[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 473 Reported in Senate (RS)]
Calendar No. 194
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 473
To extend the chemical facility security program of the Department of
Homeland Security, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 3, 2011
Ms. Collins (for herself, Mr. Pryor, Mr. Portman, and Ms. Landrieu)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
October 17, 2011
Reported by Mr. Lieberman, with amendments
[Omit the part struck through and insert the part printed in italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To extend the chemical facility security program of the Department of
Homeland Security, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Continuing Chemical Facilities
Antiterrorism Security Act of 2011''.
SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF CHEMICAL FACILITIES ANTITERRORISM SECURITY
PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Section 550(b) of the Department of Homeland
Security Appropriations Act, 2007 (6 U.S.C. 121 note) is amended by
striking ``<DELETED>October 4, 2010</DELETED> October 4, 2011'' and
inserting ``October 4, 2014''.
(b) Chemical Facility Security Enhancements.--
(1) In general.--The Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6
U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``TITLE XXI--CHEMICAL FACILITY SECURITY
``SEC. 2101. DEFINITIONS.
``In this title--
``(1) the term `Board' means the Chemical Facility Security
Advisory Board established under section 2105(a);
``(2) the term `Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards'
means the interim final regulations issued by the Secretary
under section 550 of the Department of Homeland Security
Appropriations Act, 2007 (6 U.S.C. 121 note); and
``(3) the term `covered chemical facility' means a chemical
facility subject to the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism
Standards.
``SEC. 2102. CHEMICAL SECURITY TRAINING PROGRAM.
``(a) Establishment.--Acting through the Administrator of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency and in coordination with the Under
Secretary for National Protection and Programs, the Secretary shall
establish a voluntary chemical security training program (referred to
in this section as the `training program') for the purpose of enhancing
the capabilities of covered chemical facilities to prevent, prepare
for, respond to, mitigate against, and recover from threatened or
actual acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and other man-made
disasters.
``(b) Requirements.--The training program shall provide validated
voluntary training that--
``(1) reaches multiple disciplines, including Federal,
State, and local government officials, commercial personnel and
management, and governmental and nongovernmental emergency
response providers;
``(2) provides training at the awareness, performance, and
management and planning levels;
``(3) uses multiple training mediums and methods;
``(4) is coordinated with training provided by government
training facilities, academic institutions, private
organizations, and other entities that provide specialized,
state-of-the-art training for governmental and nongovernmental
emergency responder providers or commercial personnel and
management;
``(5) uses, as appropriate, government training facilities,
courses provided by community colleges, public safety
academies, State and private universities, and other
facilities;
``(6) is consistent with, and supports implementation of,
the National Incident Management System, the National Response
Framework, the National Infrastructure Protection Plan, the
National Preparedness Guidance, the National Preparedness Goal,
the National Maritime Transportation Security Plan, and other
such national initiatives, and any successors thereto;
``(7) is evaluated against clear and consistent performance
measures;
``(8) addresses security requirements under chemical
facility security plans; and
``(9) educates, trains, and involves individuals in
neighborhoods around chemical facilities on how to observe and
report security risks.
``SEC. 2103. CHEMICAL SECURITY EXERCISE PROGRAM.
``(a) In General.--Acting through the Administrator of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency and in coordination with Under Secretary
for National Protection and Programs, the Secretary shall develop a
voluntary chemical security exercise program (referred to in this
section as the `exercise program') for the purpose of offering
voluntary testing and evaluation of the capabilities of the Federal
Government, State governments, commercial personnel and management,
governmental and nongovernmental emergency response providers, the
private sector, or any other organization or entity, as the Secretary
determines to be appropriate, to prevent, prepare for, mitigate
against, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism, natural
disasters, and other emergencies at covered chemical facilities.
``(b) Requirements.--Under the exercise program, the Secretary
shall conduct, on a periodic basis, voluntary joint security exercises
at chemical facilities that are--
``(1) scaled and tailored to the needs of each chemical
facility;
``(2) for the highest risk chemical facilities, as
determined by the Secretary, live training exercises;
``(3) as realistic as practicable and based on current risk
assessments, including credible threats, vulnerabilities, and
consequences;
``(4) consistent with the National Incident Management
System, the National Response Framework, the National
Infrastructure Protection Plan, the National Preparedness
Guidance, the National Preparedness Goal, the National Maritime
Transportation Security Plan, and other such national
initiatives, and any successors thereto;
``(5) evaluated against clear and consistent performance
measures;
``(6) assessed to learn best practices, which shall be
shared with appropriate Federal, State, and local officials,
commercial personnel and management, governmental and
nongovernmental emergency response providers, and the private
sector;
``(7) followed by remedial action in response to lessons
learned; and
``(8) designed to assist State and local governments and
chemical facilities in designing, implementing, and evaluating
exercises that--
``(A) conform to the requirements of this
paragraph; and
``(B) are consistent with any applicable Buffer
Zone Protection Plan, State homeland security plan, or
urban area homeland security plan.
``SEC. 2104. VOLUNTARY TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary, acting through the Assistant
Secretary for Infrastructure Protection, in coordination with the Under
Secretary for Science and Technology, and in consultation with the
Board, shall establish a voluntary technical assistance program under
which, upon request by the owner or operator of a covered chemical
facility, and subject to the availability of resources at the
Department, the Secretary may provide nonbinding assistance or
recommendations to the owner or operator to--
``(1) reduce the risk or consequences associated with a
successful act of terrorism against a covered chemical
facility, including the reduction of risk or consequences--
``(A) sufficient to decrease the risk-based tier
assigned to the covered chemical facility under the
Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards; or
``(B) such that the covered chemical facility no
longer presents a high level of security risk; or
``(2) aid in compliance with the risk-based performance
standards applicable to the covered chemical facility under the
Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards.
``(b) Voluntary Nature of Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--The decision to--
``(A) participate in the voluntary technical
assistance program under this section; or
``(B) implement any assistance or recommendations
provided by the Secretary under this section,
shall be at the sole discretion of the owner or operator of a
covered chemical facility.
``(2) No required assessment.--The Secretary may not
require the owner or operator of a covered chemical facility
to--
``(A) consider any assistance or recommendation
provided under this section as part of a security
vulnerability assessment under the Chemical Facility
Anti-Terrorism Standards; or
``(B) assess, directly or indirectly, the costs,
benefits, economic or technical feasibility, or
practicality of implementing any assistance or
recommendation provided under this section.
``(3) Site security plan review.--If the site security plan
for a covered chemical facility satisfies the risk-based
performance standards applicable to the covered chemical
facility under the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards,
the Secretary may not disapprove the site security plan based
on--
``(A) a decision by the owner or operator of a
covered chemical facility not to--
``(i) participate in the voluntary
technical assistance program under this
section; or
``(ii) implement assistance or a
recommendation provided by the Secretary under
this section; or
``(B) the presence or absence of a particular
security measure.
``(4) Effect on tiering.--At the request of the owner or
operator of a covered chemical facility, the Secretary shall
advise the owner or operator of the overall effect that
implementing all categories of assistance or recommendations
provided by the Secretary under this section would have on the
determination by the Secretary--
``(A) of the placement of the covered chemical
facility in a risk-based tier under the Chemical
Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards; or
``(B) regarding whether the covered chemical
facility would no longer present a high level of
security risk.
``(5) Civil liability.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), no
action, or failure to act, by the owner or operator of
a covered chemical facility relating to assistance or a
recommendation provided by the Secretary under this
section shall be interpreted, construed, implied, or
applied to create any liability or cause of action for
compensation for bodily injury, any other injury, or
property damage to any person that may result from an
act of terrorism or incident at the covered chemical
facility.
``(B) Additional or intervening acts or
omissions.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to any
injury or damage caused by any additional or
intervening act or omission of the owner or operator of
a covered chemical facility.
``(C) Rule of construction.--Except as provided in
this section, nothing in subparagraph (A) shall be
construed to abrogate or limit any right, remedy, or
authority that the Federal Government, any State or
local government, or any entity or agency of the
Federal Government or a State or local government may
possess under any other provision of law.
``(c) Best Practices.--Subject to subsection (d), the Secretary
shall develop a repository for information and data on best practices
and cost-effective technologies for implementing the Chemical Facility
Anti-Terrorism Standards and the voluntary technical assistance program
under this section.
``(d) Information Protection.--Any information obtained by the
Secretary under the voluntary technical assistance program under this
section or for purposes of subsection (c) shall--
``(1) to the extent that the information may reveal
vulnerabilities or other details of the security capabilities
of a covered chemical facility that may be exploited by
terrorists, be protected as chemical-terrorism vulnerability
information under the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism
Standards; and
``(2) to the extent that the information may reveal trade
secrets or commercial or financial information that is not
customarily in the public domain, be protected as though the
information was voluntarily shared critical infrastructure
information under section 214, except that the requirement
under section 214 that the information be voluntarily
submitted, including the requirement for an express statement
specified in section 214(a)(2), shall not apply to information
obtained under this section.
``(e) Report on Lessons Learned.--Not later than October 4, 2013,
the Secretary, in coordination with the Board, shall submit to the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate
and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives
a report regarding lessons learned from the voluntary technical
assistance program under this section.
``(f) Availability of Appropriations.--Of the amounts made
available for the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards for each
of fiscal years <DELETED>2011</DELETED> 2012 through <DELETED>2015</DELETED>
2014, not less than $5,000,000 shall be made available for the
provision of voluntary technical assistance under this section.
``SEC. 2105. CHEMICAL FACILITY SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD.
``(a) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this section, the Secretary shall establish under section
871 a Chemical Facility Security Advisory Board.
``(b) Responsibilities.--The Board shall advise the Secretary on
the implementation of the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards,
including regarding the implementation of the voluntary technical
assistance program under <DELETED>section 2103</DELETED> section 2104.
``(c) Membership.--There shall be 9 members of the Board, who shall
be appointed by the Secretary and shall represent a geographic and
substantive cross-section of the United States, including--
``(1) not less than 5 owners or operators of covered
chemical facilities;
``(2) not less than 2 employees of covered chemical
facilities with direct responsibility for process design and
engineering, production and operations, or chemical process
security; and
``(3) not less than 2 other experts in the fields of
chemistry, security, process design and engineering, process
controls and instrumentation, environmental health and safety,
maintenance, production and operations, or chemical process
security.
``(d) Term.--The members of the Board shall be appointed for such
terms as the Secretary may determine.
``(e) Applicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act.--
Notwithstanding section 871(a), except as provided in subsection (f),
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall apply to the
Board.
``(f) Exemption From Termination Requirements.--Section 14 of the
Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) and section 871(b) shall
not apply to the Board.
``SEC. 2106. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary such
sums as are necessary to carry out this title.''.
(2) 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 inserting after the item relating to
section 2022 the following:
``TITLE XXI--CHEMICAL FACILITY SECURITY
``Sec. 2101. Definitions.
``Sec. 2102. Chemical security training program.
``Sec. 2103. Chemical security exercise program.
``Sec. 2104. Voluntary technical assistance program.
``Sec. 2105. Chemical Facility Security Advisory Board.
``Sec. 2106. Authorization of appropriations.''.
(3) Sunset.--Effective on the date on which authority
terminates under section 550(b) of the Department of Homeland
Security Appropriations Act, 2007 (6 U.S.C. 121 note), the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is
amended--
(A) by striking title XXI; and
(B) in the table of contents in section 1(b), by
striking the items relating to title XXI and sections
2101 through 2106.
Calendar No. 194
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 473
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To extend the chemical facility security program of the Department of
Homeland Security, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
October 17, 2011
Reported with amendments