II 

Calendar No. 251 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 763 

[Report No. 115–178] 

To improve surface and maritime transportation security. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 29, 2017 

Mr. THUNE (for himself, Mr. NELSON, Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. 

WICKER, Mr. BLUNT, Ms. CANTWELL, and Mr. BLUMENTHAL) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

OCTOBER 25, 2017 

Reported by Mr. THUNE, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To improve surface and maritime transportation security. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Surface and Maritime Transportation Security Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Surface and maritime transportation security assessment and implementation of risk-based strategy. 

Sec. 4. Risk-based budgeting and resource allocation. 

Sec. 5. Surface and maritime transportation security management and interagency coordination review. 

Sec. 6. Transparency. 

Sec. 7. TSA counterterrorism asset deployment. 

Sec. 8. Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee. 

Sec. 9. Review of the explosives detection canine team program. 

Sec. 10. Expansion of national explosives detection canine team program. 

Sec. 11. Explosive detection technology. 

Sec. 12. Study on security standards and best practices for passenger transportation systems. 

Sec. 13. Amtrak security upgrades. 

Sec. 14. Passenger rail vetting. 

Sec. 15. Study on surface transportation inspectors. 

Sec. 16. Security awareness program. 

Sec. 17. Voluntary use of credentialing. 

Sec. 18. Background records checks for issuance of hazmat licenses. 

Sec. 19. Cargo container scanning technology review. 

Sec. 20. Repeal of biennial reporting requirement for the Government Accountability Office relating to the Transportation Security Information sharing plan. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis6 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Transpor7 tation Security Administration. 

8 (2) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON9 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con10 gress’’ means— 

11 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

12 and Transportation of the Senate; 

13 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 

14 of the House of Representatives; and 


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1 (C) the Committee on Transportation and 

2 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. 

3 (3) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

4 means the Department of Homeland Security. 

5 (4) EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CANINE TEAM.— 

6 The term ‘‘explosives detection canine team’’ means 

7 a canine and a canine handler that are trained to 

8 detect explosives and other threats as defined by the 

9 Secretary. 

10 (5) RISK.—The term ‘‘risk’’ means the possi11 bility that a threat will take advantage of a vulner12 ability to cause harm. 

13 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

14 the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

15 (7) THREAT.—The term ‘‘threat’’ means an ad16 versary that has the intent and capability to cause 

17 harm. 

18 (8) VULNERABILITY.—The term ‘‘vulnerability’’ 

19 means a weakness in a system or facility that a 

20 threat can exploit to cause harm. 

21 SEC. 3. SURFACE AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SECU22 RITY ASSESSMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION 

23 OF RISK-BASED STRATEGY. 

24 (a) SECURITY ASSESSMENT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

3 shall complete an assessment of— 

4 (A) the vulnerabilities of and risks to sur5 face transportation systems; and 

6 (B) in coordination with the Commandant 

7 of the Coast Guard, the vulnerabilities of and 

8 risks to maritime transportation systems. 

9 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the secu10 rity assessment under paragraph (1), the Adminis11 trator shall, at a minimum— 

12 (A) consider appropriate intelligence; 

13 (B) consider security breaches and attacks 

14 at domestic and international transportation fa15 cilities; 

16 (C) consider the vulnerabilities and risks 

17 associated with specific modes of surface trans18 portation; 

19 (D) evaluate the vetting and security train20 ing of— 

21 (i) employees in surface transpor22 tation; 

23 (ii) employees in maritime transpor24 tation; and 


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1 (iii) other individuals with access to 

2 sensitive or secure areas of transportation 

3 networks; and 

4 (E) consider input from— 

5 (i) representatives of different modes 

6 of surface transportation; 

7 (ii) subject to paragraph (3)— 

8 (I) representatives of maritime 

9 transportation; 

10 (II) critical infrastructure enti11 ties; and 

12 (III) the Transportation Systems 

13 Sector Coordinating Council; 

14 (iii) the Commandant of the Coast 

15 Guard; and 

16 (iv) the heads of other relevant Fed17 eral departments or agencies. 

18 (3) MARITIME FACILITIES.—The Commandant 

19 of the Coast Guard shall coordinate with the Admin20 istrator to provide input and other information re21 garding the vulnerabilities of and risks to maritime 

22 facilities. 

23 (b) RISK-BASED SECURITY STRATEGY.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

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1 section (a) is complete, the Administrator shall use 

2 the results of the assessment— 

3 (A) to develop and implement a cross-cut4 ting, risk-based security strategy that in5 cludes— 

6 (i) all surface transportation modes; 

7 (ii) to the extent the Transportation 

8 Security Administration provides support 

9 in maritime transportation security efforts, 

10 maritime transportation; 

11 (iii) a mitigating strategy that aligns 

12 with each vulnerability and risk identified 

13 in subsection (a); 

14 (iv) a planning process to inform re15 source allocation; 

16 (v) priorities, milestones, and per17 formance metrics to measure the effective18 ness of the risk-based security strategy; 

19 and 

20 (vi) processes for sharing relevant and 

21 timely intelligence threat information with 

22 appropriate stakeholders; 

23 (B) to develop a management oversight 

24 strategy that— 


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1 (i) identifies the parties responsible 

2 for the implementation, management, and 

3 oversight of the risk-based security strat4 egy; and 

5 (ii) includes a plan for implementing 

6 the risk-based security strategy; and 

7 (C) to modify the risk-based budget and 

8 resource allocations, in accordance with section 

9 4(c), for the Transportation Security Adminis10 tration. 

11 (2) COORDINATED APPROACH.—In developing 

12 and implementing the risk-based security strategy 

13 under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall— 

14 (A) coordinate with the heads of other rel15 evant Federal departments or agencies, and 

16 stakeholders, as appropriate— 

17 (i) to evaluate existing surface trans18 portation security programs, policies, and 

19 initiatives, including the explosives detec20 tion canine teams, for consistency with the 

21 risk-based security strategy and, to the ex22 tent practicable, avoid any unnecessary du23 plication of effort; 

24 (ii) to determine the extent to which 

25 stakeholder security programs, policies, 


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1 and initiatives address the vulnerabilities 

2 and risks to surface transportation systems 

3 identified in subsection (a); and 

4 (iii) subject to clause (ii), to mitigate 

5 each vulnerability and risk to surface 

6 transportation systems identified in sub7 section (a); and 

8 (B) coordinate with the Commandant of 

9 the Coast Guard— 

10 (i) to evaluate existing maritime 

11 transportation security programs, policies, 

12 and initiatives for consistency with the 

13 risk-based security strategy and, to the ex14 tent practicable, avoid any unnecessary du15 plication of effort; 

16 (ii) to ensure there are no security 

17 gaps between jurisdictional authorities that 

18 a threat can exploit to cause harm; 

19 (iii) to determine the extent to which 

20 stakeholder security programs, policies, 

21 and initiatives address the vulnerabilities 

22 and risks to maritime transportation sys23 tems identified in subsection (a); and 

24 (iv) subject to clauses (ii) and (iii), to 

25 mitigate each vulnerability and risk to 


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1 maritime transportation systems identified 

2 in subsection (a). 

3 (c) REPORT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

5 after the date the security assessment under sub6 section (a) is complete, the Administrator shall sub7 mit to the appropriate committees of Congress and 

8 the Inspector General of the Department a report 

9 that— 

10 (A) describes the process used to complete 

11 the security assessment; 

12 (B) describes the process used to develop 

13 the risk-based security strategy; 

14 (C) describes the risk-based security strat15 egy; 

16 (D) includes the management oversight 

17 strategy; 

18 (E) includes— 

19 (i) the findings of the security assess20 ment; 

21 (ii) a description of the actions rec22 ommended or taken by the Administrator, 

23 the Commandant of the Coast Guard, or 

24 the head of another Federal department or 


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1 agency to mitigate the vulnerabilities and 

2 risks identified in subsection (a); 

3 (iii) any recommendations for improv4 ing the coordinated approach to mitigating 

5 vulnerabilities and risks to surface and 

6 maritime transportation systems; and 

7 (iv) any recommended changes to the 

8 National Infrastructure Protection Plan, 

9 the modal annexes to such plan, or rel10 evant surface or maritime transportation 

11 security programs, policies, or initiatives; 

12 and 

13 (F) may contain a classified annex. 

14 (2) PROTECTIONS.—In preparing the report, 

15 the Administrator shall take appropriate actions to 

16 safeguard information described by section 552(b) of 

17 title 5, United States Code, or protected from disclo18 sure by any other law of the United States. 

19 (d) UPDATES.—Not less frequently than semiannu20 ally, the Administrator shall report to or brief the appro21 priate committees of Congress on the vulnerabilities of and 

22 risks to surface and maritime transportation systems and 

23 how those vulnerabilities and risks affect the risk-based 

24 security strategy. 


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1 SEC. 4. RISK-BASED BUDGETING AND RESOURCE ALLOCA2 TION. 

3 (a) REPORT.—In conjunction with the submission of 

4 the Department’s annual budget request to the Office of 

5 Management and Budget, the Administrator shall submit 

6 to the appropriate committees of Congress a report that 

7 describes a risk-based budget and resource allocation plan 

8 for surface transportation sectors, within and across 

9 modes, that— 

10 (1) reflects the risk-based security strategy 

11 under section 3(b); and 

12 (2) is organized by appropriations account, pro13 gram, project, and initiative. 

14 (b) BUDGET TRANSPARENCY.—In submitting the an15 nual budget of the United States Government under sec16 tion 1105 of title 31, United States Code, the President 

17 shall clearly distinguish the resources requested for sur18 face and maritime transportation security from the re19 sources requested for aviation security. 

20 (c) RESOURCE REALLOCATION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 15 days after 

22 the date on which the Transportation Security Ad23 ministration allocates any resources or personnel, in24 cluding personnel sharing, detailing, or assignment, 

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1 pose or National Special Security Event (as defined 

2 in section 2001 of Homeland Security Act of 2002 

3 (6 U.S.C. 601)), the Secretary shall provide the no4 tification described in paragraph (2) to the appro5 priate committees of Congress. 

6 (2) NOTIFICATION.—A notification described in 

7 this paragraph shall include— 

8 (A) the reason for and a justification of 

9 the resource or personnel allocation; 

10 (B) the expected end date of the resource 

11 or personnel allocation; and 

12 (C) the projected cost to the Transpor13 tation Security Administration of the personnel 

14 or resource allocation. 

15 SEC. 5. SURFACE AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SECU16 RITY MANAGEMENT AND INTERAGENCY CO17 ORDINATION REVIEW. 

18 (a) REVIEW.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

20 United States shall— 

21 (1) review the staffing, budget, resource, and 

22 personnel allocation, and management oversight 

23 strategy of the Transportation Security Administra24 tion’s surface and maritime transportation security 

25 programs; 


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1 (2) review the coordination between relevant en2 tities of leadership, planning, policy, inspections, and 

3 implementation of security programs relating to sur4 face and maritime transportation to reduce redun5 dancy and regulatory burden; and 

6 (3) submit to the appropriate committees of 

7 Congress a report on the findings of the reviews 

8 under paragraphs (1) and (2), including any rec9 ommendations for improving coordination between 

10 relevant entities and reducing redundancy and regu11 latory burden. 

12 (b) DEFINITION OF RELEVANT ENTITIES.—In this 

13 section, the term ‘‘relevant entities’’ means— 

14 (1) the Transportation Security Administration; 

15 (2) the Coast Guard; 

16 (3) other Federal, State, or local departments 

17 or agencies with jurisdiction over a mode of surface 

18 or maritime transportation; 

19 (4) critical infrastructure entities; 

20 (5) the Transportation Systems Sector Coordi21 nating Council; and 

22 (6) relevant stakeholders. 

23 SEC. 6. TRANSPARENCY. 

24 (a) REGULATIONS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 

3 180 days thereafter, the Administrator shall publish 

4 on a public website information regarding the status 

5 of each regulation relating to surface transportation 

6 security that is directed by law to be issued and that 

7 has not been issued if not less than 2 years have 

8 passed since the date of enactment of the law. 

9 (2) CONTENTS.—The information published 

10 under paragraph (1) shall include— 

11 (A) an updated rulemaking schedule for 

12 the outstanding regulation; 

13 (B) current staff allocations; 

14 (C) data collection or research relating to 

15 the development of the rulemaking; 

16 (D) current efforts, if any, with security 

17 experts, advisory committees, and other stake18 holders; and 

19 (E) other relevant details associated with 

20 the development of the rulemaking that impact 

21 the progress of the rulemaking. 

22 (b) INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW.—Not later than 

23 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

24 every 2 years thereafter until all of the requirements under 

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1 ommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (6 

2 U.S.C. 1111 et seq.) and under this Act have been fully 

3 implemented, the Inspector General of the Department 

4 shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress 

5 a report that— 

6 (1) identifies the requirements under such titles 

7 of that Act and under this Act that have not been 

8 fully implemented; 

9 (2) describes what, if any, additional action is 

10 necessary; and 

11 (3) includes recommendations regarding wheth12 er any of the requirements under such titles of that 

13 Act or this Act should be amended or repealed. 

14 SEC. 7. TSA COUNTERTERRORISM ASSET DEPLOYMENT. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Transportation Security 

16 Administration deploys any counterterrorism personnel or 

17 resource, such as explosive detection sweeps, random bag 

18 inspections, or patrols by Visible Intermodal Prevention 

19 and Response teams, to enhance security at a surface 

20 transportation system or surface transportation facility for 

21 a period of not less than 180 consecutive days, the Admin22 istrator shall provide sufficient notification to the system 

23 or facility operator, as applicable, not less than 14 days 

24 prior to terminating the deployment. 


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1 (b) EXCEPTION.—This section shall not apply if the 

2 Administrator— 

3 (1) determines there is an urgent security need 

4 for the personnel or resource described in subsection 

5 (a); and 

6 (2) notifies the appropriate committees of Con7 gress of the determination under paragraph (1). 

8 SEC. 8. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADVISORY 

9 COMMITTEE. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title IV of the 

11 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) 

12 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 404. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADVI14 SORY COMMITTEE. 

15 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the 

16 Transportation Security Administration (referred to in 

17 this section as ‘Administrator’) shall establish within the 

18 Transportation Security Administration the Surface 

19 Transportation Security Advisory Committee (referred to 

20 in this section as the ‘Advisory Committee’). 

21 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Committee 

23 may advise, consult with, report to, and make rec24 ommendations to the Administrator on surface 

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1 opment, refinement, and implementation of policies, 

2 programs, initiatives, rulemakings, and security di3 rectives pertaining to surface transportation secu4 rity. 

5 ‘‘(2) RISK-BASED SECURITY.—The Advisory 

6 Committee shall consider risk-based security ap7 proaches in the performance of its duties. 

8 ‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP.— 

9 ‘‘(1) COMPOSITION.—The Advisory Committee 

10 shall be composed of— 

11 ‘‘(A) voting members appointed by the Ad12 ministrator under paragraph (2); and 

13 ‘‘(B) nonvoting members, serving in an ad14 visory capacity, who shall be designated by— 

15 ‘‘(i) the Transportation Security Ad16 ministration; 

17 ‘‘(ii) the Department of Transpor18 tation; 

19 ‘‘(iii) the Coast Guard; and 

20 ‘‘(iv) such other Federal department 

21 or agency as the Administrator considers 

22 appropriate. 

23 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—The Administrator shall 

24 appoint voting members from among stakeholders 

25 representing each mode of surface transportation, 


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1 such as passenger rail, freight rail, mass transit, 

2 pipelines, highways, over-the-road bus, and trucking, 

3 including representatives from— 

4 ‘‘(A) associations representing such modes 

5 of surface transportation; 

6 ‘‘(B) labor organizations representing such 

7 modes of surface transportation; 

8 ‘‘(C) groups representing the users of such 

9 modes of surface transportation, including asset 

10 manufacturers, as appropriate; 

11 ‘‘(D) relevant law enforcement, first re12 sponders, and security experts; and 

13 ‘‘(E) such other groups as the Adminis14 trator considers appropriate. 

15 ‘‘(3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Advisory Committee 

16 shall select a chairperson from among its voting 

17 members. 

18 ‘‘(4) TERM OF OFFICE.— 

19 ‘‘(A) TERMS.— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term of each 

21 voting member of the Advisory Committee 

22 shall be 2 years, but a voting member may 

23 continue to serve until the Administrator 

24 appoints a successor. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) REAPPOINTMENT.—A voting 

2 member of the Advisory Committee may be 

3 reappointed. 

4 ‘‘(B) REMOVAL.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

6 may review the participation of a member 

7 of the Advisory Committee and remove 

8 such member for cause at any time. 

9 ‘‘(ii) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—The 

10 Administrator may remove any member of 

11 the Advisory Committee that the Adminis12 trator determines should be restricted from 

13 reviewing, discussing, or possessing classi14 fied information or sensitive security infor15 mation. 

16 ‘‘(5) PROHIBITION ON COMPENSATION.—The 

17 members of the Advisory Committee shall not re18 ceive any compensation from the Government by 

19 reason of their service on the Advisory Committee. 

20 ‘‘(6) MEETINGS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

22 shall require the Advisory Committee to meet at 

23 least semiannually in person or through web 

24 conferencing and may convene additional meet25 ings as necessary. 


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1 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—At least one of 

2 the meetings of the Advisory Committee each 

3 year shall be— 

4 ‘‘(i) announced in the Federal Reg5 ister; 

6 ‘‘(ii) announced on a public website; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(iii) open to the public. 

9 ‘‘(C) ATTENDANCE.—The Advisory Com10 mittee shall maintain a record of the persons 

11 present at each meeting. 

12 ‘‘(D) MINUTES.— 

13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Unless otherwise 

14 prohibited by other Federal law, minutes 

15 of the meetings shall be published on the 

16 public website under subsection (e)(5). 

17 ‘‘(ii) PROTECTION OF CLASSIFIED

18 AND SENSITIVE INFORMATION.—The Advi19 sory Committee may redact or summarize, 

20 as necessary, minutes of the meetings to 

21 protect classified or other sensitive infor22 mation in accordance with law. 

23 ‘‘(7) VOTING MEMBER ACCESS TO CLASSIFIED

24 AND SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATIONS.—Not later than 

2 60 days after the date on which a voting mem3 ber is appointed to the Advisory Committee and 

4 before that voting member may be granted any 

5 access to classified information or sensitive se6 curity information, the Administrator shall de7 termine if the voting member should be re8 stricted from reviewing, discussing, or pos9 sessing classified information or sensitive secu10 rity information. 

11 ‘‘(B) ACCESS.— 

12 ‘‘(i) SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA13 TION.—If a voting member is not re14 stricted from reviewing, discussing, or pos15 sessing sensitive security information 

16 under subparagraph (A) and voluntarily 

17 signs a nondisclosure agreement, the vot18 ing member may be granted access to sen19 sitive security information that is relevant 

20 to the voting member’s service on the Advi21 sory Committee. 

22 ‘‘(ii) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—Ac23 cess to classified materials shall be man24 aged in accordance with Executive Order 

25 13526 of December 29, 2009 (75 Fed. 


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1 Reg. 707), or any subsequent cor2 responding Executive order. 

3 ‘‘(C) PROTECTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA5 TION.—Voting members shall protect sen6 sitive security information in accordance 

7 with part 1520 of title 49, Code of Federal 

8 Regulations. 

9 ‘‘(ii) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.— 

10 Voting members shall protect classified in11 formation in accordance with the applica12 ble requirements for the particular level of 

13 classification. 

14 ‘‘(8) JOINT COMMITTEE MEETINGS.—The Advi15 sory Committee may meet with one or more of the 

16 following advisory committees to discuss multimodal 

17 security issues and other security-related issues of 

18 common concern: 

19 ‘‘(A) Aviation Security Advisory Com20 mittee established under section 44946 of title 

21 49, United States Code. 

22 ‘‘(B) Maritime Security Advisory Com23 mittee established under section 70112 of title 

24 46, United States Code. 


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1 ‘‘(C) Railroad Safety Advisory Committee 

2 established by the Federal Railroad Administra3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(9) SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS.—The Advi5 sory Committee may request the assistance of sub6 ject matter experts with expertise related to the ju7 risdiction of the Advisory Committee. 

8 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) PERIODIC REPORTS.—The Advisory Com10 mittee shall periodically submit reports to the Ad11 ministrator on matters requested by the Adminis12 trator or by a majority of the members of the Advi13 sory Committee. 

14 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

15 ‘‘(A) SUBMISSION.—The Advisory Com16 mittee shall submit to the Administrator and 

17 the appropriate congressional committees an 

18 annual report that provides information on the 

19 activities, findings, and recommendations of the 

20 Advisory Committee during the preceding year. 

21 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 6 

22 months after the date that the Administrator 

23 receives an annual report under subparagraph 

24 (A), the Administrator shall publish a public 


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1 version of the report, in accordance with section 

2 552a(b) of title 5, United States Code. 

3 ‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE.— 

4 ‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION.—The Administrator 

5 shall consider the information, advice, and rec6 ommendations of the Advisory Committee in formu7 lating policies, programs, initiatives, rulemakings, 

8 and security directives pertaining to surface trans9 portation security and to the support of maritime 

10 transportation security efforts. 

11 ‘‘(2) FEEDBACK.—Not later than 90 days after 

12 the date that the Administrator receives a rec13 ommendation from the Advisory Committee under 

14 subsection (d)(2), the Administrator shall submit to 

15 the Advisory Committee written feedback on the rec16 ommendation, including— 

17 ‘‘(A) if the Administrator agrees with the 

18 recommendation, a plan describing the actions 

19 that the Administrator has taken, will take, or 

20 recommends that the head of another Federal 

21 department or agency take to implement the 

22 recommendation; or 

23 ‘‘(B) if the Administrator disagrees with 

24 the recommendation, a justification for that de25 termination. 


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1 ‘‘(3) NOTICES.—Not later than 30 days after 

2 the date the Administrator submits feedback under 

3 paragraph (2), the Administrator shall— 

4 ‘‘(A) notify the appropriate congressional 

5 committees of the feedback, including the deter6 mination under subparagraph (A) or subpara7 graph (B) of that paragraph, as applicable; and 

8 ‘‘(B) provide the appropriate congressional 

9 committees with a briefing upon request. 

10 ‘‘(4) UPDATES.—Not later than 90 days after 

11 the date the Administrator receives a recommenda12 tion from the Advisory Committee under subsection 

13 (d)(2) that the Administrator agrees with, and quar14 terly thereafter until the recommendation is fully im15 plemented, the Administrator shall submit a report 

16 to the appropriate congressional committees or post 

17 on the public website under paragraph (5) an update 

18 on the status of the recommendation. 

19 ‘‘(5) WEBSITE.—The Administrator shall main20 tain a public website that— 

21 ‘‘(A) lists the members of the Advisory 

22 Committee; and 

23 ‘‘(B) provides the contact information for 

24 the Advisory Committee. 


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1 ‘‘(f) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal 

2 Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply 

3 to the Advisory Committee or any subcommittee estab4 lished under this section.’’. 

5 (b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS.— 

6 (1) VOTING MEMBERS.—Not later than 180 

7 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad8 ministrator shall appoint the voting members of the 

9 Surface Transportation Security Advisory Com10 mittee established under section 404 of the Home11 land Security Act of 2002, as added by subsection 

12 (a) of this section. 

13 (2) NONVOTING MEMBERS.—Not later than 90 

14 days after the date of enactment of this Act, each 

15 Federal Government department and agency with 

16 regulatory authority over a mode of surface or mari17 time transportation, as the Administrator considers 

18 appropriate, shall designate an appropriate rep19 resentative to serve as a nonvoting member of the 

20 Surface Transportation Security Advisory Com21 mittee. 

22 (c) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 

23 section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public 

24 Law 107–296; 116 Stat. 2135) is amended by inserting 

25 after the item relating to section 403 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 404. Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee.’’. 


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1 SEC. 9. REVIEW OF THE EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CANINE 

2 TEAM PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

4 date that the Inspector General of the Department re5 ceives the report under section 3(c), the Inspector General 

6 of the Department shall— 

7 (1) review the explosives detection canine team 

8 program, including— 

9 (A) the development by the Transportation 

10 Security Administration of a deployment strat11 egy for explosives detection canine teams; 

12 (B) the national explosives detection canine 

13 team training program, including canine train14 ing, handler training, refresher training, and 

15 updates to such training; and 

16 (C) the use of the canine assets during an 

17 urgent security need, including the reallocation 

18 of such program resources outside the transpor19 tation systems sector during an urgent security 

20 need; and 

21 (2) submit to the appropriate committees of 

22 Congress a report on the review, including any rec23 ommendations. 

24 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the review of 

25 the deployment strategy under subsection (a)(1)(A), the 

26 Inspector General shall consider whether the TransporVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 tation Security Administration’s method to analyze the 

2 risk to transportation facilities and transportation systems 

3 is appropriate. 

4 SEC. 10. EXPANSION OF NATIONAL EXPLOSIVES DETEC5 TION CANINE TEAM PROGRAM. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, where appropriate, 

7 shall encourage State, local, and tribal governments and 

8 private owners of high-risk transportation facilities to 

9 strengthen security through the use of explosives detection 

10 canine teams. 

11 (b) INCREASED CAPACITY.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Before the date the Inspec13 tor General of the Department submits the report 

14 under section 9, the Administrator may increase the 

15 number of State and local surface and maritime 

16 transportation canines by not more than 70 explo17 sives detection canine teams. 

18 (2) ADDITIONAL TEAMS.—Beginning on the 

19 date the Inspector General of the Department sub20 mits the report under section 9, the Secretary may 

21 increase the State and local surface and maritime 

22 transportation canines up to 200 explosives detection 

23 canine teams unless more are identified in the risk24 based security strategy under section 3, consistent 

25 with section 4 or with the President’s most recent 


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1 budget submitted under section 1105 of title 31, 

2 United States Code. 

3 (3) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Before initiating any 

4 increase in the number of explosives detection teams 

5 under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall consider 

6 any recommendations in the report under section 9 

7 on the efficacy and management of the explosives 

8 detection canine program. 

9 (c) DEPLOYMENT.—The Secretary shall— 

10 (1) use the additional explosives detection ca11 nine teams, as described in subsection (b)(1), as 

12 part of the Department’s efforts to strengthen secu13 rity across the Nation’s surface and maritime trans14 portation networks; 

15 (2) make available explosives detection canine 

16 teams to all modes of transportation, subject to the 

17 requirements under section 7, to address specific 

18 vulnerabilities or risks, on an as-needed basis and as 

19 otherwise determined appropriate by the Secretary; 

20 and 

21 (3) consider specific needs and training require22 ments for explosives detection canine teams to be de23 ployed across the Nation’s surface and maritime 

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1 tiple modes of transportation, as the Secretary con2 siders appropriate. 

3 (d) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be ap4 propriated to the Secretary such sums as may be nec5 essary to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 

6 2018 through 2021. 

7 SEC. 11. EXPLOSIVE DETECTION TECHNOLOGY. 

8 The Secretary, in coordination with the Director of 

9 the National Institute of Standards and Technology and 

10 the head of each relevant Federal department or agency 

11 researching explosive detection systems, shall research and 

12 facilitate next generation technologies to detect explosives 

13 in transportation systems and transportation facilities. 

14 SEC. 12. STUDY ON SECURITY STANDARDS AND BEST PRAC15 TICES FOR PASSENGER TRANSPORTATION 

16 SYSTEMS. 

17 (a) SECURITY STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES

18 FOR UNITED STATES AND FOREIGN PASSENGER TRANS19 PORTATION SYSTEMS.—The Comptroller General of the 

20 United States shall conduct a study of how the Transpor21 tation Security Administration— 

22 (1) identifies and compares— 

23 (A) United States and foreign passenger 

24 transportation security standards; and 


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1 (B) best practices for protecting passenger 

2 transportation systems, including shared ter3 minal facilities, and cyber systems; and 

4 (2) disseminates the findings under paragraph 

5 (1) to stakeholders. 

6 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

8 shall issue a report that contains— 

9 (1) the findings of the study conducted under 

10 subsection (a); and 

11 (2) any recommendations for improving the rel12 evant processes or procedures. 

13 SEC. 13. AMTRAK SECURITY UPGRADES. 

14 (a) RAILROAD SECURITY ASSISTANCE.—Section 

15 1513(b) of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/ 

16 11 Commission Act of 2007 (6 U.S.C. 1163(b)) is amend17 ed— 

18 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking the period at 

19 the end and inserting ‘‘, including communications 

20 interoperability where appropriate with relevant out21 side agencies and entities.’’; 

22 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘security of’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘security and preparedness of’’; 

24 (3) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘security 

25 threats’’ and inserting ‘‘security threats and preVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 paredness, including connectivity to the National 

2 Terrorist Screening Center’’; and 

3 (4) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘and security 

4 officers’’ and inserting ‘‘, security, and preparedness 

5 officers’’. 

6 (b) SPECIFIC PROJECTS.—Section 1514(a)(3) of the 

7 Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission 

8 Act of 2007 (6 U.S.C. 1164(a)(3)) is amended— 

9 (1) in subparagraph (D) by inserting ‘‘, or to 

10 connect to the National Terrorism Screening Center 

11 watchlist’’ after ‘‘Secretary’’; 

12 (2) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘; and’’ at 

13 the end and inserting a semicolon; 

14 (3) in subparagraph (H) by striking the period 

15 at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

16 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(I) for improvements to passenger 

18 verification systems; 

19 ‘‘(J) for improvements to employee and 

20 contractor verification systems, including iden21 tity verification technology; or 

22 ‘‘(K) for improvements to the security of 

23 Amtrak computer systems, including cybersecu24 rity assessments and programs.’’. 


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1 SEC. 14. PASSENGER RAIL VETTING. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

3 date on which the Amtrak Board of Directors submits a 

4 request to the Administrator, the Administrator shall 

5 issue a decision on the use by Amtrak of the Transpor6 tation Security Administration’s Secure Flight Program 

7 or a similar passenger vetting system to enhance pas8 senger rail security. 

9 (b) STRATEGIC PLAN.—If the Administrator decides 

10 to grant the request by Amtrak under subsection (a), the 

11 decision shall include a strategic plan for working with rail 

12 stakeholders to enhance passenger rail security by vetting 

13 passengers using terrorist watch lists maintained by the 

14 Federal Government or a similar passenger vetting system 

15 maintained by the Transportation Security Administra16 tion. 

17 (c) NOTICES.—The Administrator shall notify the ap18 propriate committees of Congress of any decision made 

19 under subsection (a) and the details of the strategic plan 

20 under subsection (b). 

21 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec22 tion shall be construed to limit the Administrator’s au23 thority to set the access to, or terms and conditions of 

24 using, the Secure Flight Program or a similar passenger 

25 vetting system. 


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1 SEC. 15. STUDY ON SURFACE TRANSPORTATION INSPEC2 TORS. 

3 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

4 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

5 shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress 

6 a report that— 

7 (1) identifies the roles and responsibilities of 

8 surface transportation security inspectors authorized 

9 under section 1304 of the Implementing Rec10 ommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 

11 (6 U.S.C. 1113); 

12 (2) determines whether surface transportation 

13 security inspectors— 

14 (A) have appropriate qualifications to help 

15 secure and inspect surface transportation sys16 tems; and 

17 (B) have adequate experience and training 

18 to perform the responsibilities identified under 

19 paragraph (1); 

20 (3) evaluates feedback from surface transpor21 tation industry stakeholders on the effectiveness of 

22 surface transportation security inspectors and in23 spection programs to the overall security of the sur24 face transportation systems of such stakeholders; 


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1 (4) evaluates the consistency of surface trans2 portation inspections, recommendations, and regu3 latory enforcement, where applicable; 

4 (5) identifies any duplication or redundancy be5 tween the Transportation Security Administration 

6 and the Department of Transportation relating to 

7 surface transportation security inspections or over8 sight; and 

9 (6) provides recommendations, if any, relating 

10 to— 

11 (A) improvements to the surface transpor12 tation security inspectors program, including— 

13 (i) changes in organizational and su14 pervisory structures; 

15 (ii) coordination procedures to en16 hance consistency; and 

17 (iii) effectiveness in inspection and 

18 compliance activities; and 

19 (B) whether each transportation mode 

20 needs inspectors trained and qualified for that 

21 specific mode. 

22 SEC. 16. SECURITY AWARENESS PROGRAM. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall es24 tablish a program to promote surface transportation secu25 rity through the training of surface transportation operaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 tors and frontline employees on each of the skills identified 

2 in subsection (c). 

3 (b) APPLICATION.—The program established under 

4 subsection (a) shall apply to all modes of surface transpor5 tation, including public transportation, rail, highway, 

6 motor carrier, and pipeline. 

7 (c) TRAINING.—The program established under sub8 section (a) shall cover, at a minimum, the skills necessary 

9 to recognize, assess, and respond to suspicious items or 

10 actions that could indicate a threat to transportation. 

11 (d) ASSESSMENT.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall con13 duct an assessment of current training programs for 

14 surface transportation operators and frontline em15 ployees. 

16 (2) CONTENTS.—The assessment shall iden17 tify— 

18 (A) whether other training is being pro19 vided, either voluntarily or in response to other 

20 Federal requirements; and 

21 (B) whether there are any gaps in existing 

22 training. 

23 (e) UPDATES.—The Administrator shall ensure the 

24 program established under subsection (a) is updated as 

25 necessary to address changes in risk and terrorist methods 


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1 and to close any gaps identified in the assessment under 

2 subsection (d). 

3 (f) SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY REPORTING.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

5 maintain a national telephone number for an indi6 vidual to use to report suspicious activity under this 

7 section to the Administration. 

8 (2) PROCEDURES.—The Administrator shall es9 tablish procedures for the Administration— 

10 (A) to review and followup, as necessary, 

11 on each report received under paragraph (1); 

12 and 

13 (B) to share, as necessary and in accord14 ance with law, the report with appropriate Fed15 eral, State, local, and tribal entities. 

16 (3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

17 section may be construed to replace or affect in any 

18 way the use of 9–1–1 services in an emergency. 

19 (g) DEFINITION OF FRONTLINE EMPLOYEE.—In this 

20 section, the term ‘‘frontline employee’’ includes— 

21 (1) an employee of a public transportation 

22 agency who is a transit vehicle driver or operator, 

23 dispatcher, maintenance and maintenance support 

24 employee, station attendant, customer service em25 ployee, security employee, or transit police, or any 


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1 other employee who has direct contact with riders on 

2 a regular basis, and any other employee of a public 

3 transportation agency that the Administrator deter4 mines should receive security training under this 

5 section or that is receiving security training under 

6 other law; 

7 (2) over-the-road bus drivers, security per8 sonnel, dispatchers, maintenance and maintenance 

9 support personnel, ticket agents, other terminal em10 ployees, and other employees of an over-the-road bus 

11 operator or terminal owner or operator that the Ad12 ministrator determines should receive security train13 ing under this section or that is receiving security 

14 training under other law; or 

15 (3) security personnel, dispatchers, locomotive 

16 engineers, conductors, trainmen, other onboard em17 ployees, maintenance and maintenance support per18 sonnel, bridge tenders, and any other employees of 

19 railroad carriers that the Administrator determines 

20 should receive security training under this section or 

21 that is receiving security training under other law. 

22 SEC. 17. VOLUNTARY USE OF CREDENTIALING. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—An individual who is subject to 

24 credentialing or a background investigation may satisfy 

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1 rity card issued under section 70105 of title 46, United 

2 States Code. 

3 (b) ISSUANCE OF CARDS.—The Secretary of Home4 land Security— 

5 (1) shall expand the transportation security 

6 card program, consistent with section 70105 of title 

7 46, United States Code, to allow an individual who 

8 is subject to credentialing or a background investiga9 tion to apply for a transportation security card; and 

10 (2) may charge reasonable fees, in accordance 

11 with section 520(a) of the Department of Homeland 

12 Security Appropriations Act, 2004 (6 U.S.C. 

13 469(a)), for providing the necessary credentialing 

14 and background investigation. 

15 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘indi16 vidual who is subject to credentialing or a background in17 vestigation’’ means an individual who— 

18 (1) because of employment is regulated by the 

19 Transportation Security Administration, Department 

20 of Transportation, or Coast Guard and is required 

21 to have a background records check to obtain a haz22 ardous materials endorsement on a commercial driv23 er’s license issued by a State under section 5103a of 

24 title 49, United States Code; or 


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1 (2) is required to have a credential and back2 ground records check under section 2102(d)(2) of 

3 the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 

4 622(d)(2)) at a facility with activities that are regu5 lated by the Transportation Security Administration, 

6 Department of Transportation, or Coast Guard. 

7 SEC. 18. BACKGROUND RECORDS CHECKS FOR ISSUANCE 

8 OF HAZMAT LICENSES. 

9 Section 5103a(d) of title 49, United States Code, is 

10 amended by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(3) TRANSPORTATION SECURITY CARDS.—An 

12 individual who holds a valid transportation security 

13 card issued by the Secretary of the departing in 

14 which the Coast Guard is operating under section 

15 70105 of title 46 shall be deemed to have met the 

16 background records check required under this sub17 section.’’. 

18 SEC. 19. CARGO CONTAINER SCANNING TECHNOLOGY RE19 VIEW. 

20 (a) DESIGNATIONS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

22 the date of enactment of this Act, and not less fre23 quently than once every 5 years thereafter until the 

24 date of full-scale implementation of 100 percent 

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1 ning of high-risk containers required under section 

2 232 of the SAFE Port Act (6 U.S.C. 982), the Sec3 retary shall solicit proposals for scanning tech4 nologies, consistent with the standards under sub5 section (b)(8) of that section, to improve scanning of 

6 cargo at domestic ports. 

7 (2) EVALUATION.—In soliciting proposals under 

8 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall establish meas9 ures to assess the performance of the proposed scan10 ning technologies, including— 

11 (A) the rate of false positives; 

12 (B) the delays in processing times; and 

13 (C) the impact on the supply chain. 

14 (b) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

15 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary may es16 tablish a pilot program to determine the efficacy of 

17 a scanning technology referred to in subsection (a). 

18 (2) APPLICATION PROCESS.—In carrying out 

19 the pilot program under this subsection, the Sec20 retary shall— 

21 (A) solicit applications from domestic 

22 ports; 

23 (B) select up to 4 domestic ports to par24 ticipate in the pilot program; and 


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1 (C) select ports with unique features and 

2 differing levels of trade volume. 

3 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after initi4 ating a pilot program under paragraph (1), the Sec5 retary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 

6 Congress a report on the pilot program, including— 

7 (A) an evaluation of the scanning tech8 nologies proposed to improve security at domes9 tic ports and to meet the full-scale implementa10 tion requirement; 

11 (B) the costs to implement a pilot pro12 gram; 

13 (C) the benefits of the proposed scanning 

14 technologies; 

15 (D) the impact of the pilot program on the 

16 supply chain; and 

17 (E) recommendations for implementation 

18 of advanced cargo scanning technologies at do19 mestic ports. 

20 (4) SHARING PILOT PROGRAM TESTING RE21 SULTS.—The results of the pilot testing of advanced 

22 cargo scanning technologies shall be shared, as ap23 propriate, with government agencies and private 

24 stakeholders whose responsibilities encompass the se25 cure transport of cargo. 


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1 SEC. 20. REPEAL OF BIENNIAL REPORTING REQUIREMENT 

2 FOR THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY 

3 OFFICE RELATING TO THE TRANSPORTATION 

4 SECURITY INFORMATION SHARING PLAN. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 114 of title 49, United 

6 States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating subsections (u), (v), and 

8 (w) as subsections (t), (u), and (v), respectively; and 

9 (2) in subsection (t), as redesignated— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘sub11 section (t)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (s)’’; 

12 (B) by striking paragraph (7); and 

13 (C) by redesignating paragraphs (8) and 

14 (9) as paragraphs (7) and (8), respectively. 

15 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

16 (1) TRANSPORTATION SECURITY STRATEGIC

17 PLANNING.—Section 114(s)(3)(B) of title 49, United 

18 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ and in19 serting ‘‘2007)’’. 

20 (2) CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OF SECURITY

21 ASSURANCE FOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE STAKE22 HOLDERS.—Section 1203(b)(1)(B) of the Imple23 menting Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission 

24 Act of 2007 (49 U.S.C. 114 note) is amended by 

25 striking ‘‘, under section 114(u)(7) of title 49, 


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1 United States Code, as added by this section, or oth2 erwise,’’. 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Surface and Maritime Transportation Security Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of this 

7 Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Surface and maritime transportation security assessment and implementation of risk-based strategy. 

Sec. 4. Risk-based budgeting and resource allocation. 

Sec. 5. Surface and maritime transportation security management and interagency coordination review. 

Sec. 6. Transparency. 

Sec. 7. TSA counterterrorism asset deployment. 

Sec. 8. Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee. 

Sec. 9. Review of the explosives detection canine team program. 

Sec. 10. Expansion of national explosives detection canine team program. 

Sec. 11. Nuclear material and explosive detection technology. 

Sec. 12. Study on security standards and best practices for passenger transportation systems. 

Sec. 13. Amtrak security upgrades. 

Sec. 14. Passenger rail vetting. 

Sec. 15. Study on surface transportation inspectors. 

Sec. 16. Security awareness program. 

Sec. 17. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 18. GAO study on grants. 

Sec. 19. Voluntary use of credentialing. 

Sec. 20. Background records checks for issuance of hazmat licenses. 

Sec. 21. Cargo container scanning technology review. 

Sec. 22. Technical and conforming amendments. 

8 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis11 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Transpor12 tation Security Administration. 


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1 (2) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS.— 

2 The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Congress’’ 

3 means— 

4 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

5 and Transportation of the Senate; 

6 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 

7 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 

8 (C) the Committee on Homeland Security of 

9 the House of Representatives; and 

10 (D) the Committee on Transportation and 

11 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. 

12 (3) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

13 means the Department of Homeland Security. 

14 (4) EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CANINE TEAM.—The 

15 term ‘‘explosives detection canine team’’ means a ca16 nine and a canine handler that are trained to detect 

17 explosives and other threats as defined by the Sec18 retary. 

19 (5) RISK.—The term ‘‘risk’’ means the possi20 bility that a threat will take advantage of a vulner21 ability to cause harm. 

22 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

23 the Secretary of Homeland Security. 


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1 (7) THREAT.—The term ‘‘threat’’ means an ad2 versary that has the intent and capability to cause 

3 harm. 

4 (8) VULNERABILITY.—The term ‘‘vulnerability’’ 

5 means a weakness in a system or facility that a 

6 threat can exploit to cause harm. 

7 SEC. 3. SURFACE AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SECU8 RITY ASSESSMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF 

9 RISK-BASED STRATEGY. 

10 (a) SECURITY ASSESSMENT.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

12 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

13 shall complete an assessment of— 

14 (A) the vulnerabilities of and risks to sur15 face transportation systems; and 

16 (B) in coordination with the Commandant 

17 of the Coast Guard, the vulnerabilities of and 

18 risks to maritime transportation systems. 

19 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the secu20 rity assessment under paragraph (1), the Adminis21 trator shall, at a minimum— 

22 (A) consider appropriate intelligence; 

23 (B) consider security breaches and attacks 

24 at domestic and international transportation fa25 cilities; 


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1 (C) consider the vulnerabilities and risks 

2 associated with specific modes of surface trans3 portation; 

4 (D) evaluate the vetting and security train5 ing of— 

6 (i) employees in surface transpor7 tation; 

8 (ii) employees in maritime transpor9 tation; and 

10 (iii) other individuals with access to 

11 sensitive or secure areas of transportation 

12 networks; and 

13 (E) consider input from— 

14 (i) representatives of different modes of 

15 surface transportation; 

16 (ii) subject to paragraph (3)— 

17 (I) representatives of maritime 

18 transportation; 

19 (II) critical infrastructure enti20 ties; and 

21 (III) the Transportation Systems 

22 Sector Coordinating Council; 

23 (iii) the Commandant of the Coast 

24 Guard; and 


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1 (iv) the heads of other relevant Federal 

2 departments or agencies. 

3 (3) MARITIME FACILITIES.—The Commandant of 

4 the Coast Guard shall coordinate with the Adminis5 trator to provide input and other information regard6 ing the vulnerabilities of and risks to maritime facili7 ties. 

8 (b) RISK-BASED SECURITY STRATEGY.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

10 the date the security assessment under subsection (a) 

11 is complete, the Administrator shall use the results of 

12 the assessment— 

13 (A) to develop and implement a cross-cut14 ting, risk-based security strategy that includes— 

15 (i) all surface transportation modes; 

16 (ii) to the extent the Transportation 

17 Security Administration provides support 

18 in maritime transportation security efforts, 

19 maritime transportation; 

20 (iii) a mitigating strategy that aligns 

21 with each vulnerability and risk identified 

22 in subsection (a); 

23 (iv) a planning process to inform re24 source allocation; 


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1 (v) priorities, milestones, and perform2 ance metrics to measure the effectiveness of 

3 the risk-based security strategy; and 

4 (vi) processes for sharing relevant and 

5 timely intelligence threat information with 

6 appropriate stakeholders; 

7 (B) to develop a management oversight 

8 strategy that— 

9 (i) identifies the parties responsible for 

10 the implementation, management, and over11 sight of the risk-based security strategy; and 

12 (ii) includes a plan for implementing 

13 the risk-based security strategy; and 

14 (C) to modify the risk-based budget and re15 source allocations, in accordance with section 

16 4(c), for the Transportation Security Adminis17 tration. 

18 (2) COORDINATED APPROACH.—In developing 

19 and implementing the risk-based security strategy 

20 under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall— 

21 (A) coordinate with the heads of other rel22 evant Federal departments or agencies, and 

23 stakeholders, as appropriate— 

24 (i) to evaluate existing surface trans25 portation security programs, policies, and 


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1 initiatives, including the explosives detec2 tion canine teams, for consistency with the 

3 risk-based security strategy and, to the ex4 tent practicable, avoid any unnecessary du5 plication of effort; 

6 (ii) to determine the extent to which 

7 stakeholder security programs, policies, and 

8 initiatives address the vulnerabilities and 

9 risks to surface transportation systems iden10 tified in subsection (a); and 

11 (iii) subject to clause (ii), to mitigate 

12 each vulnerability and risk to surface trans13 portation systems identified in subsection 

14 (a); and 

15 (B) coordinate with the Commandant of the 

16 Coast Guard— 

17 (i) to evaluate existing maritime trans18 portation security programs, policies, and 

19 initiatives for consistency with the risk20 based security strategy and, to the extent 

21 practicable, avoid any unnecessary duplica22 tion of effort; 

23 (ii) to ensure there are no security 

24 gaps between jurisdictional authorities that 

25 a threat can exploit to cause harm; 


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1 (iii) to determine the extent to which 

2 stakeholder security programs, policies, and 

3 initiatives address the vulnerabilities and 

4 risks to maritime transportation systems 

5 identified in subsection (a); and 

6 (iv) subject to clauses (ii) and (iii), to 

7 mitigate each vulnerability and risk to 

8 maritime transportation systems identified 

9 in subsection (a). 

10 (c) REPORT.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

12 the date the security assessment under subsection (a) 

13 is complete, the Administrator shall submit to the ap14 propriate committees of Congress and the Inspector 

15 General of the Department a report that— 

16 (A) describes the process used to complete 

17 the security assessment; 

18 (B) describes the process used to develop the 

19 risk-based security strategy; 

20 (C) describes the risk-based security strat21 egy; 

22 (D) includes the management oversight 

23 strategy; 

24 (E) includes— 


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1 (i) the findings of the security assess2 ment; 

3 (ii) a description of the actions rec4 ommended or taken by the Administrator, 

5 the Commandant of the Coast Guard, or the 

6 head of another Federal department or 

7 agency to mitigate the vulnerabilities and 

8 risks identified in subsection (a); 

9 (iii) any recommendations for improv10 ing the coordinated approach to mitigating 

11 vulnerabilities and risks to surface and 

12 maritime transportation systems; and 

13 (iv) any recommended changes to the 

14 National Infrastructure Protection Plan, the 

15 modal annexes to such plan, or relevant 

16 surface or maritime transportation security 

17 programs, policies, or initiatives; and 

18 (F) may contain a classified annex. 

19 (2) PROTECTIONS.—In preparing the report, the 

20 Administrator shall take appropriate actions to safe21 guard information described by section 552(b) of title 

22 5, United States Code, or protected from disclosure by 

23 any other law of the United States. 

24 (d) UPDATES.—Not less frequently than semiannually, 

25 the Administrator shall report to or brief the appropriate 


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1 committees of Congress on the vulnerabilities of and risks 

2 to surface and maritime transportation systems and how 

3 those vulnerabilities and risks affect the risk-based security 

4 strategy. 

5 SEC. 4. RISK-BASED BUDGETING AND RESOURCE ALLOCA6 TION. 

7 (a) REPORT.—In conjunction with the submission of 

8 the Department’s annual budget request to the Office of 

9 Management and Budget, the Administrator shall submit 

10 to the appropriate committees of Congress a report that de11 scribes a risk-based budget and resource allocation plan for 

12 surface transportation sectors, within and across modes, 

13 that— 

14 (1) reflects the risk-based security strategy under 

15 section 3(b); and 

16 (2) is organized by appropriations account, pro17 gram, project, and initiative. 

18 (b) BUDGET TRANSPARENCY.—In submitting the an19 nual budget of the United States Government under section 

20 1105 of title 31, United States Code, the President shall 

21 clearly distinguish the resources requested for surface and 

22 maritime transportation security from the resources re23 quested for aviation security. 

24 (c) RESOURCE REALLOCATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 15 days after 

2 the date on which the Transportation Security Ad3 ministration allocates any resources or personnel, in4 cluding personnel sharing, detailing, or assignment, 

5 or the use of facilities, technology systems, or vetting 

6 resources, for a nontransportation security purpose or 

7 National Special Security Event (as defined in sec8 tion 2001 of Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 

9 U.S.C. 601)), the Secretary shall provide the notifica10 tion described in paragraph (2) to the appropriate 

11 committees of Congress. 

12 (2) NOTIFICATION.—A notification described in 

13 this paragraph shall include— 

14 (A) the reason for and a justification of the 

15 resource or personnel allocation; 

16 (B) the expected end date of the resource or 

17 personnel allocation; and 

18 (C) the projected cost to the Transportation 

19 Security Administration of the personnel or re20 source allocation. 


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1 SEC. 5. SURFACE AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SECU2 RITY MANAGEMENT AND INTERAGENCY CO3 ORDINATION REVIEW. 

4 (a) REVIEW.—Not later than 1 year after the date of 

5 enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

6 States shall— 

7 (1) review the staffing, budget, resource, and per8 sonnel allocation, and management oversight strategy 

9 of the Transportation Security Administration’s sur10 face and maritime transportation security programs; 

11 (2) review the coordination between relevant en12 tities of leadership, planning, policy, inspections, and 

13 implementation of security programs relating to sur14 face and maritime transportation to reduce redun15 dancy and regulatory burden; and 

16 (3) submit to the appropriate committees of Con17 gress a report on the findings of the reviews under 

18 paragraphs (1) and (2), including any recommenda19 tions for improving coordination between relevant en20 tities and reducing redundancy and regulatory bur21 den. 

22 (b) DEFINITION OF RELEVANT ENTITIES.—In this sec23 tion, the term ‘‘relevant entities’’ means— 

24 (1) the Transportation Security Administration; 

25 (2) the Coast Guard; 


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1 (3) other Federal, State, or local departments or 

2 agencies with jurisdiction over a mode of surface or 

3 maritime transportation; 

4 (4) critical infrastructure entities; 

5 (5) the Transportation Systems Sector Coordi6 nating Council; and 

7 (6) relevant stakeholders. 

8 SEC. 6. TRANSPARENCY. 

9 (a) REGULATIONS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

11 the date of enactment of this Act, and every 180 days 

12 thereafter, the Administrator shall publish on a public 

13 website information regarding the status of each regu14 lation relating to surface transportation security that 

15 is directed by law to be issued and that has not been 

16 issued if not less than 2 years have passed since the 

17 date of enactment of the law. 

18 (2) CONTENTS.—The information published 

19 under paragraph (1) shall include— 

20 (A) an updated rulemaking schedule for the 

21 outstanding regulation; 

22 (B) current staff allocations; 

23 (C) data collection or research relating to 

24 the development of the rulemaking; 


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1 (D) current efforts, if any, with security ex2 perts, advisory committees, and other stake3 holders; and 

4 (E) other relevant details associated with 

5 the development of the rulemaking that impact 

6 the progress of the rulemaking. 

7 (b) INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW.—Not later than 

8 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 

9 2 years thereafter until all of the requirements under titles 

10 XIII, XIV, and XV of the Implementing Recommendations 

11 of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (6 U.S.C. 1111 et seq.) 

12 and under this Act have been fully implemented, the Inspec13 tor General of the Department shall submit to the appro14 priate committees of Congress a report that— 

15 (1) identifies the requirements under such titles 

16 of that Act and under this Act that have not been 

17 fully implemented; 

18 (2) describes what, if any, additional action is 

19 necessary; and 

20 (3) includes recommendations regarding whether 

21 any of the requirements under such titles of that Act 

22 or this Act should be amended or repealed. 

23 SEC. 7. TSA COUNTERTERRORISM ASSET DEPLOYMENT. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Transportation Security Ad25 ministration deploys any counterterrorism personnel or reVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 source, such as explosive detection sweeps, random bag in2 spections, or patrols by Visible Intermodal Prevention and 

3 Response teams, to enhance security at a surface transpor4 tation system or surface transportation facility for a period 

5 of not less than 180 consecutive days, the Administrator 

6 shall provide sufficient notification to the system or facility 

7 operator, as applicable, not less than 14 days prior to ter8 minating the deployment. 

9 (b) EXCEPTION.—This section shall not apply if the 

10 Administrator— 

11 (1) determines there is an urgent security need 

12 for the personnel or resource described in subsection 

13 (a); and 

14 (2) notifies the appropriate committees of Con15 gress of the determination under paragraph (1). 

16 SEC. 8. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADVISORY 

17 COMMITTEE. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title IV of the Home19 land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended 

20 by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 404. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADVI22 SORY COMMITTEE. 

23 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the 

24 Transportation Security Administration (referred to in this 

25 section as ‘Administrator’) shall establish within the TransVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 portation Security Administration the Surface Transpor2 tation Security Advisory Committee (referred to in this sec3 tion as the ‘Advisory Committee’). 

4 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Committee 

6 may advise, consult with, report to, and make rec7 ommendations to the Administrator on surface trans8 portation security matters, including the development, 

9 refinement, and implementation of policies, programs, 

10 initiatives, rulemakings, and security directives per11 taining to surface transportation security. 

12 ‘‘(2) RISK-BASED SECURITY.—The Advisory 

13 Committee shall consider risk-based security ap14 proaches in the performance of its duties. 

15 ‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP.— 

16 ‘‘(1) COMPOSITION.—The Advisory Committee 

17 shall be composed of— 

18 ‘‘(A) voting members appointed by the Ad19 ministrator under paragraph (2); and 

20 ‘‘(B) nonvoting members, serving in an ad21 visory capacity, who shall be designated by— 

22 ‘‘(i) the Transportation Security Ad23 ministration; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the Department of Transpor25 tation; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the Coast Guard; and 

2 ‘‘(iv) such other Federal department or 

3 agency as the Administrator considers ap4 propriate. 

5 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—The Administrator shall 

6 appoint voting members from among stakeholders rep7 resenting each mode of surface transportation, such as 

8 passenger rail, freight rail, mass transit, pipelines, 

9 highways, over-the-road bus, school bus industry, and 

10 trucking, including representatives from— 

11 ‘‘(A) associations representing such modes of 

12 surface transportation; 

13 ‘‘(B) labor organizations representing such 

14 modes of surface transportation; 

15 ‘‘(C) groups representing the users of such 

16 modes of surface transportation, including asset 

17 manufacturers, as appropriate; 

18 ‘‘(D) relevant law enforcement, first re19 sponders, and security experts; and 

20 ‘‘(E) such other groups as the Adminis21 trator considers appropriate. 

22 ‘‘(3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Advisory Committee 

23 shall select a chairperson from among its voting mem24 bers. 

25 ‘‘(4) TERM OF OFFICE.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) TERMS.— 

2 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term of each 

3 voting member of the Advisory Committee 

4 shall be 2 years, but a voting member may 

5 continue to serve until the Administrator 

6 appoints a successor. 

7 ‘‘(ii) REAPPOINTMENT.—A voting 

8 member of the Advisory Committee may be 

9 reappointed. 

10 ‘‘(B) REMOVAL.— 

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

12 may review the participation of a member 

13 of the Advisory Committee and remove such 

14 member for cause at any time. 

15 ‘‘(ii) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—The 

16 Administrator may remove any member of 

17 the Advisory Committee that the Adminis18 trator determines should be restricted from 

19 reviewing, discussing, or possessing classi20 fied information or sensitive security infor21 mation. 

22 ‘‘(5) PROHIBITION ON COMPENSATION.—The 

23 members of the Advisory Committee shall not receive 

24 any compensation from the Government by reason of 

25 their service on the Advisory Committee. 


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1 ‘‘(6) MEETINGS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

3 shall require the Advisory Committee to meet at 

4 least semiannually in person or through web 

5 conferencing and may convene additional meet6 ings as necessary. 

7 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—At least 1 of the 

8 meetings of the Advisory Committee each year 

9 shall be— 

10 ‘‘(i) announced in the Federal Register; 

11 ‘‘(ii) announced on a public website; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(iii) open to the public. 

14 ‘‘(C) ATTENDANCE.—The Advisory Com15 mittee shall maintain a record of the persons 

16 present at each meeting. 

17 ‘‘(D) MINUTES.— 

18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Unless otherwise 

19 prohibited by other Federal law, minutes of 

20 the meetings shall be published on the public 

21 website under subsection (e)(5). 

22 ‘‘(ii) PROTECTION OF CLASSIFIED AND

23 SENSITIVE INFORMATION.—The Advisory 

24 Committee may redact or summarize, as 

25 necessary, minutes of the meetings to protect 


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1 classified or other sensitive information in 

2 accordance with law. 

3 ‘‘(7) VOTING MEMBER ACCESS TO CLASSIFIED

4 AND SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMATION.— 

5 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATIONS.—Not later than 60 

6 days after the date on which a voting member is 

7 appointed to the Advisory Committee and before 

8 that voting member may be granted any access 

9 to classified information or sensitive security in10 formation, the Administrator shall determine if 

11 the voting member should be restricted from re12 viewing, discussing, or possessing classified in13 formation or sensitive security information. 

14 ‘‘(B) ACCESS.— 

15 ‘‘(i) SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA16 TION.—If a voting member is not restricted 

17 from reviewing, discussing, or possessing 

18 sensitive security information under sub19 paragraph (A) and voluntarily signs a non20 disclosure agreement, the voting member 

21 may be granted access to sensitive security 

22 information that is relevant to the voting 

23 member’s service on the Advisory Com24 mittee. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—Ac2 cess to classified materials shall be managed 

3 in accordance with Executive Order 13526 

4 of December 29, 2009 (75 Fed. Reg. 707), or 

5 any subsequent corresponding executive 

6 order. 

7 ‘‘(C) PROTECTIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(i) SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA9 TION.—Voting members shall protect sen10 sitive security information in accordance 

11 with part 1520 of title 49, Code of Federal 

12 Regulations. 

13 ‘‘(ii) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—Vot14 ing members shall protect classified infor15 mation in accordance with the applicable 

16 requirements for the particular level of clas17 sification. 

18 ‘‘(8) JOINT COMMITTEE MEETINGS.—The Advi19 sory Committee may meet with 1 or more of the fol20 lowing advisory committees to discuss multimodal se21 curity issues and other security-related issues of com22 mon concern: 

23 ‘‘(A) Aviation Security Advisory Committee 

24 established under section 44946 of title 49, 

25 United States Code. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Maritime Security Advisory Com2 mittee established under section 70112 of title 46, 

3 United States Code. 

4 ‘‘(C) Railroad Safety Advisory Committee 

5 established by the Federal Railroad Administra6 tion. 

7 ‘‘(9) SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS.—The Advisory 

8 Committee may request the assistance of subject mat9 ter experts with expertise related to the jurisdiction of 

10 the Advisory Committee. 

11 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) PERIODIC REPORTS.—The Advisory Com13 mittee shall periodically submit reports to the Admin14 istrator on matters requested by the Administrator or 

15 by a majority of the members of the Advisory Com16 mittee. 

17 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

18 ‘‘(A) SUBMISSION.—The Advisory Com19 mittee shall submit to the Administrator and the 

20 appropriate congressional committees an annual 

21 report that provides information on the activi22 ties, findings, and recommendations of the Advi23 sory Committee during the preceding year. 

24 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 6 

25 months after the date that the Administrator reVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 ceives an annual report under subparagraph (A), 

2 the Administrator shall publish a public version 

3 of the report, in accordance with section 552a(b) 

4 of title 5, United States Code. 

5 ‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE.— 

6 ‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION.—The Administrator shall 

7 consider the information, advice, and recommenda8 tions of the Advisory Committee in formulating poli9 cies, programs, initiatives, rulemakings, and security 

10 directives pertaining to surface transportation secu11 rity and to the support of maritime transportation 

12 security efforts. 

13 ‘‘(2) FEEDBACK.—Not later than 90 days after 

14 the date that the Administrator receives a rec15 ommendation from the Advisory Committee under 

16 subsection (d)(2), the Administrator shall submit to 

17 the Advisory Committee written feedback on the rec18 ommendation, including— 

19 ‘‘(A) if the Administrator agrees with the 

20 recommendation, a plan describing the actions 

21 that the Administrator has taken, will take, or 

22 recommends that the head of another Federal de23 partment or agency take to implement the rec24 ommendation; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) if the Administrator disagrees with the 

2 recommendation, a justification for that deter3 mination. 

4 ‘‘(3) NOTICES.—Not later than 30 days after the 

5 date the Administrator submits feedback under para6 graph (2), the Administrator shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) notify the appropriate congressional 

8 committees of the feedback, including the deter9 mination under subparagraph (A) or subpara10 graph (B) of that paragraph, as applicable; and 

11 ‘‘(B) provide the appropriate congressional 

12 committees with a briefing upon request. 

13 ‘‘(4) UPDATES.—Not later than 90 days after the 

14 date the Administrator receives a recommendation 

15 from the Advisory Committee under subsection (d)(2) 

16 that the Administrator agrees with, and quarterly 

17 thereafter until the recommendation is fully imple18 mented, the Administrator shall submit a report to 

19 the appropriate congressional committees or post on 

20 the public website under paragraph (5) an update on 

21 the status of the recommendation. 

22 ‘‘(5) WEBSITE.—The Administrator shall main23 tain a public website that— 

24 ‘‘(A) lists the members of the Advisory Com25 mittee; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) provides the contact information for 

2 the Advisory Committee. 

3 ‘‘(f) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal Advi4 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the 

5 Advisory Committee or any subcommittee established under 

6 this section.’’. 

7 (b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS.— 

8 (1) VOTING MEMBERS.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis10 trator shall appoint the voting members of the Sur11 face Transportation Security Advisory Committee es12 tablished under section 404 of the Homeland Security 

13 Act of 2002, as added by subsection (a) of this section. 

14 (2) NONVOTING MEMBERS.—Not later than 90 

15 days after the date of enactment of this Act, each Fed16 eral Government department and agency with regu17 latory authority over a mode of surface or maritime 

18 transportation, as the Administrator considers appro19 priate, shall designate an appropriate representative 

20 to serve as a nonvoting member of the Surface Trans21 portation Security Advisory Committee. 

22 (c) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 

23 section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public 

24 Law 107–296; 116 Stat. 2135) is amended by inserting 

25 after the item relating to section 403 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 404. Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee.’’. 


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1 SEC. 9. REVIEW OF THE EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CANINE 

2 TEAM PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

4 date that the Inspector General of the Department receives 

5 the report under section 3(c), the Inspector General of the 

6 Department shall— 

7 (1) review the explosives detection canine team 

8 program, including— 

9 (A) the development by the Transportation 

10 Security Administration of a deployment strat11 egy for explosives detection canine teams; 

12 (B) the national explosives detection canine 

13 team training program, including canine train14 ing, handler training, refresher training, and 

15 updates to such training; and 

16 (C) the use of the canine assets during an 

17 urgent security need, including the reallocation 

18 of such program resources outside the transpor19 tation systems sector during an urgent security 

20 need; and 

21 (2) submit to the appropriate committees of Con22 gress a report on the review, including any rec23 ommendations. 

24 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the review of the 

25 deployment strategy under subsection (a)(1)(A), the Inspec26 tor General shall consider whether the Transportation SecuVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:42 Oct 25, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00069 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S763.RS S763

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1 rity Administration’s method to analyze the risk to trans2 portation facilities and transportation systems is appro3 priate. 

4 SEC. 10. EXPANSION OF NATIONAL EXPLOSIVES DETEC5 TION CANINE TEAM PROGRAM. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, where appropriate, 

7 shall encourage State, local, and tribal governments and 

8 private owners of high-risk transportation facilities to 

9 strengthen security through the use of explosives detection 

10 canine teams. 

11 (b) INCREASED CAPACITY.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Before the date the Inspector 

13 General of the Department submits the report under 

14 section 9, the Administrator may increase the number 

15 of State and local surface and maritime transpor16 tation canines by not more than 70 explosives detec17 tion canine teams. 

18 (2) ADDITIONAL TEAMS.—Beginning on the date 

19 the Inspector General of the Department submits the 

20 report under section 9, the Secretary may increase the 

21 State and local surface and maritime transportation 

22 canines up to 200 explosives detection canine teams 

23 unless more are identified in the risk-based security 

24 strategy under section 3, consistent with section 4 or 


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1 with the President’s most recent budget submitted 

2 under section 1105 of title 31, United States Code. 

3 (3) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Before initiating any 

4 increase in the number of explosives detection teams 

5 under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall consider any 

6 recommendations in the report under section 9 on the 

7 efficacy and management of the explosives detection 

8 canine program. 

9 (c) DEPLOYMENT.—The Secretary shall— 

10 (1) use the additional explosives detection canine 

11 teams, as described in subsection (b)(1), as part of the 

12 Department’s efforts to strengthen security across the 

13 Nation’s surface and maritime transportation net14 works; 

15 (2) make available explosives detection canine 

16 teams to all modes of transportation, subject to the re17 quirements under section 7, to address specific 

18 vulnerabilities or risks, on an as-needed basis and as 

19 otherwise determined appropriate by the Secretary; 

20 and 

21 (3) consider specific needs and training require22 ments for explosives detection canine teams to be de23 ployed across the Nation’s surface and maritime 

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1 tiple modes of transportation, as the Secretary con2 siders appropriate. 

3 (d) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be ap4 propriated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary 

5 to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 2018 

6 through 2021. 

7 SEC. 11. NUCLEAR MATERIAL AND EXPLOSIVE DETECTION 

8 TECHNOLOGY. 

9 The Secretary, in coordination with the Director of the 

10 National Institute of Standards and Technology and the 

11 head of each relevant Federal department or agency re12 searching nuclear material detection systems or explosive 

13 detection systems, shall research, facilitate, and, to the ex14 tent practicable, deploy next generation technologies, in15 cluding active neutron interrogation, to detect nuclear ma16 terial and explosives in transportation systems and trans17 portation facilities. 

18 SEC. 12. STUDY ON SECURITY STANDARDS AND BEST PRAC19 TICES FOR PASSENGER TRANSPORTATION 

20 SYSTEMS. 

21 (a) SECURITY STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES FOR

22 UNITED STATES AND FOREIGN PASSENGER TRANSPOR23 TATION SYSTEMS.—The Comptroller General of the United 

24 States shall conduct a study of how the Transportation Se25 curity Administration— 


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1 (1) identifies and compares— 

2 (A) United States and foreign passenger 

3 transportation security standards; and 

4 (B) best practices for protecting passenger 

5 transportation systems, including shared ter6 minal facilities, and cyber systems; and 

7 (2) disseminates the findings under paragraph 

8 (1) to stakeholders. 

9 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall issue 

11 a report that contains— 

12 (1) the findings of the study conducted under 

13 subsection (a); and 

14 (2) any recommendations for improving the rel15 evant processes or procedures. 

16 SEC. 13. AMTRAK SECURITY UPGRADES. 

17 (a) RAILROAD SECURITY ASSISTANCE.—Section 

18 1513(b) of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 

19 Commission Act of 2007 (6 U.S.C. 1163(b)) is amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking the period at 

21 the end and inserting ‘‘, including communications 

22 interoperability where appropriate with relevant out23 side agencies and entities.’’; 

24 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘security of’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘security and preparedness of’’; 


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1 (3) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘security 

2 threats’’ and inserting ‘‘security threats and pre3 paredness, including connectivity to the National Ter4 rorist Screening Center’’; and 

5 (4) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘and security 

6 officers’’ and inserting ‘‘, security, and preparedness 

7 officers’’. 

8 (b) SPECIFIC PROJECTS.—Section 1514(a)(3) of the 

9 Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission 

10 Act of 2007 (6 U.S.C. 1164(a)(3)) is amended— 

11 (1) in subparagraph (D) by inserting ‘‘, or to 

12 connect to the National Terrorism Screening Center 

13 watchlist’’ after ‘‘Secretary’’; 

14 (2) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘; and’’ at 

15 the end and inserting a semicolon; 

16 (3) in subparagraph (H) by striking the period 

17 at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

18 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(I) for improvements to passenger 

20 verification systems; 

21 ‘‘(J) for improvements to employee and con22 tractor verification systems, including identity 

23 verification technology; or 


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1 ‘‘(K) for improvements to the security of 

2 Amtrak computer systems, including cybersecu3 rity assessments and programs.’’. 

4 SEC. 14. PASSENGER RAIL VETTING. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

6 date on which the Amtrak Board of Directors submits a 

7 request to the Administrator, the Administrator shall issue 

8 a decision on the use by Amtrak of the Transportation Se9 curity Administration’s Secure Flight Program or a simi10 lar passenger vetting system to enhance passenger rail secu11 rity. 

12 (b) STRATEGIC PLAN.—If the Administrator decides to 

13 grant the request by Amtrak under subsection (a), the deci14 sion shall include a strategic plan for working with rail 

15 stakeholders to enhance passenger rail security by vetting 

16 passengers using terrorist watch lists maintained by the 

17 Federal Government or a similar passenger vetting system 

18 maintained by the Transportation Security Administra19 tion. 

20 (c) NOTICES.—The Administrator shall notify the ap21 propriate committees of Congress of any decision made 

22 under subsection (a) and the details of the strategic plan 

23 under subsection (b). 

24 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section 

25 shall be construed to limit the Administrator’s authority to 


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1 set the access to, or terms and conditions of using, the Se2 cure Flight Program or a similar passenger vetting system. 

3 SEC. 15. STUDY ON SURFACE TRANSPORTATION INSPEC4 TORS. 

5 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

7 shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a 

8 report that— 

9 (1) identifies the roles and responsibilities of sur10 face transportation security inspectors authorized 

11 under section 1304 of the Implementing Rec12 ommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (6 

13 U.S.C. 1113); 

14 (2) determines whether surface transportation se15 curity inspectors— 

16 (A) have appropriate qualifications to help 

17 secure and inspect surface transportation sys18 tems; and 

19 (B) have adequate experience and training 

20 to perform the responsibilities identified under 

21 paragraph (1); 

22 (3) evaluates feedback from surface transpor23 tation industry stakeholders on the effectiveness of 

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1 tion programs to the overall security of the surface 

2 transportation systems of such stakeholders; 

3 (4) evaluates the consistency of surface transpor4 tation inspections, recommendations, and regulatory 

5 enforcement, where applicable; 

6 (5) identifies any duplication or redundancy be7 tween the Transportation Security Administration 

8 and the Department of Transportation relating to 

9 surface transportation security inspections or over10 sight; and 

11 (6) provides recommendations, if any, relating 

12 to— 

13 (A) improvements to the surface transpor14 tation security inspectors program, including— 

15 (i) changes in organizational and su16 pervisory structures; 

17 (ii) coordination procedures to enhance 

18 consistency; and 

19 (iii) effectiveness in inspection and 

20 compliance activities; and 

21 (B) whether each transportation mode needs 

22 inspectors trained and qualified for that specific 

23 mode. 


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1 SEC. 16. SECURITY AWARENESS PROGRAM. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall estab3 lish a program to promote surface transportation security 

4 through the training of surface transportation operators 

5 and frontline employees on each of the skills identified in 

6 subsection (c). 

7 (b) APPLICATION.—The program established under 

8 subsection (a) shall apply to all modes of surface transpor9 tation, including public transportation, rail, highway, 

10 motor carrier, and pipeline. 

11 (c) TRAINING.—The program established under sub12 section (a) shall cover, at a minimum, the skills necessary 

13 to recognize, assess, and respond to suspicious items or ac14 tions that could indicate a threat to transportation. 

15 (d) ASSESSMENT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall con17 duct an assessment of current training programs for 

18 surface transportation operators and frontline em19 ployees. 

20 (2) CONTENTS.—The assessment shall identify— 

21 (A) whether other training is being pro22 vided, either voluntarily or in response to other 

23 Federal requirements; and 

24 (B) whether there are any gaps in existing 

25 training. 


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1 (e) UPDATES.—The Administrator shall ensure the 

2 program established under subsection (a) is updated as nec3 essary to address changes in risk and terrorist methods and 

4 to close any gaps identified in the assessment under sub5 section (d). 

6 (f) SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY REPORTING.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

8 maintain a national telephone number for an indi9 vidual to use to report suspicious activity under this 

10 section to the Administration. 

11 (2) PROCEDURES.—The Administrator shall es12 tablish procedures for the Administration— 

13 (A) to review and follow-up, as necessary, 

14 on each report received under paragraph (1); 

15 and 

16 (B) to share, as necessary and in accord17 ance with law, the report with appropriate Fed18 eral, State, local, and tribal entities. 

19 (3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

20 section may be construed to replace or affect in any 

21 way the use of 9–1–1 services in an emergency. 

22 (g) DEFINITION OF FRONTLINE EMPLOYEE.—In this 

23 section, the term ‘‘frontline employee’’ includes— 

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1 patcher, maintenance and maintenance support em2 ployee, station attendant, customer service employee, 

3 security employee, or transit police, or any other em4 ployee who has direct contact with riders on a regular 

5 basis, and any other employee of a public transpor6 tation agency that the Administrator determines 

7 should receive security training under this section or 

8 that is receiving security training under other law; 

9 (2) over-the-road bus drivers, security personnel, 

10 dispatchers, maintenance and maintenance support 

11 personnel, ticket agents, other terminal employees, 

12 and other employees of an over-the-road bus operator 

13 or terminal owner or operator that the Administrator 

14 determines should receive security training under this 

15 section or that is receiving security training under 

16 other law; or 

17 (3) security personnel, dispatchers, locomotive 

18 engineers, conductors, trainmen, other onboard em19 ployees, maintenance and maintenance support per20 sonnel, bridge tenders, and any other employees of 

21 railroad carriers that the Administrator determines 

22 should receive security training under this section or 

23 that is receiving security training under other law. 


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1 SEC. 17. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (c), there are 

3 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to award 

4 surface transportation preparedness grants— 

5 (1) $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2018; 

6 (2) $275,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

7 (3) $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; and 

8 (4) $325,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 

9 (b) ADDITIONAL AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA10 TIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (c) and 

12 in addition to the sums authorized to be appropriated 

13 under subsection (a), if the certification described in 

14 paragraph (2) is made during a fiscal year there is 

15 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for the 

16 purpose described in subsection (a) for that fiscal year 

17 an additional amount as follows: 

18 (A) $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2018. 

19 (B) $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2019. 

20 (C) $350,000,000 for fiscal year 2020. 

21 (D) $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 

22 (2) CERTIFICATIONS.—A certification described 

23 in this paragraph is a certification made by the Sec24 retary, in coordination with the Administrator, and 

25 submitted to the appropriate committees of Congress 

26 that the Secretary— 


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1 (A) has reviewed the criteria and selection 

2 process for each surface transportation prepared3 ness grants program; 

4 (B) has determined whether the criteria and 

5 selection process adequately reflect the results of 

6 the risk-based assessment and risk-based strategy 

7 of the applicable transportation system under 

8 section 3; and 

9 (C) is in compliance with this paragraph 

10 and paragraph (3). 

11 (3) GAO STUDY.—Prior to submitting a certifi12 cation under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall re13 view the report under section 18 and take action on 

14 each recommendation described in subsection (c)(2) of 

15 that section. 

16 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Half of the amounts made avail17 able under subsections (a) and (b)(1) for a fiscal year shall 

18 be used by the Secretary to award grants under the Port 

19 Security Grant Program. 

20 (d) DEFINITION OF SURFACE TRANSPORTATION PRE21 PAREDNESS GRANTS.—In this section, the term ‘‘surface 

22 transportation preparedness grants’’ means grants awarded 

23 under— 

24 (1) the Intercity Passenger Rail Security Grant 

25 Program; 


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1 (2) the Intercity Bus Security Grant Program; 

2 (3) the Rail Grant Program; 

3 (4) the Transit Security Grant Program; and 

4 (5) the Port Security Grant Program. 

5 SEC. 18. GAO STUDY ON GRANTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of 

8 the United States shall study the management and effective9 ness of the programs administering surface transportation 

10 preparedness grants (as defined in section 17). 

11 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the study under 

12 subsection (a), the Comptroller General shall consider for 

13 each applicable program whether— 

14 (1) the Transportation Security Administra15 tion’s criteria for surface transportation preparedness 

16 grants reflects the risk-based strategy under section 3; 

17 (2) the Department’s grant selection process and 

18 implementation decisions reflect the risk-based strat19 egy under section 3; 

20 (3) the applicable program’s effectiveness at de21 creasing vulnerability can be and has been assessed; 

22 and 

23 (4) the Department is providing sufficient over24 sight of the applicable program to ensure the grant 


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1 funds are used for the purpose described in the grant 

2 application. 

3 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

4 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall sub5 mit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on 

6 the study under subsection (a), including— 

7 (1) the findings of the study; and 

8 (2) any recommendations for improving the ap9 plicable programs. 

10 SEC. 19. VOLUNTARY USE OF CREDENTIALING. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—An individual who is subject to 

12 credentialing or a background investigation may satisfy 

13 that requirement by obtaining a valid transportation secu14 rity card issued under section 70105 of title 46, United 

15 States Code. 

16 (b) ISSUANCE OF CARDS.—The Secretary of Homeland 

17 Security— 

18 (1) shall expand the transportation security card 

19 program, consistent with section 70105 of title 46, 

20 United States Code, to allow an individual who is 

21 subject to credentialing or a background investigation 

22 to apply for a transportation security card; and 

23 (2) may charge reasonable fees, in accordance 

24 with section 520(a) of the Department of Homeland 

25 Security Appropriations Act, 2004 (6 U.S.C. 469(a)), 


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1 for providing the necessary credentialing and back2 ground investigation. 

3 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘individual 

4 who is subject to credentialing or a background investiga5 tion’’ means an individual who— 

6 (1) because of employment is regulated by the 

7 Transportation Security Administration, Department 

8 of Transportation, or Coast Guard and is required to 

9 have a background records check to obtain a haz10 ardous materials endorsement on a commercial driv11 er’s license issued by a State under section 5103a of 

12 title 49, United States Code; or 

13 (2) is required to have a credential and back14 ground records check under section 2102(d)(2) of the 

15 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 622(d)(2)) 

16 at a facility with activities that are regulated by the 

17 Transportation Security Administration, Department 

18 of Transportation, or Coast Guard. 

19 SEC. 20. BACKGROUND RECORDS CHECKS FOR ISSUANCE 

20 OF HAZMAT LICENSES. 

21 Section 5103a(d) of title 49, United States Code, is 

22 amended by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(3) TRANSPORTATION SECURITY CARDS.—An 

24 individual who holds a valid transportation security 

25 card issued by the Secretary of the department in 


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1 which the Coast Guard is operating under section 

2 70105 of title 46 shall be deemed to have met the 

3 background records check required under this sub4 section.’’. 

5 SEC. 21. CARGO CONTAINER SCANNING TECHNOLOGY RE6 VIEW. 

7 (a) DESIGNATIONS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, and not less fre10 quently than once every 5 years thereafter until the 

11 date of full-scale implementation of 100 percent 

12 screening of cargo containers and 100 percent scan13 ning of high-risk containers required under section 

14 232 of the SAFE Port Act (6 U.S.C. 982), the Sec15 retary shall solicit proposals for scanning tech16 nologies, consistent with the standards under sub17 section (b)(8) of that section, to improve scanning of 

18 cargo at domestic ports. 

19 (2) EVALUATION.—In soliciting proposals under 

20 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall establish measures 

21 to assess the performance of the proposed scanning 

22 technologies, including— 

23 (A) the rate of false positives; 

24 (B) the delays in processing times; and 

25 (C) the impact on the supply chain. 


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1 (b) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

2 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary may estab3 lish a pilot program to determine the efficacy of a 

4 scanning technology referred to in subsection (a). 

5 (2) APPLICATION PROCESS.—In carrying out the 

6 pilot program under this subsection, the Secretary 

7 shall— 

8 (A) solicit applications from domestic ports; 

9 (B) select up to 4 domestic ports to partici10 pate in the pilot program; and 

11 (C) select ports with unique features and 

12 differing levels of trade volume. 

13 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after initi14 ating a pilot program under paragraph (1), the Sec15 retary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 

16 Congress a report on the pilot program, including— 

17 (A) an evaluation of the scanning tech18 nologies proposed to improve security at domes19 tic ports and to meet the full-scale implementa20 tion requirement; 

21 (B) the costs to implement a pilot program; 

22 (C) the benefits of the proposed scanning 

23 technologies; 

24 (D) the impact of the pilot program on the 

25 supply chain; and 


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1 (E) recommendations for implementation of 

2 advanced cargo scanning technologies at domes3 tic ports. 

4 (4) SHARING PILOT PROGRAM TESTING RE5 SULTS.—The results of the pilot testing of advanced 

6 cargo scanning technologies shall be shared, as appro7 priate, with government agencies and private stake8 holders whose responsibilities encompass the secure 

9 transport of cargo. 

10 SEC. 22. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

11 (a) TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION.— 

12 Section 114 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 

13 redesignating subsections (u), (v), and (w) as subsections 

14 (t), (u), and (v), respectively. 

15 (b) TRANSPORTATION SECURITY STRATEGIC PLAN16 NING.—Section 114(s)(3)(B) of title 49, United States Code, 

17 is amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2007)’’. 

18 (c) CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OF SECURITY ASSUR19 ANCE FOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE STAKEHOLDERS.—Section 

20 1203(b)(1)(B) of the Implementing Recommendations of the 

21 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (49 U.S.C. 114 note) is 

22 amended by striking ‘‘, under section 114(u)(7) of title 49, 

23 United States Code, as added by this section, or otherwise,’’. 


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Calendar No. 251 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 763 

[Report No. 115–178] 

A BILL 

To improve surface and maritime transportation 

security. 

OCTOBER 25, 2017 

Reported with an amendment 


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