I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3524

To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants to encourage 

community safety by incorporating disaster mitigation and emergency 

preparedness into comprehensive land use planning and urban development, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 28, 2005

Mr. BLUMENAUER (for himself and Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL

To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to make 

grants to encourage community safety by incorporating 

disaster mitigation and emergency preparedness into 

comprehensive land use planning and urban development, 

and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safe Communities Act 

5 of 2005’’. 
2

•HR 3524 IH 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 The Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Land use and public facility planning at 

4 both the State and local levels have not had ade5 quate financial resources to fully incorporate the 

6 threats posed both by natural and human-caused 

7 disasters, including acts of terrorism. Too frequently 

8 this has resulted in costly disaster relief programs 

9 and piecemeal, ad hoc security responses, such as 

10 unattractive physical barriers that disrupt and ad11 versely impact the physical, social, economic, and 

12 civic lives in United States communities. 

13 (2) Although land use planning is rightfully 

14 within the jurisdiction of State and local govern15 ments, encouraging community safety by incor16 porating disaster mitigation and emergency pre17 paredness into comprehensive land use planning and 

18 urban development should be supported by the Fed19 eral Government and State governments. 

20 (3) Disaster response and relief efforts impose 

21 significant costs to United States taxpayers. Federal 

22 expenditure is heavily weighted to post-disaster re23 covery, rather than mitigation. Planning should be 

24 undertaken to prevent property damage and human 

25 casualties, proactively incorporating mitigation strat26 egies and methods from the professional fields of 
3

•HR 3524 IH 

1 urban, community, and regional planning (including 

2 transportation and land use), architecture, landscape 

3 architecture, and urban design. 

4 (4) Disaster planning has traditionally been bi5 ased toward facilitating efficient responses and re6 covery, potentially to the detriment of other planning 

7 goals. Comprehensive planning can incorporate a 

8 range of effective practices for reducing risks posed 

9 by natural disasters and terrorist acts. The Federal 

10 Government and States should provide a supportive 

11 climate and statutory context for comprehensive 

12 planning. 

13 (5) Many States have land use statutes that do 

14 not currently support comprehensive planning for 

15 safe communities, and many States are undertaking 

16 efforts to update and reform statutes to better en17 able planning efforts that incorporate long-term haz18 ard mitigation and emergency preparedness. 

19 (6) Efforts to coordinate State and regional in20 vestments, including at-risk public infrastructure, 

21 with local plans require additional State level plan22 ning. 

23 (7) Comprehensive urban planning takes into 

24 account the relationship between land use, transpor25 tation systems, water and wastewater facilities, open 
4

•HR 3524 IH 

1 space, and other critical infrastructure in promoting 

2 safe and economically viable communities. 

3 (8) Local governments should integrate safety 

4 considerations into comprehensive planning efforts. 

5 (9) Safe housing is an essential component of 

6 safe community development, and comprehensive 

7 planning should incorporate modern, scientific plan8 ning techniques to ensure that a broad range of safe 

9 housing options are available to all members of the 

10 Nation’s communities. 

11 (10) Prevailing land use patterns often place 

12 people, structures, and environmental systems at 

13 great risk. Poorly-regulated rural communities and 

14 small towns located on the metropolitan fringe often 

15 face significant growth pressures, resulting in hap16 hazard development patterns that do not incorporate 

17 regional impacts on critical disaster-reduction sys18 tems, such as open space and wetlands. 

19 (11) The Federal Government and State gov20 ernments should support the efforts of tribal govern21 ments and Native Hawaiian organizations to imple22 ment land use planning and community development 

23 to improve the safety of housing and socioeconomic 

24 conditions for Indian tribes and Native Hawaiians. 
5

•HR 3524 IH 

1 SEC. 3. SAFE COMMUNITIES PLANNING GRANTS. 

2 (a) GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary 

3 of Homeland Security shall establish a program to provide 

4 grants to States and local governments for the purpose 

5 of assisting in—

6 (1) the development or revision of land use 

7 planning statutes, and State or local comprehensive 

8 planning documents, in those States or local govern9 ments that either do not have land use planning 

10 statutes, or have inadequate or outmoded land use 

11 planning statutes and regulations, such that plan12 ning efforts have not adequately incorporated strate13 gies to mitigate natural and human-caused hazards, 

14 including acts of terror, or otherwise hinder coordi15 nation of comprehensive planning and emergency 

16 preparedness efforts; 

17 (2) the creation or revision of State land use 

18 planning statutes and local comprehensive land use 

19 plans or plan elements in those States or local gov20 ernments that have land use planning statutes that 

21 incorporate risk-reduction and natural and human22 caused hazard mitigation; and 

23 (3) the development or revision of comprehen24 sive land use plans or plan elements for multi-State 

25 regions. 
6

•HR 3524 IH 

1 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

2 under subsection (a), a State or local planning director 

3 shall submit to the Secretary an application, in such form 

4 as the Secretary may require, that demonstrates to the 

5 Secretary that the basic goals of the State or local govern6 ment regarding land use planning legislation or regulation 

7 are consistent with all of the following guidelines: 

8 (1) CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT.—Public notifica9 tion, citizen representation, and stakeholder involve10 ment in a consensus-based, multi-disciplinary plan11 ning process are required in developing, adopting, 

12 and updating land use plans. 

13 (2) MULTIJURISDICTIONAL COOPERATION.—In 

14 order to effectively assess the risks posed to commu15 nities by natural hazards and terrorist acts, plan16 ning legislation, comprehensive plans, and regula17 tions are created based on multijurisdictional gov18 ernmental cooperation. 

19 (3) MULTI-AGENCY COORDINATION.—In order 

20 to effectively assess the risks posed to communities 

21 by natural hazards and terrorist acts, planning legis22 lation, comprehensive plans, and regulations are cre23 ated based on cooperation between Federal, State, 

24 and local government agencies. 
7

•HR 3524 IH 

1 (4) IMPLEMENTATION ELEMENTS.—Land use 

2 plans contain an implementation element that—

3 (A) includes a timetable for action and a 

4 definition of the respective roles and respon5 sibilities of agencies, local governments, and 

6 citizens of the State; 

7 (B) is consistent with State and local cap8 ital budget objectives; and 

9 (C) provides the framework for decisions 

10 relating to the siting of future infrastructure 

11 development, including development of utilities 

12 and utility distribution systems. 

13 (5) COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING.—There is 

14 comprehensive planning to encourage land use plans 

15 that incorporate risk assessment and mitigation into 

16 any of State or locally-adopted—

17 (A) comprehensive plans; 

18 (B) urban design guidelines; 

19 (C) building codes; and 

20 (D) transportation plans, addressing both 

21 facility investment and operations. 

22 (6) UPDATING.—The State or local government 

23 addresses how comprehensive plans, including land 

24 use plans, urban design guidelines, building codes 

25 and transportation plans, will be updated over time. 
8

•HR 3524 IH 

1 (7) STANDARDS.—Comprehensive plans reflect 

2 an approach that is consistent with established pro3 fessional planning standards. 

4 (c) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.—Grant funds received 

5 by a State or local government under subsection (a) shall 

6 be used for one or more of the following purposes: 

7 (1) Developing a comprehensive land use plan 

8 and integrating natural hazard mitigation and secu9 rity plan elements into locally adopted and statewide 

10 comprehensive plans. 

11 (2) Assessing, inventorying, or mapping critical 

12 public infrastructure for use in developing land use 

13 and community development policies. 

14 (3) Developing geographical information sys15 tems, including technology acquisition, data develop16 ment, modernization, coordination, and technical as17 sistance. 

18 (4) Acquiring and developing scenario planning, 

19 risk assessment, or vulnerability analysis technology. 

20 (5) Reviewing and updating building codes, zon21 ing, land use regulations, and State-level enabling 

22 legislation. 

23 (6) Implementing CPTED (Crime Prevention 

24 Through Environmental Design) initiatives. 
9

•HR 3524 IH 

1 (7) Assessing risk and vulnerability, particularly 

2 related to land use. 

3 (8) Incorporating mitigation and security ele4 ments in transportation plans, facilities, and oper5 ations. 

6 (9) Incorporating regional security plans with 

7 regional transportation or land use plans. 

8 (10) Encouraging interagency cooperation, par9 ticularly between first-responders and State and 

10 local planning agencies. 

11 (11) Identifying natural hazard areas and inte12 grating them into updates of comprehensive plans, 

13 land use regulations, zoning, and building codes. 

14 (d) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—The amount of a grant 

15 under subsection (a) shall not exceed $1,125,000. 

16 (e) COST-SHARING.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para18 graph (2), the Federal share of a project funded 

19 with a grant under subsection (a) shall not exceed 

20 90 percent. 

21 (2) INCREASED FEDERAL SHARE.—The Sec22 retary may increase the Federal share in the case of 

23 a grant to a tribal government or Native Hawaiian 

24 organization if the Secretary finds that the tribal 

25 government or Native Hawaiian organization does 
10

•HR 3524 IH 

1 not have sufficient funds to contribute to the 

2 project. 

3 (f) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall encourage 

4 Federal land management agencies to coordinate land use 

5 planning for Federal land with the State or local planning 

6 director responsible for the drafting and updating of State 

7 guide plans or guidance documents regulating land use 

8 and infrastructure development on a statewide basis. 

9 (g) AUDITS.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of 

11 the Department of Homeland Security shall conduct 

12 an audit of a portion of the grants provided under 

13 this section to ensure that all funds provided under 

14 the grants are used for the purposes specified in this 

15 section. 

16 (2) USE OF AUDIT RESULTS.—The results of 

17 audits conducted under paragraph (1) and any rec18 ommendations made in connection with the audits 

19 shall be taken into consideration in awarding any fu20 ture grant under this section to a State. 

21 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi22 nitions apply: 

23 (1) LAND USE PLANNING LEGISLATION.—The 

24 term ‘‘land use planning legislation’’ means a stat25 ute, regulation, executive order or other action taken 
11

•HR 3524 IH 

1 by a State or local government to guide, regulate, 

2 and assist in the planning, regulation, and manage3 ment of land, natural resources, development prac4 tices, and other activities related to the pattern and 

5 scope of future land use. 

6 (2) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.—The term ‘‘com7 prehensive plan’’ means a binding or non-binding 

8 planning document adopted for the purpose of regu9 lation and management of land, natural resources, 

10 development practices, infrastructure investments, 

11 and other activities related to the pattern and scope 

12 of future land use and urban development. 

13 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 

14 the following: 

15 (A) One of the 50 States, the District of 

16 Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 

17 the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, or 

18 the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is19 lands. 

20 (B) A tribal government. 

21 (C) A Native Hawaiian organization, as 

22 defined in section 8(a)(15) of the Small Busi23 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)(15)). 

24 (4) STATE PLANNING DIRECTOR.—The term 

25 ‘‘State planning director’’ means a State official des-
12

•HR 3524 IH 

1 ignated by statute or by the chief executive officer 

2 of the State whose principal responsibility is the 

3 drafting and updating of State guide plans or guid4 ance documents that regulate land use and develop5 ment on a statewide basis. 

6 (5) LOCAL PLANNING DIRECTOR.—The term 

7 ‘‘local planning director’’ means a local official des8 ignated by statute, by the mayor, or by the city 

9 council whose principal responsibility is the drafting 

10 and updating of local comprehensive plans or guid11 ance documents that regulate land use and develop12 ment within the local government’s jurisdiction. 

13 (6) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘tribal 

14 government’’ means the tribal government of an In15 dian tribe, as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self16 Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 

17 U.S.C. 450b). 

18 SEC. 4 SAFE COMMUNITIES PLANNING RESEARCH. 

19 (a) RESEARCH PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Sec20 retary of Homeland Security, in coordination with govern21 mental, nongovernmental, university, and commercial 

22 partners, shall conduct research and analysis of the best 

23 practices in comprehensive land use and community plan24 ning that aims to reduce threats posed by natural hazards 

25 and acts of terrorism, focusing on—
13

•HR 3524 IH 

1 (1) the integration of Federal facility security 

2 with local and regional plans, codes, and regulations; 

3 (2) examination of the impacts of security 

4 strategies, facilities, and design on the overall phys5 ical and social environment of a community, includ6 ing the functionality and accessibility of its streets, 

7 neighborhoods, civic and commercial building, and 

8 public spaces; and 

9 (3) integration of comprehensive mapping and 

10 risk-assessment tools and strategies. 

11 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

13 report to Congress on best practices in community security 

14 and safety planning, including—

15 (1) an evaluation of land use and development 

16 codes and ordinances that aim to reduce the risks 

17 posed by natural hazards and acts of terrorism; 

18 (2) an evaluation of software and other tools 

19 that have been developed to aide communities in 

20 planning for safe development; 

21 (3) an evaluation of codes, ordinances, security 

22 design standards, and design tools that aim to en23 courage safe planning in the siting and design of 

24 residential development; and 
14

•HR 3524 IH 

1 (4) evaluation of best practices in incorporating 

2 safety and security into infrastructure planning, in3 cluding water, wastewater, and storm water facili4 ties, transportation systems, and electricity genera5 tion and distribution facilities. 

6 In determining best practices, the Secretary shall take into 

7 consideration regional, State, and local differences, and 

8 shall evaluate practices in terms of risk-reduction and 

9 cost. 

10 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

11 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

12 this section $57,250,000 for each of the fiscal years 2007 

13 through 2011, of which —

14 (1) $56,250,000 shall be used for making 

15 grants under section 3; and 

16 (2) $300,000 shall be used to carry out section 

17 4.

Æ