II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1180 

To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to direct the Administrator 

of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to modernize the integrated public alert and warning system of the United States, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 4, 2015 

Mr. JOHNSON (for himself and Mrs. MCCASKILL) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to direct 

the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to modernize the integrated public alert 

and warning system of the United States, 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 ‘‘Integrated Public Alert 

5 and Warning System Modernization Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYS2 TEM MODERNIZATION. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title V of the Homeland Security 

4 Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 311 et seq.) is amended by adding 

5 at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 526. INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYS7 TEM MODERNIZATION. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To provide timely and effective 

9 warnings regarding natural disasters, acts of terrorism, 

10 and other man-made disasters or threats to public safety, 

11 the Administrator shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) modernize the integrated public alert and 

13 warning system of the United States (in this section 

14 referred to as the ‘public alert and warning system’) 

15 to help ensure that under all conditions the Presi16 dent and, except to the extent the public alert and 

17 warning system is in use by the President, Federal 

18 agencies and State, tribal, and local governments 

19 can alert and warn the civilian population in areas 

20 endangered by natural disasters, acts of terrorism, 

21 and other man-made disasters or threats to public 

22 safety; and 

23 ‘‘(2) implement the public alert and warning 

24 system to disseminate timely and effective warnings 

25 regarding natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and 

26 other man-made disasters or threats to public safety. 


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1 ‘‘(b) IMPLEMENTATION REQUIREMENTS.—In car2 rying out subsection (a), the Administrator shall— 

3 ‘‘(1) establish or adopt, as appropriate, common 

4 alerting and warning protocols, standards, termi5 nology, and operating procedures for the public alert 

6 and warning system; 

7 ‘‘(2) include in the public alert and warning 

8 system the capability to adapt the distribution and 

9 content of communications on the basis of geo10 graphic location, risks, and multiple communication 

11 systems and technologies, as appropriate and to the 

12 extent technically feasible; 

13 ‘‘(3) include in the public alert and warning 

14 system the capability to alert, warn, and provide 

15 equivalent information to individuals with disabil16 ities, individuals with access and functional needs, 

17 and individuals with limited-English proficiency, to 

18 the extent technically feasible; 

19 ‘‘(4) ensure that training, tests, and exercises 

20 are conducted for the public alert and warning sys21 tem, including by— 

22 ‘‘(A) incorporating the public alert and 

23 warning system into other training and exercise 

24 programs of the Department, as appropriate; 


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1 ‘‘(B) establishing and integrating into the 

2 National Incident Management System a com3 prehensive and periodic training program to in4 struct and educate Federal, State, tribal, and 

5 local government officials in the use of the 

6 Common Alerting Protocol enabled Emergency 

7 Alert System; and 

8 ‘‘(C) conducting, not less than once every 

9 3 years, periodic nationwide tests of the public 

10 alert and warning system; 

11 ‘‘(5) to the extent practicable, ensure that the 

12 public alert and warning system is resilient and se13 cure and can withstand acts of terrorism and other 

14 external attacks; 

15 ‘‘(6) conduct public education efforts so that 

16 State, tribal, and local governments, private entities, 

17 and the people of the United States reasonably un18 derstand the functions of the public alert and warn19 ing system and how to access, use, and respond to 

20 information from the public alert and warning sys21 tem through a general market awareness campaign; 

22 ‘‘(7) consult, coordinate, and cooperate with the 

23 appropriate private sector entities and Federal, 

24 State, tribal, and local governmental authorities, inVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:28 May 13, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1180.IS S1180

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1 cluding the Regional Administrators and emergency 

2 response providers; 

3 ‘‘(8) consult and coordinate with the Federal 

4 Communications Commission, taking into account 

5 rules and regulations promulgated by the Federal 

6 Communications Commission; and 

7 ‘‘(9) coordinate with and consider the rec8 ommendations of the Integrated Public Alert and 

9 Warning System Subcommittee established under 

10 section 2(b) of the Integrated Public Alert and 

11 Warning System Modernization Act of 2015. 

12 ‘‘(c) SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS.—The public alert and 

13 warning system shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) to the extent determined appropriate by 

15 the Administrator, incorporate multiple communica16 tions technologies; 

17 ‘‘(2) be designed to adapt to, and incorporate, 

18 future technologies for communicating directly with 

19 the public; 

20 ‘‘(3) to the extent technically feasible, be de21 signed— 

22 ‘‘(A) to provide alerts to the largest por23 tion of the affected population feasible, includ24 ing nonresident visitors and tourists, individuals 

25 with disabilities, individuals with access and 


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1 functional needs, and individuals with limited2 English proficiency; and 

3 ‘‘(B) to improve the ability of remote areas 

4 to receive alerts; 

5 ‘‘(4) promote local and regional public and pri6 vate partnerships to enhance community prepared7 ness and response; 

8 ‘‘(5) provide redundant alert mechanisms where 

9 practicable so as to reach the greatest number of 

10 people; and 

11 ‘‘(6) to the extent feasible, include a mechanism 

12 to ensure the protection of individual privacy. 

13 ‘‘(d) USE OF SYSTEM.—Except to the extent nec14 essary for testing the public alert and warning system, the 

15 public alert and warning system shall not be used to trans16 mit a message that does not relate to a natural disaster, 

17 act of terrorism, or other man-made disaster or threat to 

18 public safety. 

19 ‘‘(e) PERFORMANCE REPORTS.— 

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

21 the date of enactment of the Integrated Public Alert 

22 and Warning System Modernization Act of 2015, 

23 and annually thereafter through 2018, the Adminis24 trator shall make available on the public website of 

25 the Agency a performance report, which shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) establish performance goals for the 

2 implementation of the public alert and warning 

3 system by the Agency; 

4 ‘‘(B) describe the performance of the pub5 lic alert and warning system, including— 

6 ‘‘(i) the type of technology used for 

7 alerts and warnings issued under the sys8 tem; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the measures taken to alert, 

10 warn, and provide equivalent information 

11 to individuals with disabilities, individuals 

12 with access and function needs, and indi13 viduals with limited-English proficiency; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(iii) the training, tests, and exercises 

16 performed and the outcomes obtained by 

17 the Agency; 

18 ‘‘(C) identify significant challenges to the 

19 effective operation of the public alert and warn20 ing system and any plans to address these chal21 lenges; 

22 ‘‘(D) identify other necessary improve23 ments to the system; and 

24 ‘‘(E) provide an analysis comparing the 

25 performance of the public alert and warning 


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1 system with the performance goals established 

2 under subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(2) CONGRESS.—The Administrator shall sub4 mit to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

5 Governmental Affairs and the Committee on Com6 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

7 and the Committee on Transportation and Infra8 structure and the Committee on Homeland Security 

9 of the House of Representatives each report required 

10 under paragraph (1).’’. 

11 (b) INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYS12 TEM SUBCOMMITTEE.— 

13 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days 

14 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis15 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agen16 cy (in this subsection referred to as the ‘‘Adminis17 trator’’) shall establish a subcommittee to the Na18 tional Advisory Council established under section 

19 508 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 

20 U.S.C. 318) to be known as the Integrated Public 

21 Alert and Warning System Subcommittee (in this 

22 subsection referred to as the ‘‘Subcommittee’’). 

23 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—Notwithstanding section 

24 508(c) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 


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1 U.S.C. 318(c)), the Subcommittee shall be composed 

2 of the following members (or their designees): 

3 (A) The Deputy Administrator for Protec4 tion and National Preparedness of the Federal 

5 Emergency Management Agency. 

6 (B) The Chairman of the Federal Commu7 nications Commission. 

8 (C) The Administrator of the National 

9 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the 

10 Department of Commerce. 

11 (D) The Assistant Secretary for Commu12 nications and Information of the Department of 

13 Commerce. 

14 (E) The Under Secretary for Science and 

15 Technology of the Department of Homeland Se16 curity. 

17 (F) The Under Secretary for the National 

18 Protection and Programs Directorate. 

19 (G) The Director of Disability Integration 

20 and Coordination of the Federal Emergency 

21 Management Agency. 

22 (H) The Chairperson of the National 

23 Council on Disability. 

24 (I) Qualified individuals appointed by the 

25 Administrator as soon as practicable after the 


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1 date of enactment of this Act from among the 

2 following: 

3 (i) Representatives of State and local 

4 governments, representatives of emergency 

5 management agencies, and representatives 

6 of emergency response providers. 

7 (ii) Representatives from federally rec8 ognized Indian tribes and national Indian 

9 organizations. 

10 (iii) Individuals who have the requisite 

11 technical knowledge and expertise to serve 

12 on the Subcommittee, including representa13 tives of— 

14 (I) communications service pro15 viders; 

16 (II) vendors, developers, and 

17 manufacturers of systems, facilities, 

18 equipment, and capabilities for the 

19 provision of communications services; 

20 (III) third-party service bureaus; 

21 (IV) the broadcasting industry, 

22 including public broadcasting; 

23 (V) the commercial mobile radio 

24 service industry; 

25 (VI) the cable industry; 


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1 (VII) the satellite industry; 

2 (VIII) national organizations rep3 resenting individuals with disabilities, 

4 the blind, deaf, and hearing-loss com5 munities, individuals with access and 

6 functional needs, and the elderly; 

7 (IX) consumer or privacy advo8 cates; and 

9 (X) organizations representing 

10 individuals with limited-English pro11 ficiency. 

12 (iv) Qualified representatives of such 

13 other stakeholders and interested and af14 fected parties as the Administrator con15 siders appropriate. 

16 (3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Deputy Administrator 

17 for Protection and National Preparedness of the 

18 Federal Emergency Management Agency shall serve 

19 as the Chairperson of the Subcommittee. 

20 (4) MEETINGS.— 

21 (A) INITIAL MEETING.—The initial meet22 ing of the Subcommittee shall take place not 

23 later than 120 days after the date of enactment 

24 of this Act. 


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1 (B) OTHER MEETINGS.—After the initial 

2 meeting, the Subcommittee shall meet, at least 

3 annually, at the call of the Chairperson. 

4 (5) CONSULTATION WITH NONMEMBERS.—The 

5 Subcommittee and the program offices for the inte6 grated public alert and warning system for the 

7 United States shall consult with individuals and en8 tities that are not represented on the Subcommittee 

9 to consider new and developing technologies that 

10 may be beneficial to the public alert and warning 

11 system, including— 

12 (A) the Defense Advanced Research 

13 Projects Agency; 

14 (B) entities engaged in federally funded re15 search; and 

16 (C) academic institutions engaged in rel17 evant work and research. 

18 (6) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Subcommittee 

19 shall— 

20 (A) develop recommendations for an inte21 grated public alert and warning system; and 

22 (B) in developing the recommendations 

23 under subparagraph (A), consider— 

24 (i) recommendations for common 

25 alerting and warning protocols, standards, 


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1 terminology, and operating procedures for 

2 the public alert and warning system; and 

3 (ii) recommendations to provide for a 

4 public alert and warning system that— 

5 (I) has the capability to adapt 

6 the distribution and content of com7 munications on the basis of geo8 graphic location, risks, or personal 

9 user preferences, as appropriate; 

10 (II) has the capability to alert 

11 and warn individuals with disabilities 

12 and individuals with limited-English 

13 proficiency; 

14 (III) to the extent appropriate, 

15 incorporates multiple communications 

16 technologies; 

17 (IV) is designed to adapt to, and 

18 incorporate, future technologies for 

19 communicating directly with the pub20 lic; 

21 (V) is designed to provide alerts 

22 to the largest portion of the affected 

23 population feasible, including non24 resident visitors and tourists, and imVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:28 May 13, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1180.IS S1180

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1 prove the ability of remote areas to 

2 receive alerts; 

3 (VI) promotes local and regional 

4 public and private partnerships to en5 hance community preparedness and 

6 response; and 

7 (VII) provides redundant alert 

8 mechanisms, if practicable, to reach 

9 the greatest number of people regard10 less of whether they have access to, or 

11 use, any specific medium of commu12 nication or any particular device. 

13 (7) REPORT.— 

14 (A) SUBCOMMITTEE SUBMISSION.—Not 

15 later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 

16 this Act, the Subcommittee shall submit to the 

17 National Advisory Council a report containing 

18 any recommendations required to be developed 

19 under paragraph (6) for approval by the Na20 tional Advisory Council. 

21 (B) SUBMISSION BY NATIONAL ADVISORY

22 COUNCIL.—If the National Advisory Council ap23 proves the recommendations contained in the 

24 report submitted under subparagraph (A), the 


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1 National Advisory Council shall submit the re2 port to— 

3 (i) the head of each agency rep4 resented on the Subcommittee; 

5 (ii) the Committee on Homeland Se6 curity and Governmental Affairs and the 

7 Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

8 Transportation of the Senate; and 

9 (iii) the Committee on Homeland Se10 curity and the Committee on Transpor11 tation and Infrastructure of the House of 

12 Representatives. 

13 (8) TERMINATION.—The Subcommittee shall 

14 terminate not later than 3 years after the date of 

15 enactment of this Act. 

16 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

17 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 

18 and the amendments made by this Act such sums as may 

19 be necessary for each of fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 

20 2018. 

21 (d) LIMITATIONS ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

22 (1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

23 ‘‘participating commercial mobile service provider’’ 

24 has the meaning given that term under section 


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1 10.10(f) of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, as 

2 in effect on the date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (2) LIMITATIONS.—Nothing in this Act, includ4 ing an amendment made by this Act, shall be con5 strued— 

6 (A) to affect any authority— 

7 (i) of the Department of Commerce; 

8 (ii) of the Federal Communications 

9 Commission; or 

10 (iii) provided under the Robert T. 

11 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

12 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.); 

13 (B) to provide the Secretary of Homeland 

14 Security with authority to require any action by 

15 the Department of Commerce, the Federal 

16 Communications Commission, or any non17 governmental entity; 

18 (C) to apply to, or to provide the Adminis19 trator of the Federal Emergency Management 

20 Agency with authority over, any participating 

21 commercial mobile service provider; or 

22 (D) to alter in any way the wireless emer23 gency alerts service established under the 

24 Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act (47 

25 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.) or any related orders 


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1 issued by the Federal Communications Commis2 sion after October 13, 2006. 

Æ 


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