I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4474 

To enhance the security of surface transportation assets, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 28, 2017 

Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN (for herself, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Ms. 

JACKSON LEE, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. PAYNE, and Mr. LIPINSKI) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 

A BILL 

To enhance the security of surface transportation assets, 

and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Surface Transportation and Public Area Security Act of 

6 2017’’. 

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

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 


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TITLE I—SECURITY RESOURCES 

Sec. 101. Transit Security Grant Program. 

Sec. 102. Reimbursement for law enforcement operations. 

Sec. 103. Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response teams. 

Sec. 104. Explosives detection canine teams for surface transportation security. 

Sec. 105. Surface transportation security inspectors. 

Sec. 106. Frontline employee security training. 

Sec. 107. Local law enforcement security training. 

TITLE II—SECURITY STRATEGY, ASSESSMENTS, AND RESEARCH 

Sec. 201. National strategy for transportation security review. 

Sec. 202. Risk scenarios. 

Sec. 203. Assessments and security plans. 

Sec. 204. Research and development. 

Sec. 205. Innovative technologies and capabilities. 

TITLE III—INFORMATION SHARING AND OPERATIONAL 

COORDINATION 

Sec. 301. Threat information sharing. 

Sec. 302. Integrated and unified operations centers. 

Sec. 303. Suspicious activity reporting. 

Sec. 304. Security technologies tied to foreign threat countries. 

TITLE IV—PUBLIC AREA SECURITY 

Sec. 401. Public area security working group. 

Sec. 402. Technical assistance. 

Sec. 403. Firearms and ammunition in public areas. 

Sec. 404. Best practices to secure against vehicle-based attacks. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (a) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.— 

4 The term ‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’ means 

5 the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 

6 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

8 (b) SURFACE TRANSPORTATION ASSET.—The term 

9 ‘‘surface transportation asset’’ includes facilities, equip10 ment, or systems used to provide transportation services 

11 by— 


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1 (1) a public transportation agency (as such 

2 term is defined in section 1402(5) of the Imple3 menting Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission 

4 Act of 2007 (Public Law 110–53; 6 U.S.C. 

5 1131(5))); 

6 (2) a railroad carrier (as such term is defined 

7 in section 20102(3) of title 49, United States Code); 

8 (3) an owner or operator of— 

9 (A) an entity offering scheduled, fixed10 route transportation services by over-the road 

11 bus (as such term is defined in section 1501(4) 

12 of the Implementing Recommendations of the 

13 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (Public Law 

14 110–53; 6 U.S.C. 1151(4))); or 

15 (B) a bus terminal; or 

16 (4) other transportation facilities, equipment, or 

17 systems, as determined by the Secretary. 

18 (c) PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR STAKE19 HOLDERS.—The term ‘‘public and private sector stake20 holders’’ has the meaning given such term in section 

21 114(u)(1)(C) of title 49, United States Code. 

22 (d) TRANSPORTATION FACILITY.—The term ‘‘trans23 portation facility’’ means a bus terminal, intercity or com24 muter passenger rail station, airport, multi-modal transVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 portation center, or other transportation facility, as deter2 mined by the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

3 TITLE I—SECURITY RESOURCES 

4 SEC. 101. TRANSIT SECURITY GRANT PROGRAM. 

5 Section 1406 of the Implementing Recommendations 

6 of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (Public Law 110– 

7 53; 6 U.S.C. 1135), is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (m)(1)— 

9 (A) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

10 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

11 (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking the 

12 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

13 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

14 subparagraph: 

15 ‘‘(F) $400,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

16 2018 through 2022 to make grants under this 

17 section.’’; and 

18 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub19 section: 

20 ‘‘(n) PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE.—Grant funds pro21 vided under this section may be used for projects with a 

22 duration of not longer than 36 months.’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. REIMBURSEMENT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OP2 ERATIONS. 

3 Subtitle A of title XV of the Implementing Rec4 ommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (Pub5 lic Law 110–53; 6 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.) is amended by 

6 adding at the end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 1505. LAW ENFORCEMENT REIMBURSEMENT AGREE8 MENT PROGRAM. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish a 

10 law enforcement officer reimbursement agreement pro11 gram for State, local, and other public authorities to re12 ceive reimbursement of non-Federal funds utilized for 

13 transportation security operations as identified by the Sec14 retary as covered activities. 

15 ‘‘(b) USE.—Not less than one-third of funds provided 

16 under the program established pursuant to this section 

17 shall be used for surface transportation security oper18 ations, as identified by the Secretary. 

19 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

20 is authorized to be appropriated $67,500,000 for each of 

21 fiscal years 2018 through 2022 to carry out this section.’’. 

22 SEC. 103. VISIBLE INTERMODAL PREVENTION AND RE23 SPONSE TEAMS. 

24 (a) NUMBER OF TEAMS; AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO25 PRIATIONS.—Subsection (b) of section 1303 of the Imple26 menting Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 


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1 2007 (Public Law 110–53; 6 U.S.C. 1112) is amended 

2 by— 

3 (1) striking ‘‘more’’ and inserting ‘‘fewer’’; and 

4 (2) striking ‘‘through 2018’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘through 2022’’. 

6 (b) ADEQUACY OF RESOURCES.—Not later than Jan7 uary 31, 2019, and each year thereafter for five years, 

8 the Administrator of the Transportation Security Admin9 istration shall annually assess whether the number of Visi10 ble Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) teams is 

11 adequate to respond to requests for collaboration from 

12 public and private sector stakeholders and to carry out 

13 counterterrorism activities with respect to United States 

14 transportation systems. 

15 (c) PERFORMANCE MEASURES.—Not later than one 

16 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ad17 ministrator of the Transportation Security Administration 

18 shall develop a system of qualitative performance meas19 ures and objectives by which to assess the roles, activities, 

20 and effectiveness of VIPR team operations on an ongoing 

21 basis, including a mechanism through which transpor22 tation entities may submit feedback on VIPR team oper23 ations involving the systems or facilities of such entities. 

24 (d) INTEROPERABILITY.—Not later than one year 

25 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the AdminisVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 trator of the Transportation Security Administration shall 

2 develop a plan to ensure interoperable communications 

3 among and within VIPR teams and between VIPR teams 

4 and, to the extent practicable, transportation entities with 

5 systems or facilities involved in VIPR team operations. 

6 SEC. 104. EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CANINE TEAMS FOR 

7 SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY. 

8 (a) INCREASED CAPACITY.—Not later than two years 

9 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

10 of Homeland Security shall increase by at least 200 the 

11 number of State and local law enforcement-led explosives 

12 detection canine teams trained and certified by the Trans13 portation Security Administration that are dedicated to 

14 surface transportation security. 

15 (b) DEPLOYMENT.—Explosives detection canine 

16 teams trained and certified under subsection (a) shall be 

17 deployed to surface transportation assets in a risk-based 

18 manner, to address specific threats, or on an as-needed 

19 basis. Such teams may also be used on a more limited 

20 basis for the security of other transportation modes and 

21 to support other homeland security missions, as deter22 mined appropriate by the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

23 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

24 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section— 

25 (1) $23,900,000 for fiscal year 2018; and 


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1 (2) $20,300,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 

2 through 2022. 

3 SEC. 105. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY INSPEC4 TORS. 

5 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Sub6 section (j) of section 1304 of the Implementing Rec7 ommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (Pub8 lic Law 110–53; 6 U.S.C. 1113) is amended by striking 

9 ‘‘this section’’ and all that follows through the period at 

10 the end and inserting ‘‘this section such sums as may be 

11 necessary for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022.’’. 

12 (b) STRATEGY.—Not later than 180 days after the 

13 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 

14 the Transportation Security Administration shall submit 

15 to the appropriate congressional committees and the 

16 Comptroller General of the United States a strategy to 

17 guide operations of surface transportation security inspec18 tors that addresses the following: 

19 (1) Any limitations in data systems for such in20 spectors, as identified by the Comptroller General. 

21 (2) Alignment of operations with risk assess22 ment findings, including an approach to identifying 

23 and prioritizing entities and locations for inspec24 tions. 


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1 (3) Measurable objectives for the surface trans2 portation security inspectors program. 

3 (c) COMPTROLLER GENERAL REVIEW.—Not later 

4 than 180 days after the submission of the strategy re5 quired under subsection (b), the Comptroller General of 

6 the United States shall review such strategy and, as ap7 propriate, issue recommendations. 

8 SEC. 106. FRONTLINE EMPLOYEE SECURITY TRAINING. 

9 (a) TIMELINE.—Not later than 60 days after the 

10 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Home11 land Security shall submit to the appropriate congres12 sional committees and the Inspector General of the De13 partment of Homeland Security a report on the status of 

14 regulations for a security training program to prepare 

15 transportation employees for potential security threats 

16 and conditions as set forth in sections 1408, 1517, and 

17 1534 of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 

18 Commission Act of 2007 (6 U.S.C. 1137, 1167, and 1184) 

19 that includes a timeline for the issuance of a final rule20 making subsequent to the December 16, 2016, publication 

21 in the Federal Register of a notice of proposed rule22 making. 

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

24 120 days after submission of the report under subsection 

25 (a), the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland 


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1 Security shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

2 committees a review of such report that includes informa3 tion on— 

4 (1) departmental efforts to finalize rulemaking; 

5 and 

6 (2) recommendations, as necessary, to ensure 

7 implementation of the regulations referred to in sub8 section (a). 

9 SEC. 107. LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT SECURITY TRAINING. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu11 rity, in consultation with public and private sector stake12 holders, may develop, through the Federal Law Enforce13 ment Training Center, a training program to enhance the 

14 protection, preparedness, and response capabilities of law 

15 enforcement agencies to a terrorist attack against a sur16 face transportation asset. 

17 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—If the Secretary of Homeland 

18 Security develops the training program described in sub19 section (a), such training program shall— 

20 (1) be informed by current information regard21 ing terrorist tactics; 

22 (2) include tactical instruction tailored to the 

23 diverse nature of the surface transportation asset 

24 operational environment; and 


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1 (3) prioritize training officers from law enforce2 ment agencies that are eligible for the Homeland Se3 curity Grant Program under section 2002 of the 

4 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 603) and 

5 officers employed by railroad carriers that operate 

6 interstate passenger service. 

7 TITLE II—SECURITY STRATEGY, 

8 ASSESSMENTS, AND RESEARCH 

9 SEC. 201. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR TRANSPORTATION SE10 CURITY REVIEW. 

11 Not later than one year after the date of the enact12 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

13 States shall evaluate the degree to which the 2016 Bien14 nial National Strategy for Transportation Security, as re15 quired pursuant to section 114(s) of title 49, United 

16 States Code, that was issued on August 11, 2016, by the 

17 Administrator of the Transportation Security Administra18 tion, is reflected in Federal transportation security pro19 grams, budgets, research, and related efforts and, in car20 rying out such evaluation, shall consider the degree to 

21 which— 

22 (1) such strategy is sufficiently forward-looking 

23 to guide future Federal efforts; 


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1 (2) Federal programs, budgets, staffing levels, 

2 research, and related efforts for fiscal year 2018 and 

3 beyond are guided by such strategy; and 

4 (3) the annual progress reports submitted to 

5 Congress pursuant to such section subsequent to the 

6 issuance of such strategy provide information on the 

7 degree to which such strategy guides Federal efforts. 

8 SEC. 202. RISK SCENARIOS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu10 rity shall annually develop, consistent with the transpor11 tation modal security plans required under section 114(s) 

12 of title 49, United States Code, risk-based priorities based 

13 on risk assessments conducted or received by the Sec14 retary across all transportation modes that consider 

15 threats, vulnerabilities, and consequences. 

16 (b) SCENARIOS.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu17 rity shall ensure that the risk-based priorities identified 

18 pursuant to subsection (a) are informed by analysis of ter19 rorist attack scenarios for each transportation mode, in20 cluding cyber attack scenarios and intelligence and open 

21 source information about current and evolving threats. 

22 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after each de23 velopment under subsection (a), the Secretary of Home24 land Security shall submit to the appropriate congres25 sional committees a report that includes the following: 


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1 (1) Copies of the risk assessments for each 

2 transportation mode. 

3 (2) A summary that ranks the risks within and 

4 across modes. 

5 (3) A description of the risk-based priorities for 

6 securing the transportation sector that identifies and 

7 prioritizes the greatest security needs of the trans8 portation sector, both across and within modes, in 

9 the order that such priorities should be addressed. 

10 (4) Information on the underlying methodolo11 gies used to assess risks across and within each 

12 transportation mode and the basis for any assump13 tions regarding threats, vulnerabilities, and con14 sequences made in assessing and prioritizing risks 

15 within and across modes. 

16 (d) CLASSIFICATION.—The report required under 

17 subsection (c) may be submitted in a classified format or 

18 unclassified format, as appropriate. 

19 SEC. 203. ASSESSMENTS AND SECURITY PLANS. 

20 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland 

22 Security shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

23 committees and the Inspector General of the Department 

24 of Homeland Security a report on the status of regulations 

25 requiring assessments and security plans as set forth in 


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1 sections 1405, 1512, and 1531 of the Implementing Rec2 ommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (6 

3 U.S.C. 1134, 1162, and 1181) that includes a timeline 

4 for the issuance of a final rulemaking subsequent to the 

5 December 16, 2016, publication in the Federal Register 

6 of an advance notice of proposed rulemaking. 

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

8 120 days after submission of the report under subsection 

9 (a), the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland 

10 Security shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

11 committees a review of such report that includes informa12 tion on— 

13 (1) departmental efforts to finalize rulemaking; 

14 and 

15 (2) recommendations, as necessary, to ensure 

16 implementation of the regulations referred to in sub17 section (a). 

18 SEC. 204. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (h) of section 1409 of 

20 the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commis21 sion Act of 2007 (Public Law 110–53; 6 U.S.C. 1138) 

22 is amended by striking ‘‘to make grants’’ and all that fol23 lows through the period at the end and inserting ‘‘to carry 

24 out this section such sums as may be necessary for each 

25 of fiscal years 2018 through 2022.’’. 


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1 (b) EMERGING ISSUES.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

3 of Homeland Security shall submit to the appropriate con4 gressional committees a report regarding technological, 

5 privacy, and operational considerations with respect to the 

6 potential for— 

7 (1) next generation technologies to be inte8 grated into systems of surface transportation assets 

9 to detect explosives, including through the deploy10 ment of mobile explosives detection technologies to 

11 conduct risk-based passenger and property screening 

12 at high-risk passenger rail and public transportation 

13 systems; 

14 (2) providing passenger rail and public trans15 portation system operators with access to the Trans16 portation Security Administration’s Secure Flight 

17 Program or a similar passenger vetting system 

18 maintained by the Transportation Security Adminis19 tration; 

20 (3) deploying a credential authentication tech21 nology or other means of identification document in22 spection to high-risk passenger rail and public trans23 portation systems to assist operators conducting 

24 passenger vetting; and 


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1 (4) deploying scalable, cost-effective technology 

2 solutions to detect chemical, biological, radiological, 

3 nuclear, or explosive threats within high-risk pas4 senger rail and public transportation systems that 

5 are capable of passive, continuous, and real-time 

6 sensing and detection of, and alerting passengers 

7 and operating personnel to, the presence of such a 

8 threat. 

9 SEC. 205. INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES AND CAPABILITIES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Trans11 portation Security Administration may establish a task 

12 force to collaborate with public and private sector stake13 holders to identify and develop an innovative technology 

14 or capability with the potential to enhance transportation 

15 security, including by— 

16 (1) conducting a field demonstration of such a 

17 technology or capability in an operational environ18 ment; 

19 (2) gathering performance data from such a 

20 demonstration to inform the acquisition process; and 

21 (3) providing funding and promoting efforts to 

22 enable participation in a demonstration by a small 

23 business that has an innovative technology or capa24 bility but does not have adequate resources to parVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 ticipate in a field demonstration under paragraph 

2 (1). 

3 (b) COMPOSITION.—The task force authorized under 

4 subsection (a) shall be chaired by the Administrator of the 

5 Transportation Security Administration’s designee and 

6 comprised of representatives appointed by the Adminis7 trator, in consultation with the Chairperson of the Avia8 tion Security Advisory Committee (established pursuant to 

9 section 44946 of title 49, United States Code). 

10 (c) ACTIVITIES.—The chair of the task force shall— 

11 (1) seek technologies and capabilities for field 

12 demonstrations with potential to enhance surface 

13 transportation security, in addition to technologies 

14 and capabilities with potential to enhance aviation 

15 security; 

16 (2) coordinate with the Science and Technology 

17 Directorate of the Department of Homeland Secu18 rity to leverage such technologies and capabilities; 

19 and 

20 (3) submit to the Secretary of Homeland Secu21 rity an annual report regarding the task force’s ac22 tivities that identifies, for each such technology or 

23 capability, what mode of transportation could be en24 hanced by the integration of such technology or caVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 pability into security operations and, as appropriate, 

2 plans for deploying such technology or capability. 

3 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec4 tion shall require the Administrator of the Transportation 

5 Security Administration to acquire an innovative tech6 nology or capability. 

7 (e) NON-APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal 

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

9 to the task force. 

10 TITLE III—INFORMATION SHAR11 ING AND OPERATIONAL CO12 ORDINATION 

13 SEC. 301. THREAT INFORMATION SHARING. 

14 (a) PRIORITIZATION.—The Secretary of Homeland 

15 Security shall prioritize the assignment of officers and in16 telligence analysts under section 210A of the Homeland 

17 Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 124h) from the Transpor18 tation Security Administration and the Office of Intel19 ligence and Analysis of the Department of Homeland Se20 curity to locations with participating State, local, and re21 gional fusion centers in jurisdictions with a high-risk sur22 face transportation asset in order to enhance the security 

23 of such assets, including by improving timely sharing of 

24 classified information regarding terrorist and other 

25 threats. 


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1 (b) INTELLIGENCE PRODUCTS.—Officers and intel2 ligence analysts assigned to locations with participating 

3 State, local, and regional fusion centers under this section 

4 shall participate in the generation and dissemination of 

5 transportation security intelligence products, with an em6 phasis on terrorist and other threats to surface transpor7 tation assets that— 

8 (1) assist State, local, and tribal law enforce9 ment agencies in deploying their resources, including 

10 personnel, most efficiently to help detect, prevent, 

11 investigate, apprehend, and respond to terrorist and 

12 other threats; 

13 (2) promote more consistent and timely sharing 

14 of threat information among jurisdictions; and 

15 (3) enhance the Department of Homeland Secu16 rity’s situational awareness of such terrorist and 

17 other threats. 

18 (c) CLEARANCES.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu19 rity shall make available to appropriate owners and opera20 tors of surface transportation assets, and any other person 

21 that the Secretary determines appropriate to foster great22 er sharing of classified information relating to terrorist 

23 and other threats to surface transportation assets, the 

24 process of application for security clearances under Execu25 tive Order 13549 (75 Fed. Reg. 162; relating to a classiVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 fied national security information program) or any suc2 cessor Executive order. 

3 SEC. 302. INTEGRATED AND UNIFIED OPERATIONS CEN4 TERS. 

5 (a) FRAMEWORK.—Not later than 120 days after the 

6 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 

7 the Transportation Security Administration, in consulta8 tion with the heads of other appropriate offices or compo9 nents of the Department of Homeland Security, shall 

10 make available to public and private sector stakeholders 

11 a framework for establishing an integrated and unified op12 erations center responsible for overseeing daily operations 

13 of a transportation facility that promotes coordination for 

14 responses to terrorism, serious incidents, and other pur15 poses, as determined appropriate by the Administrator. 

16 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

17 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

18 Transportation Security Administration shall report to the 

19 appropriate congressional committees regarding the estab20 lishment and activities of integrated and unified oper21 ations centers at transportation facilities at which the 

22 Transportation Security Administration has a presence. 

23 SEC. 303. SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY REPORTING. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu25 rity shall ensure there exists a national mechanism for an 


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1 individual to report suspicious activity in a transportation 

2 facility. 

3 (b) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary of Homeland Se4 curity, in consultation with the Administrator of the 

5 Transportation Security Administration, shall establish 

6 procedures for the Department of Homeland Security to— 

7 (1) review quickly a report received under sub8 section (a), but not later than 48 hours after receiv9 ing such a report; 

10 (2) follow-up, as necessary, on each such report; 

11 and 

12 (3) share with appropriate Federal, State, local, 

13 and tribal entities, as necessary and in accordance 

14 with law, such reports. 

15 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec16 tion may be construed to replace or affect in any way the 

17 use of 9–1–1 or other local emergency services in an emer18 gency. 

19 SEC. 304. SECURITY TECHNOLOGIES TIED TO FOREIGN 

20 THREAT COUNTRIES. 

21 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact22 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, act23 ing through the Under Secretary for Intelligence and 

24 Analysis of the Department of Homeland Security, shall 

25 submit to the appropriate congressional committees an asVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 sessment of the terrorist and other threats to the trans2 portation sector, including surface transportation assets, 

3 posed by the use of security technologies, including soft4 ware and networked technologies, developed or manufac5 tured by firms that are owned or closely linked to the gov6 ernments of countries that are known to pose a cyber or 

7 homeland security threat. 

8 TITLE IV—PUBLIC AREA 

9 SECURITY 

10 SEC. 401. PUBLIC AREA SECURITY WORKING GROUP. 

11 (a) WORKING GROUP.—The Secretary of Homeland 

12 Security shall establish a working group to promote col13 laborative engagement between the Department of Home14 land Security and public and private sector stakeholders 

15 to develop non-binding recommendations for enhancing se16 curity in public areas of transportation facilities (including 

17 facilities that are surface transportation assets), including 

18 recommendations regarding the following topics: 

19 (1) Information sharing and interoperable com20 munication capabilities among the Department of 

21 Homeland Security and public and private stake22 holders with respect to terrorist or other threats. 

23 (2) Coordinated incident response procedures. 

24 (3) The prevention of terrorist attacks and 

25 other incidents through strategic planning, security 


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1 training, exercises and drills, law enforcement pa2 trols, worker vetting, and suspicious activity report3 ing. 

4 (4) Infrastructure protection through effective 

5 construction design barriers and installation of ad6 vanced surveillance and other security technologies. 

7 (b) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than one year after 

8 the establishment of the working group under subsection 

9 (a) and annually thereafter for five years, the Secretary 

10 of Homeland Security shall submit to the appropriate con11 gressional committees a report on the working group’s or12 ganization, participation, activities, findings, and non13 binding recommendations for the immediately preceding 

14 12-month period. The Secretary may publish a public 

15 version such report that describes the working group’s ac16 tivities and such related matters as would be informative 

17 to the public, consistent with section 552(b) of title 5, 

18 United States Code. 

19 (c) INAPPLICABILITY OF THE FEDERAL ADVISORY

20 COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act 

21 (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the working group es22 tablished under subsection (a) or any subsidiary thereof. 

23 SEC. 402. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu25 rity shall— 


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1 (1) inform owners and operators of surface 

2 transportation assets about the availability of tech3 nical assistance, including vulnerability assessment 

4 tools and cybersecurity guidelines, to help protect 

5 and enhance the resilience of public areas of such 

6 assets; and 

7 (2) subject to availability of appropriations, 

8 provide such technical assistance to requesting own9 ers and operators of surface transportation assets. 

10 (b) BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than one year after 

11 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

12 Homeland Security shall publish on the Department’s 

13 website and widely disseminate, as appropriate, best prac14 tices for protecting and enhancing the resilience of public 

15 areas of transportation facilities (including facilities that 

16 are surface transportation assets), including associated 

17 frameworks or templates for implementation. Such best 

18 practices shall be updated periodically. 

19 SEC. 403. FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION IN PUBLIC AREAS. 

20 (a) REVIEW.—Not later than one year after the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland 

22 Security shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

23 committees a security risk assessment of State and Fed24 eral laws, regulations, directives, policies, and procedures 

25 regarding the open or concealed carrying in public areas 


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1 of a transportation facility or on a transportation system 

2 of a firearm and ammunition by an individual not involved 

3 in law enforcement operations. Such assessment shall in4 clude— 

5 (1) as appropriate, proposals to modify such 

6 regulations, directives, policies, or procedures within 

7 the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Se8 curity to reduce risks identified in such assessment; 

9 and 

10 (2) information on possible changes to other 

11 State and Federal laws, regulations, directives, poli12 cies, and procedures that would reduce risks identi13 fied in such assessment. 

14 (b) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out the risk assess15 ment required under subsection (a), the Secretary of 

16 Homeland Security shall consult with public and private 

17 sector stakeholders, privacy experts, and law enforcement 

18 experts. 

19 SEC. 404. BEST PRACTICES TO SECURE AGAINST VEHICLE20 BASED ATTACKS. 

21 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact22 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

23 disseminate best practices to public and private sector 

24 stakeholders regarding how to enhance transportation seVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:41 Nov 30, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4474.IH H4474

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1 curity against the threat of a vehicle-based terrorist at2 tack. 

Æ 


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