I 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5081 

To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish within the Transportation Security Administration the Surface Transportation Security 

Advisory Committee, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 23, 2018 

Mr. KATKO (for himself, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, and Mr. MCCAUL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 

A BILL 

To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish 

within the Transportation Security Administration the 

Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee, 

and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Surface Transpor5 tation Security and Technology Accountability Act of 

6 2018’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADVISORY 

2 COMMITTEE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XVI of the Homeland Secu4 rity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 561 et seq.) is amended by 

5 adding at the end the following new subtitle: 

6 ‘‘Subtitle C—Surface 

7 Transportation Security 

8 ‘‘SEC. 1621. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADVI9 SORY COMMITTEE. 

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

11 Transportation Security Administration (referred to in 

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

13 the Transportation Security Administration the Surface 

14 Transportation Security Advisory Committee (referred to 

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

16 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.— 

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

18 may advise, consult with, report to, and make rec19 ommendations to the Administrator on surface 

20 transportation security matters, including the devel21 opment, refinement, and implementation of policies, 

22 programs, initiatives, rulemakings, and security di23 rectives pertaining to surface transportation secu24 rity. 


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

2 Committee shall consider risk-based security ap3 proaches in the performance of its duties. 

4 ‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP.— 

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

6 shall be composed of— 

7 ‘‘(A) voting members appointed by the Ad8 ministrator under paragraph (2); and 

9 ‘‘(B) nonvoting members, serving in an ad10 visory capacity, who shall be designated by— 

11 ‘‘(i) the Transportation Security Ad12 ministration; 

13 ‘‘(ii) the Department of Transpor14 tation; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) such other Federal department 

16 or agency as the Administrator considers 

17 appropriate. 

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

19 appoint voting members from among stakeholders 

20 representing each mode of surface transportation, 

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

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

23 including representatives from— 

24 ‘‘(A) associations representing such modes 

25 of surface transportation; 


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1 ‘‘(B) labor organizations representing such 

2 modes of surface transportation; 

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

4 modes of surface transportation, including asset 

5 manufacturers, as appropriate; 

6 ‘‘(D) relevant law enforcement, first re7 sponders, and security experts; and 

8 ‘‘(E) such other groups as the Adminis9 trator considers appropriate. 

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

11 shall select a chairperson from among its voting 

12 members. 

13 ‘‘(4) TERM OF OFFICE.— 

14 ‘‘(A) TERMS.— 

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

16 voting member of the Advisory Committee 

17 shall be two years, but a voting member 

18 may continue to serve until the Adminis19 trator appoints a successor. 

20 ‘‘(ii) REAPPOINTMENT.—A voting 

21 member of the Advisory Committee may be 

22 reappointed. 

23 ‘‘(B) REMOVAL.— 

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

25 may review the participation of a member 


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1 of the Advisory Committee and remove 

2 such member for cause at any time. 

3 ‘‘(ii) ACCESS TO CERTAIN INFORMA4 TION.—The Administrator may remove 

5 any member of the Advisory Committee 

6 who the Administrator determines should 

7 be restricted from reviewing, discussing, or 

8 possessing classified information or sen9 sitive security information. 

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

11 members of the Advisory Committee may not receive 

12 any compensation from the Government by reason of 

13 their service on the Advisory Committee. 

14 ‘‘(6) MEETINGS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Com16 mittee shall meet at least semiannually in per17 son or through web conferencing, and may con18 vene additional meetings as necessary. 

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

20 the meetings of the Advisory Committee each 

21 year shall be— 

22 ‘‘(i) announced in the Federal Reg23 ister; 

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

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) open to the public. 

2 ‘‘(C) ATTENDANCE.—The Advisory Com3 mittee shall maintain a record of the persons 

4 present at each meeting. 

5 ‘‘(D) MINUTES.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Unless otherwise 

7 prohibited by Federal law, minutes of the 

8 meetings of the Advisory Committee shall 

9 be published on the public website under 

10 subsection (e)(5). 

11 ‘‘(ii) PROTECTION OF CLASSIFIED

12 AND SENSITIVE INFORMATION.—The Advi13 sory Committee may redact or summarize, 

14 as necessary, minutes of the meetings to 

15 protect classified information or sensitive 

16 security information in accordance with 

17 law. 

18 ‘‘(7) VOTING MEMBER ACCESS TO CLASSIFIED

19 INFORMATION AND SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA20 TION.— 

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

22 60 days after the date on which a voting mem23 ber is appointed to the Advisory Committee but 

24 before such voting member may be granted any 

25 access to classified information or sensitive seVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Feb 27, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5081.IH H5081

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1 curity information, the Administrator shall de2 termine if such voting member should be re3 stricted from reviewing, discussing, or pos4 sessing classified information or sensitive secu5 rity information. 

6 ‘‘(B) ACCESS.— 

7 ‘‘(i) SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA8 TION.—If a voting member is not re9 stricted from reviewing, discussing, or pos10 sessing sensitive security information 

11 under subparagraph (A) and voluntarily 

12 signs a nondisclosure agreement, such vot13 ing member may be granted access to sen14 sitive security information that is relevant 

15 to such voting member’s service on the Ad16 visory Committee. 

17 ‘‘(ii) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—Ac18 cess to classified materials shall be man19 aged in accordance with Executive Order 

20 No. 13526 of December 29, 2009 (75 Fed. 

21 Reg. 707), or any subsequent cor22 responding Executive order. 

23 ‘‘(C) PROTECTIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(i) SENSITIVE SECURITY INFORMA25 TION.—Voting members shall protect senVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Feb 27, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5081.IH H5081

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1 sitive security information in accordance 

2 with part 1520 of title 49, Code of Federal 

3 Regulations. 

4 ‘‘(ii) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.— 

5 Voting members shall protect classified in6 formation in accordance with the applica7 ble requirements for the particular level of 

8 classification of such information. 

9 ‘‘(8) JOINT COMMITTEE MEETINGS.—The Advi10 sory Committee may meet with one or more of the 

11 following advisory committees to discuss multimodal 

12 security issues and other security-related issues of 

13 common concern: 

14 ‘‘(A) Aviation Security Advisory Com15 mittee, established under section 44946 of title 

16 49, United States Code. 

17 ‘‘(B) Maritime Security Advisory Com18 mittee, established under section 70112 of title 

19 46, United States Code. 

20 ‘‘(C) Railroad Safety Advisory Committee, 

21 established by the Federal Railroad Administra22 tion. 

23 ‘‘(9) SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS.—The Advi24 sory Committee may request the assistance of subVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Feb 27, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5081.IH H5081

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1 ject matter experts with expertise related to the ju2 risdiction of the Advisory Committee. 

3 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) PERIODIC REPORTS.—The Advisory Com5 mittee shall periodically submit to the Administrator 

6 reports on matters requested by the Administrator 

7 or by a majority of the members of the Advisory 

8 Committee. 

9 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

10 ‘‘(A) SUBMISSION.—The Advisory Com11 mittee shall submit to the Administrator and 

12 the Committee on Homeland Security of the 

13 House of Representatives and the Committee 

14 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

15 the Senate an annual report that provides infor16 mation on the activities, findings, and rec17 ommendations of the Advisory Committee dur18 ing the preceding year. 

19 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION.—Not later than six 

20 months after the date that the Administrator 

21 receives an annual report under subparagraph 

22 (A), the Administrator shall publish a public 

23 version of such report, in accordance with sec24 tion 552a(b) of title 5, United States Code. 

25 ‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION.—The Administrator 

2 shall consider the information, advice, and rec3 ommendations of the Advisory Committee in formu4 lating policies, programs, initiatives, rulemakings, 

5 and security directives pertaining to surface trans6 portation security efforts. 

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

8 the date that the Administrator receives a rec9 ommendation from the Advisory Committee under 

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

11 the Advisory Committee written feedback on such 

12 recommendation, including— 

13 ‘‘(A) if the Administrator agrees with such 

14 recommendation, a plan describing the actions 

15 that the Administrator has taken, will take, or 

16 recommends that the head of another Federal 

17 department or agency take to implement such 

18 recommendation; or 

19 ‘‘(B) if the Administrator disagrees with 

20 such recommendation, a justification for such 

21 disagreement. 

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

23 the date the Administrator submits feedback under 

24 paragraph (2), the Administrator shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) notify the Committee on Homeland 

2 Security of the House of Representatives and 

3 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

4 Transportation of the Senate of such feedback, 

5 including the agreement or disagreement under 

6 subparagraph (A) or (B) of such paragraph, as 

7 applicable; and 

8 ‘‘(B) provide the committees specified in 

9 subparagraph (A) 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 such recommendation is fully 

15 implemented, the Administrator shall submit to the 

16 Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 

17 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

18 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

19 or post on the public website under paragraph (5) 

20 an update on the status of such recommendation. 

21 ‘‘(5) WEBSITE.—The Administrator shall main22 tain a public website that— 

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

24 Committee; 


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1 ‘‘(B) provides the contact information for 

2 the Advisory Committee; and 

3 ‘‘(C) information relating to meetings, 

4 minutes, annual reports, and the implementa5 tion of recommendations under this section. 

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

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

8 to the Advisory Committee or any subcommittee estab9 lished under this section.’’. 

10 (b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS.— 

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

12 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

13 Administrator of the Transportation Security Ad14 ministration shall appoint the voting members of the 

15 Surface Transportation Security Advisory Com16 mittee established under section 1621 of the Home17 land Security Act of 2002, as added by subsection 

18 (a) of this section. 

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

20 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

21 each Federal department and agency with regulatory 

22 authority over a mode of surface transportation, as 

23 the Administrator of the Transportation Security 

24 Administration considers appropriate, shall des25 ignate an appropriate representative to serve as a 


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1 nonvoting member of the Surface Transportation Se2 curity Advisory Committee. 

3 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

4 in section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is 

5 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

6 1616 the following new items: 

‘‘Subtitle C—Surface Transportation Security 

‘‘Sec. 1621. Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee.’’. 

7 SEC. 3. TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT PLAN. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1611 of the Homeland 

9 Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 563) is amended by adding 

10 at the end the following new subsection: 

11 ‘‘(h) ADDITIONAL UPDATE REQUIREMENTS.—Up12 dates and reports required pursuant to subsection (g) 

13 shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) be prepared in consultation with individ15 uals and entity specified in subsection (b), as well as 

16 the Surface Transportation Security Advisory Com17 mittee established by the Administrator pursuant to 

18 section 1621; 

19 ‘‘(2) include information relating to technology 

20 investments by the Transportation Security Admin21 istration and the private sector that the Department 

22 supports with research, development, testing, and 

23 evaluation for aviation, air cargo, and surface trans24 portation security; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) to the extent practicable, include a classi2 fied addendum to report sensitive transportation se3 curity risks and associated capability gaps that 

4 would be best addressed by security-related tech5 nology described in paragraph (2).’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

7 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enact8 ment of this Act and apply beginning with the first update 

9 and report required under subsection (g) of section 1611 

10 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 that is required 

11 after such date 

Æ 


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