop and maintain proper internal
management controls to prevent and detect fraud, waste, and
abuse;
(2) application databases used by the Agency to collect
information on eligible recipients must record disbursements;
(3) such tracking is designed to highlight and identify
ineligible applications; and
(4) the databases used to collect information from applications for such assistance must be integrated with disbursements
and payment records.
(b) AUDITS AND REVIEWS REQUIRED.—The Administrator shall
ensure that any database or similar application processing system

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for Federal disaster relief assistance programs administered by
the Agency undergoes a review by the Inspector General of the
Agency to determine the existence and implementation of such
internal controls required under this section and the amendments
made by this section.
(c) VERIFICATION MEASURES FOR INDIVIDUALS AND HOUSEHOLDS
PROGRAM.—Section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174) is amended—
(1) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection (j); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (h) the following:
‘‘(i) VERIFICATION MEASURES.—In carrying out this section, the
President shall develop a system, including an electronic database,
that shall allow the President, or the designee of the President,
to—
‘‘(1) verify the identity and address of recipients of assistance under this section to provide reasonable assurance that
payments are made only to an individual or household that
is eligible for such assistance;
‘‘(2) minimize the risk of making duplicative payments
or payments for fraudulent claims under this section;
‘‘(3) collect any duplicate payment on a claim under this
section, or reduce the amount of subsequent payments to offset
the amount of any such duplicate payment;
‘‘(4) provide instructions to recipients of assistance under
this section regarding the proper use of any such assistance,
regardless of how such assistance is distributed; and
‘‘(5) conduct an expedited and simplified review and appeal
process for an individual or household whose application for
assistance under this section is denied.’’.
SEC. 697. REGISTRY OF DISASTER RESPONSE CONTRACTORS.

6 USC 796.

(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—
(1) the term ‘‘registry’’ means the registry created under
subsection (b); and
(2) the terms ‘‘small business concern’’, ‘‘small business
concern owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals’’, ‘‘small business concern owned and
controlled by women’’, and ‘‘small business concern owned and
controlled by service-disabled veterans’’ have the meanings
given those terms under the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
631 et seq.).
(b) REGISTRY.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish and
maintain a registry of contractors who are willing to perform
debris removal, distribution of supplies, reconstruction, and
other disaster or emergency relief activities.
(2) CONTENTS.—The registry shall include, for each business concern—
(A) the name of the business concern;
(B) the location of the business concern;
(C) the area served by the business concern;
(D) the type of good or service provided by the business
concern;
(E) the bonding level of the business concern; and
(F) whether the business concern is—
(i) a small business concern;

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(ii) a small business concern owned and controlled
by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals;
(iii) a small business concern owned and controlled
by women; or
(iv) a small business concern owned and controlled
by service-disabled veterans.
(3) SOURCE OF INFORMATION.—
(A) SUBMISSION.—Information maintained in the registry shall be submitted on a voluntary basis and be kept
current by the submitting business concerns.
(B) ATTESTATION.—Each business concern submitting
information to the registry shall submit—
(i) an attestation that the information is true; and
(ii) documentation supporting such attestation.
(C) VERIFICATION.—The Administrator shall verify that
the documentation submitted by each business concern supports the information submitted by that business concern.
(4) AVAILABILITY OF REGISTRY.—The registry shall be made
generally available on the Internet site of the Agency.
(5) CONSULTATION OF REGISTRY.—As part of the acquisition
planning for contracting for debris removal, distribution of supplies in a disaster, reconstruction, and other disaster or emergency relief activities, a Federal agency shall consult the registry.

6 USC 797.

SEC. 698. FRAUD PREVENTION TRAINING PROGRAM.

The Administrator shall develop and implement a program
to provide training on the prevention of waste, fraud, and abuse
of Federal disaster relief assistance relating to the response to
or recovery from natural disasters and acts of terrorism or other
man-made disasters and ways to identify such potential waste,
fraud, and abuse.

Subtitle G—Authorization of
Appropriations
6 USC 811.

SEC. 699. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title
and the amendments made by this title for the administration
and operations of the Agency—
(1) for fiscal year 2008, an amount equal to the amount
appropriated for fiscal year 2007 for administration and operations of the Agency, multiplied by 1.1;
(2) for fiscal year 2009, an amount equal to the amount
described in paragraph (1), multiplied by 1.1; and
(3) for fiscal year 2010, an amount equal to the amount
described in paragraph (2), multiplied by 1.1.

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SEC. 699A. Except as expressly provided otherwise, any reference to ‘‘this Act’’ contained in this title shall be treated as
referring only to the provisions of this title.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Homeland Security
Appropriations Act, 2007’’.

6 USC 701 note.

Approved October 4, 2006.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—H.R. 5441:
HOUSE REPORTS: Nos. 109–476 (Comm. on Appropriations) and 109–699
(Comm. of Conference).
SENATE REPORTS: No. 109–273 (Comm. on Appropriations).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 152 (2006):
May 25, June 6, considered and passed House.
July 10–13, considered and passed Senate, amended.
Sept. 29, House and Senate agreed to conference report.
WEEKLY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS, Vol. 42 (2006):
Oct. 4, Presidential remarks and statement.

Æ

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