To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to award grants on a competitive basis to regional biocontainment laboratories for maintaining surge capacity that can be used to respond to acts of bioterrorism or outbreaks of infectious diseases, and for other purposes.

Summary: Laboratory Surge Capacity Preparedness Act - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to award grants to regional biocontainment laboratories for maintaining surge capacity that can be used to respond to acts of bioterrorism or outbreaks of infectious diseases. Authorizes the Secretary to award such a grant only if the laboratory agrees to allow the Secretary and other relevant federal agencies to inspect laboratory facilities.

Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on: (1) activities undertaken to integrate the network of regional biocontainment laboratories with the laboratory response network of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); and (2) the extent to which additional Biosafety Level 3 laboratories are needed to fulfill the national's laboratory surge capacity needs.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Laboratory Surge Capacity 
Preparedness Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Federal Government, through grants provided by the 
        National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has 
        invested more than $250,000,000 in the construction of regional 
        biocontainment laboratories (RBLs), a network of 13 university-
        based Biosafety Level 3 (BSL3) laboratories. Individual 
        university grant recipients have provided additional private 
        matching funds to construct these facilities.
            (2) These laboratories were established to fulfill 2 
        functions essential to the Nation's biodefense strategy:
                    (A) To support research for the development of 
                drugs, vaccines and diagnostics for emerging infections 
                and biological threats.
                    (B) To provide surge capacity in support of a 
                public emergency response to acts of bioterrorism and 
                outbreaks of infectious disease.
            (3) While the Federal Government has provided support for 
        the construction of these facilities, it has not to date 
        provided the operational support required by these laboratories 
        to fulfill their Federal surge capacity mission.
            (4) Recent bioterrorism exercises conducted by the 
        Department of Homeland Security and the Centers for Disease 
        Control and Prevention have demonstrated that the Federal 
        Government may not have sufficient laboratory surge capacity to 
        adequately respond to a large scale bioterrorism event.
            (5) Once fully operational, the network of RBLs will be 
        able to collectively provide more than 52,000 square feet of 
        laboratory space within a relatively short period of a declared 
        national bioterror or pandemic emergency.
            (6) In addition, the RBL network will be able to 
        collectively provide the services of nearly 500 trained 
        personnel, of which more than 230 will have Department of 
        Justice clearance.
            (7) Each of the RBLs has highly trained and specialized 
        personnel capable of handling select agent pathogens and 
        conducting diagnostic testing, in a secure BSL3 setting that 
        can be ``locked down'' rapidly and discreetly during an act of 
        bioterrorism. Each facility can maintain ``chain of custody'' 
        requirements for specimen processing.
            (8) All of the RBL facilities were designed with multiple 
        laboratory suites, so that each can handle multiple airborne 
        pathogens simultaneously without the risk for cross-
        contamination. Additionally, the RBLs can support critical 
        threat assessment research through the combined strengths of 
        some of the world's leading bioterrorism research experts and 
        the development of diverse animal models.
            (9) The House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee 
        recognized the multi-agency potential of the RBLs by including 
        report language in its fiscal year 2008 appropriations bill 
        calling on the Department of Homeland Security to ``leverage 
        the Federal investment in these facilities''.
            (10) The Federal Government, through the Department of 
        Homeland Security, should provide funding for the RBL network 
        to preserve this critical homeland security asset and ensure 
        that the Nation has the surge capacity needed to adequately 
        respond to acts of bioterrorism and pandemics.

SEC. 3. LABORATORY SURGE CAPACITY.

    (a) Grants.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall award grants 
on a competitive basis to regional biocontainment laboratories for 
maintaining surge capacity that can be used to respond to acts of 
bioterrorism or outbreaks of infectious diseases.
    (b) Amount.--The Secretary shall base the amount of a grant under 
this section to a regional biocontainment laboratory on the costs 
incurred by such laboratory that are associated with the provision of 
surge capacity.
    (c) Inspections.--The Secretary may award a grant to a regional 
biocontainment laboratory under this section only if the laboratory 
agrees to allow the Secretary and other relevant Federal agencies to 
inspect the facilities of the laboratory.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) The term ``regional biocontainment laboratory'' means 
        any of the 13 regional biocontainment laboratories funded 
        through the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious 
        Diseases.
            (2) The term ``relevant Federal agency'' means any Federal 
        agency with a role in public emergency response to acts of 
        bioterrorism and outbreaks of infectious diseases.
            (3) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there are authorized to be appropriated--
            (1) $21,500,000 for fiscal year 2009;
            (2) $23,500,000 in fiscal year 2010; and
            (3) $26,000,000 in fiscal year 2011.

SEC. 4. REPORTING.

    Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall report to the Congress 
on--
            (1) activities undertaken to integrate the network of 
        regional biocontainment laboratories (as defined in section 
        3(d)(1)) with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's 
        laboratory reponse network; and
            (2) the extent to which additional Biosafety Level 3 (BSL3) 
        laboratories are needed to fulfill the Nation's laboratory 
        surge capacity needs.