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[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1263 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1263

To encourage, enhance, and integrate Silver Alert plans throughout the 
                 United States and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 23, 2011

 Mr. Kohl (for himself and Mr. Manchin) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To encourage, enhance, and integrate Silver Alert plans throughout the 
                 United States and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Silver Alert Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Missing senior.--The term ``missing senior'' refers to 
        any individual who--
                    (A) is reported to, or identified by, a law 
                enforcement agency as a missing person; and
                    (B) meets the requirements to be designated as a 
                missing senior, as determined by the State in which the 
                individual is reported or identified as a missing 
                person.
            (2) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the 50 States, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
        United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 
        Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

SEC. 3. SILVER ALERT COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall, subject to the 
availability of appropriations, establish a national Silver Alert 
communications network within the Department of Justice to provide 
assistance to regional and local search efforts for missing seniors 
through the initiation, facilitation, and promotion of local elements 
of the network (known as Silver Alert plans) in coordination with 
States, units of local government, law enforcement agencies, and other 
concerned entities with expertise in providing services to seniors.
    (b) Coordination With AMBER Alert Network.--In establishing the 
Silver Alert Network under subsection (a), the Attorney General shall 
ensure that, when feasible, the Silver Alert Network is able to operate 
in coordination with the AMBER Alert communications network, 
established under subtitle A of title III of the PROTECT Act (42 U.S.C. 
5791 et seq.), to maximize the efficiency of both networks.

SEC. 4. SILVER ALERT COORDINATOR.

    (a) National Coordinator Within Department of Justice.--The 
Attorney General shall designate an individual of the Department of 
Justice to act as the national coordinator of the Silver Alert 
communications network. The individual so designated shall be known as 
the Silver Alert Coordinator of the Department of Justice (referred to 
in this Act as the ``Coordinator'').
    (b) Duties of the Coordinator.--In acting as the national 
coordinator of the Silver Alert communications network, the Coordinator 
shall--
            (1) work with States to encourage the development of 
        additional Silver Alert plans in the network;
            (2) establish voluntary guidelines for States to use in 
        developing Silver Alert plans that will promote compatible and 
        integrated Silver Alert plans throughout the United States, 
        including--
                    (A) a list of the resources necessary to establish 
                a Silver Alert plan;
                    (B) criteria for evaluating whether a situation 
                warrants issuing a Silver Alert, taking into 
                consideration the need for the use of such Alerts to be 
                limited in scope because the effectiveness of the 
                Silver Alert communications network may be affected by 
                overuse, including criteria to determine--
                            (i) whether the mental capacity of a senior 
                        who is missing, and the circumstances of his or 
                        her disappearance, warrant the issuance of a 
                        Silver Alert; and
                            (ii) whether the individual who reports 
                        that a senior is missing is an appropriate and 
                        credible source on which to base the issuance 
                        of a Silver Alert;
                    (C) a description of the appropriate uses of the 
                Silver Alert name to readily identify the nature of 
                search efforts for missing seniors; and
                    (D) recommendations on how to protect the privacy, 
                dignity, independence, and autonomy of any missing 
                senior who may be the subject of a Silver Alert;
            (3) develop proposed protocols for efforts to recover 
        missing seniors and to reduce the number of seniors who are 
        reported missing, including protocols for procedures that are 
        needed from the time of initial notification of a law 
        enforcement agency that the senior is missing through the time 
        of the return of the senior to family, guardian, or domicile, 
        as appropriate, including--
                    (A) public safety communications protocol;
                    (B) case management protocol;
                    (C) command center operations;
                    (D) reunification protocol; and
                    (E) incident review, evaluation, debriefing, and 
                public information procedures;
            (4) work with States to ensure appropriate regional 
        coordination of various elements of the network;
            (5) establish an advisory group to assist States, units of 
        local government, law enforcement agencies, and other entities 
        involved in the Silver Alert communications network with 
        initiating, facilitating, and promoting Silver Alert plans, 
        which shall include--
                    (A) to the maximum extent practicable, 
                representation from the various geographic regions of 
                the United States; and
                    (B) members who are--
                            (i) representatives of senior citizen 
                        advocacy groups, law enforcement agencies, and 
                        public safety communications;
                            (ii) broadcasters, first responders, 
                        dispatchers, and radio station personnel; and
                            (iii) representatives of any other 
                        individuals or organizations that the 
                        Coordinator determines are necessary to the 
                        success of the Silver Alert communications 
                        network; and
            (6) act as the nationwide point of contact for--
                    (A) the development of the network; and
                    (B) regional coordination of alerts for missing 
                seniors through the network.
    (c) Coordination.--
            (1) Coordination with other agencies.--The Coordinator 
        shall coordinate and consult with the Secretary of 
        Transportation, the Federal Communications Commission, the 
        Assistant Secretary for Aging of the Department of Health and 
        Human Services, the head of the Missing Alzheimer's Disease 
        Patient Alert Program, and other appropriate offices of the 
        Department of Justice in carrying out activities under this 
        Act.
            (2) State and local coordination.--The Coordinator shall 
        consult with local broadcasters and State and local law 
        enforcement agencies in establishing minimum standards under 
        section 5 and in carrying out other activities under this Act, 
        as appropriate.
    (d) Annual Reports.--Not later than one year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Coordinator shall 
submit to Congress a report on the activities of the Coordinator and 
the effectiveness and status of the Silver Alert plans of each State 
that has established or is in the process of establishing such a plan. 
Each such report shall include--
            (1) a list of States that have established Silver Alert 
        plans;
            (2) a list of States that are in the process of 
        establishing Silver Alert plans;
            (3) for each State that has established such a plan, to the 
        extent the data is available--
                    (A) the number of Silver Alerts issued;
                    (B) the number of individuals located successfully;
                    (C) the average period of time between the issuance 
                of a Silver Alert and the location of the individual 
                for whom such Alert was issued;
                    (D) the State agency or authority issuing Silver 
                Alerts, and the process by which Silver Alerts are 
                disseminated;
                    (E) the cost of establishing and operating such a 
                plan;
                    (F) the criteria used by the State to determine 
                whether to issue a Silver Alert; and
                    (G) the extent to which missing individuals for 
                whom Silver Alerts were issued crossed State lines;
            (4) actions States have taken to protect the privacy and 
        dignity of the individuals for whom Silver Alerts are issued;
            (5) ways that States have facilitated and improved 
        communication about missing individuals between families, 
        caregivers, law enforcement officials, and other authorities; 
        and
            (6) any other information the Coordinator determines to be 
        appropriate.

SEC. 5. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR ISSUANCE AND DISSEMINATION OF ALERTS 
              THROUGH SILVER ALERT COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.

    (a) Establishment of Minimum Standards.--Subject to subsection (b), 
the Coordinator shall establish minimum standards for--
            (1) the issuance of alerts through the Silver Alert 
        communications network; and
            (2) the extent of the dissemination of alerts issued 
        through the network.
    (b) Limitations.--
            (1) Voluntary participation.--The minimum standards 
        established under subsection (a) of this section, and any other 
        guidelines and programs established under section 4, shall be 
        adoptable on a voluntary basis only.
            (2) Dissemination of information.--The minimum standards 
        shall, to the maximum extent practicable (as determined by the 
        Coordinator in consultation with State and local law 
        enforcement agencies), provide that appropriate information 
        relating to the special needs of a missing senior (including 
        health care needs) are disseminated to the appropriate law 
        enforcement, public health, and other public officials.
            (3) Geographic areas.--The minimum standards shall, to the 
        maximum extent practicable (as determined by the Coordinator in 
        consultation with State and local law enforcement agencies), 
        provide that the dissemination of an alert through the Silver 
        Alert communications network be limited to the geographic areas 
        which the missing senior could reasonably reach, considering 
        the missing senior's circumstances and physical and mental 
        condition, the modes of transportation available to the missing 
        senior, and the circumstances of the disappearance.
            (4) Age requirements.--The minimum standards shall not 
        include any specific age requirement for an individual to be 
        classified as a missing senior for purposes of the Silver Alert 
        communication network. Age requirements for determinations of 
        whether an individual is a missing senior shall be determined 
        by each State, and may vary from State to State.
            (5) Privacy and civil liberties protections.--The minimum 
        standards shall--
                    (A) ensure that alerts issued through the Silver 
                Alert communications network comply with all applicable 
                Federal, State, and local privacy laws and regulations; 
                and
                    (B) include standards that specifically provide for 
                the protection of the civil liberties and sensitive 
                medical information of missing seniors.
            (6) State and local voluntary coordination.--In carrying 
        out the activities under subsection (a), the Coordinator may 
        not interfere with the current system of voluntary coordination 
        between local broadcasters and State and local law enforcement 
        agencies for purposes of the Silver Alert communications 
        network.

SEC. 6. TRAINING AND OTHER RESOURCES.

    (a) Training and Educational Programs.--The Coordinator shall make 
available to States, units of local government, law enforcement 
agencies, and other concerned entities that are involved in initiating, 
facilitating, or promoting Silver Alert plans, including broadcasters, 
first responders, dispatchers, public safety communications personnel, 
and radio station personnel--
            (1) training and educational programs related to the Silver 
        Alert communication network and the capabilities, limitations, 
        and anticipated behaviors of missing seniors, which shall be 
        updated regularly to encourage the use of new tools, 
        technologies, and resources in Silver Alert plans; and
            (2) informational materials, including brochures, videos, 
        posters, and web sites to support and supplement such training 
        and educational programs.
    (b) Coordination.--The Coordinator shall coordinate--
            (1) with the Assistant Secretary for Aging of the 
        Department of Health and Human Services in developing the 
        training and educational programs and materials under 
        subsection (a); and
            (2) with the head of the Missing Alzheimer's Disease 
        Patient Alert Program within the Department of Justice, to 
        determine if any existing material with respect to training 
        programs or educational materials developed or used as part of 
        such Patient Alert Program are appropriate and may be used for 
        the programs under subsection (a).

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE SILVER ALERT 
              COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Department of 
Justice $500,000 to carry out the Silver Alert communications network 
as authorized under this Act.
                                 <all>
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