69–006 

115TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 115–284 

JOINT COUNTERTERRORISM AWARENESS WORKSHOP 

SERIES ACT OF 2017 

SEPTEMBER 1, 2017.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State 

of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. MCCAUL, from the Committee on Homeland Security, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 3284] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Homeland Security, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 3284) to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish a Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series, and 

for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably 

thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

Purpose and Summary ............................................................................................ 2 

Background and Need for Legislation .................................................................... 2 

Hearings ................................................................................................................... 2 

Committee Consideration ........................................................................................ 2 

Committee Votes ...................................................................................................... 3 

Committee Oversight Findings ............................................................................... 3 

New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures ............. 3 

Congressional Budget Office Estimate ................................................................... 3 

Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives .................................... 4 

Duplicative Federal Programs ................................................................................ 4 

Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff Benefits ... 4 

Federal Mandates Statement ................................................................................. 4 

Preemption Clarification ......................................................................................... 4 

Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings ..................................................................... 5 

Advisory Committee Statement .............................................................................. 5 

Applicability to Legislative Branch ........................................................................ 5 

Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation ...................................................... 5 

Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ..................................... 6 

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1 Mumbai Massacre Background Information. PBS. Available at: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/ 

secrets/mumbai-massacre-background-information/502/. 

PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

The purpose of H.R. 3284 is to amend the Homeland Security Act 

of 2002 to establish a Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop 

Series. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

In November 2008, ten members of Lashkar-e-Taiba conducted a 

coordinated terrorist attack on multiple targets in Mumbai, India.1

These attacks raised the question of how first responders prepare 

for and respond to a coordinated terrorist attack on multiple locations. In response to the Mumbai attacks, the Federal Emergency 

Management Agency (FEMA), the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) developed the Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series 

(JCTAWS) to assist States and localities in preparing for this new 

threat. The events in Paris and Brussels demonstrated that the 

threat of a coordinated terrorist attack is not going away. 

JCTAWS brings together a wide range of first responders including law enforcement, fire, emergency medical services, and public 

health officials, as well as the private sector and non-governmental 

organizations, to prepare for, prevent against, and respond to a coordinated terrorist attack. Since 2011, over 30 cities have hosted 

these workshops, where they test their current plans, policies, and 

procedures, while identifying gaps and best practices. After each 

workshop, the host city, with its Federal partners, develops a summary report with key findings and possible gap mitigation strategies. 

H.R. 3284 authorizes this program to ensure FEMA, NCTC, and 

the FBI continue to provide State and local jurisdictions with this 

vital resource. 

HEARINGS

No hearings were held on H.R. 3284 in the 115th Congress. 

However, in both the 115th and 114th Congresses, the Committee 

held hearings and briefings on the evolving terrorist threat, including the threat of complex, coordinated terrorist attacks, and the activities and resources needed to address threat. 

COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

The Committee met on July 26, 2017, to consider H.R. 3284, and 

ordered the measure to be reported to the House with a favorable 

recommendation, without amendment, by voice vote. 

The following amendment was offered: 

An amendment offered by MS. JACKSON LEE (#1); was WITHDRAWN by unanimous consent. 

Page 5, beginning line 17, insert a new paragraph entitled ‘‘(3) Security Assessment Reports.’’. 

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COMMITTEE VOTES

Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives requires the Committee to list the recorded votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments thereto. 

No recorded votes were requested during Committee consideration of H.R. 3284. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House 

of Representatives, the Committee has held oversight hearings and 

made findings that are reflected in this report. 

NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY, ENTITLEMENT AUTHORITY, AND TAX

EXPENDITURES

In compliance with clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, the Committee finds that H.R. 3284, the 

Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series Act of 2017, 

would result in no new or increased budget authority, entitlement 

authority, or tax expenditures or revenues. 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATE

The Committee adopts as its own the cost estimate prepared by 

the Director of the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 

402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. 

U.S. CONGRESS, CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, August 17, 2017. 

Hon. MICHAEL MCCAUL, Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, 

House of Representatives, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3284, the Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series Act of 2017. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Robert Reese. 

Sincerely, 

KEITH HALL. 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 3284—Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series Act 

of 2017 

H.R. 3284 would authorize the Federal Emergency Management 

Agency (FEMA) to carry out a training program for counterterrorism awareness in consultation with the National Counterterrorism Center and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The program would provide information, training, and other resources related to preventing, responding to, and recovering from terrorist attacks. The bill would authorize the appropriation of $1 million to 

implement the program. 

Under current law, FEMA performs most of the activities authorized under H.R. 3284 through its Joint Counterterrorism AwareVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Sep 02, 2017 Jkt 069006 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR284.XXX HR284
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ness Workshop under the National Exercise Program (NEP). In 

2017, $1 million was allocated to NEP for those workshops. 

CBO estimates that fully implementing the bill and conducting 

the training program each year over the 2018–2022 period would 

cost a total of about $5 million. That estimate is based on historical 

spending needs for the NEP; the spending would be subject to the 

availability of appropriations. 

Enacting H.R. 3284 would not affect direct spending or revenues; 

therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO estimates 

that enacting H.R. 3284 would not increase net direct spending or 

on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028. 

H.R. 3284 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Robert Reese. The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House 

of Representatives, H.R. 3284 contains the following general performance goals and objectives, including outcome related goals and 

objectives authorized. 

The goals and objectives of H.R. 3284 are to ensure emergency 

response providers are able to assess current plans, policies, and 

procedures for a coordinated terrorist attack, identity gaps in such 

plans, and develop mitigation strategies. 

DUPLICATIVE FEDERAL PROGRAMS

Pursuant to clause 3(c) of rule XIII, the Committee finds that 

H.R. 21626 does not contain any provision that establishes or reauthorizes a program known to be duplicative of another Federal program. 

CONGRESSIONAL EARMARKS, LIMITED TAX BENEFITS, AND LIMITED

TARIFF BENEFITS

In compliance with rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in 

clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of the rule XXI. 

FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT

The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office 

pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. 

PREEMPTION CLARIFICATION

In compliance with section 423 of the Congressional Budget Act 

of 1974, requiring the report of any Committee on a bill or joint 

resolution to include a statement on the extent to which the bill or 

joint resolution is intended to preempt State, local, or Tribal law, 

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the Committee finds that H.R. 3284 does not preempt any State, 

local, or Tribal law. 

DISCLOSURE OF DIRECTED RULE MAKINGS

The Committee estimates that H.R. 3284 would require no directed rule makings. 

ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) of the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this legislation. 

APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to the 

terms and conditions of employment or access to public services or 

accommodations within the meaning of section 102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATION

Section 1. Short title 

This section provides that this bill may be cited as the ‘‘Joint 

Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series Act of 2017’’. 

Sec. 2. Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series 

This section requires the Administrator of FEMA, in consultation 

with the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center and the 

Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to establish a Joint 

Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series (JCTAWS) to help 

State and local jurisdiction prepare for, protect against, and respond to coordinated terrorist attacks. The Committee believes that 

it is essential that States and localities are prepared for a coordinated terrorist attack and the workshops authorized in this bill are 

one way to meet this objective. 

This section also delineates the activities required to be part of 

each workshop, including, but not limited to, a review of current 

plans, policies, and procedures, an examination of the roles and responsibilities of participating agencies and respective communities, 

and an analysis of identified gaps and an assessment of resources 

available to mitigate such gaps. 

Additionally, this section authorizes the Administrator to select 

jurisdictions to participate in such workshops from among jurisdictions that currently receive, or have previously received, funding 

under the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) and have requested to host a workshop. State and local government officials, 

emergency response providers, and the private sector are eligible to 

participate in a workshop. Private sector participants should include, when appropriate, private health care providers, such as 

hospitals. 

Last, this section requires, after each workshop, FEMA, NCTC, 

the FBI, and officials from the host city to develop a summary report that includes key findings and strategies for mitigating gaps 

identified during the workshop. Additionally, FEMA is required to 

submit an annual report to Congress on the key themes, lessons 

learned, and best practices from all of the workshops held during 

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the previous year. The Committee believes, that if appropriate, the 

annual report should be publicly available to all emergency response providers so they can learn from the best practices and lessons learned from the previous year’s workshops. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is printed in italics 

and existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in 

roman): 

HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Homeland Security Act of 2002’’. 

(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for this Act is as 

follows: 

* * * * * * * 

TITLE V—NATIONAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT 

* * * * * * * 

Sec. 529. Joint Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series. 

* * * * * * * 

TITLE V—NATIONAL EMERGENCY 

MANAGEMENT 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 529. JOINT COUNTERTERRORISM AWARENESS WORKSHOP SERIES. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in consultation with the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center and the Director of 

the Federal Bureau of Investigation, shall establish a Joint 

Counterterrorism Awareness Workshop Series (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Workshop Series’’) to address emerging terrorist 

threats and to enhance the ability of State and local jurisdictions 

to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks. 

(b) PURPOSE.—The Workshop Series established under subsection 

(a) shall include the following components: 

(1) Reviewing existing preparedness, response, and interdiction plans, policies, and procedures related to terrorist attacks 

of the participating jurisdictions and identifying gaps in such 

plans, operational capabilities, response resources, and authorities. 

(2) Identifying Federal, State, and local resources available to 

address the gaps identified in accordance with paragraph (1). 

(3) Providing assistance, through training, exercises, and 

other means, to build or sustain, as appropriate, the capabilities to close such identified gaps. 

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(4) Examining the roles and responsibilities of participating 

agencies and respective communities in the event of a terrorist 

attack. 

(5) Improving situational awareness and information sharing 

among all participating agencies in the event of a terrorist attack. 

(6) Identifying and sharing best practices and lessons learned 

from each Workshop Series established under subsection (a). 

(c) DESIGNATION OF PARTICIPATING CITIES.—The Administrator 

shall select jurisdictions to host a Workshop Series from those cities 

that— 

(1) are currently receiving, or that previously received, funding under section 2003; and 

(2) have requested to be considered. 

(d) WORKSHOP SERIES PARTICIPANTS.—Individuals from State 

and local jurisdictions and emergency response providers in cities 

designated under subsection (c) shall be eligible to participate in the 

Workshop Series, including the following: 

(1) Senior elected and appointed officials. 

(2) Law enforcement. 

(3) Fire and Rescue. 

(4) Emergency management. 

(5) Emergency Medical Services. 

(6) Public health officials. 

(7) Private sector representatives. 

(8) Other participants as deemed appropriate by the Administrator. 

(e) REPORTS.— 

(1) WORKSHOP SERIES REPORT.—The Administrator, in consultation with the Director of the National Counterterrorism 

Center, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and 

officials from the city in which a Workshop Series is held, shall 

develop and submit to all of the agencies participating in such 

Workshop Series a report after the conclusion of each such 

Workshop Series that addresses the following: 

(A) Key findings about lessons learned and best practices 

from each such Workshop Series. 

(B) Potential mitigation strategies and resources to address gaps identified during each such Workshop Series. 

(2) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than one year after the date 

of the enactment of this section and annually thereafter for the 

next seven years, the Administrator, in consultation with the 

Director of the National Counterterrorism Center and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, shall submit to the 

Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a comprehensive summary report 

of the key themes, lessons learned, and best practices identified 

during the Workshop Series held during the previous year. 

(f) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

$1,000,000 to carry out this section. 

* * * * * * * 

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