II 

Calendar No. 564 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2836 

[Report No. 115–332] 

To assist the Department of Homeland Security in preventing emerging 

threats from unmanned aircraft and vehicles, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 14, 2018 

Mr. JOHNSON (for himself, Mrs. MCCASKILL, Mr. HOEVEN, Ms. HEITKAMP, 

Mr. COTTON, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. JONES, and Mr. RUBIO) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 

Reported by Mr. JOHNSON, with an amendment 

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

A BILL 

To assist the Department of Homeland Security in preventing emerging threats from unmanned aircraft and 

vehicles, 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, 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 2836 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Preventing Emerging 

3 Threats Act of 2018’’. 

4 SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF CERTAIN FACILITIES AND ASSETS 

5 FROM UNMANNED AIRCRAFT. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title II of the Home7 land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 121 et seq.) is amend8 ed by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘§ 210G. Protection of certain facilities and assets 

10 from unmanned aircraft 

11 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding section 46502 of 

12 title 49, United States Code, or any provision of title 18, 

13 United States Code, the Secretary and the Attorney Gen14 eral may, for their respective Departments, take, and may 

15 authorize personnel of the Department of Homeland Secu16 rity or the Department of Justice with assigned duties 

17 that include safety, security, or protection of personnel, 

18 facilities, or assets, to take, such actions described in sub19 section (b)(1) that are necessary to mitigate the threat 

20 (as defined by the Secretary or the Attorney General, in 

21 consultation with the Secretary of Transportation) that an 

22 unmanned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft poses to 

23 the safety or security of a covered facility or asset. 

24 ‘‘(b) ACTIONS DESCRIBED.— 

25 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The actions authorized in 

26 subsection (a) are the following: 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(A) Detect, identify, monitor, and track 

2 the unmanned aircraft system or unmanned air3 craft, without prior consent, including by means 

4 of intercept or other access of a wire commu5 nication, an oral communication, or an elec6 tronic communication used to control the un7 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

8 ‘‘(B) Warn the operator of the unmanned 

9 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, including 

10 by passive or active, and direct or indirect phys11 ical, electronic, radio, and electromagnetic 

12 means. 

13 ‘‘(C) Disrupt control of the unmanned air14 craft system or unmanned aircraft, without 

15 prior consent, including by disabling the un16 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft 

17 by intercepting, interfering, or causing inter18 ference with wire, oral, electronic, or radio com19 munications used to control the unmanned air20 craft system or unmanned aircraft. 

21 ‘‘(D) Seize or exercise control of the un22 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

23 ‘‘(E) Seize or otherwise confiscate the un24 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(F) Use reasonable force to disable, dam2 age, or destroy the unmanned aircraft system 

3 or unmanned aircraft. 

4 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED COORDINATION.—The Sec5 retary and the Attorney General shall develop for 

6 their respective Departments the actions described 

7 in paragraph (1) in coordination with the Secretary 

8 of Transportation. 

9 ‘‘(3) RESEARCH, TESTING, TRAINING, AND

10 EVALUATION.—The Secretary shall conduct re11 search, testing, training on, and evaluation of any 

12 equipment, including any electronic equipment, to 

13 determine its capability and utility to enable any of 

14 the actions described in subsection (b)(1). 

15 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall co16 ordinate with the Administrator of the Federal Avia17 tion Administration when subsection (b)(3) might 

18 affect aviation safety, civilian aviation and aerospace 

19 operations, or aircraft airworthiness. 

20 ‘‘(c) FORFEITURE.—Any unmanned aircraft system 

21 or unmanned aircraft described in subsection (a) that is 

22 seized by the Secretary or the Attorney General is subject 

23 to forfeiture to the United States. 

24 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE.— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, the Attor2 ney General, and the Secretary of Transportation 

3 may prescribe regulations and shall issue guidance 

4 in the respective areas of each Secretary or the At5 torney General to carry out this section. 

6 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION.— 

7 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION WITH DEPARTMENT

8 OF TRANSPORTATION.—The Secretary and the 

9 Attorney General shall coordinate the develop10 ment of their respective guidance under para11 graph (1) with the Secretary of Transportation. 

12 ‘‘(B) EFFECT ON AVIATION SAFETY.—The 

13 Secretary and the Attorney General shall re14 spectively coordinate with the Secretary of 

15 Transportation and the Administrator of the 

16 Federal Aviation Administration before issuing 

17 any guidance, or otherwise implementing this 

18 section, if such guidance or implementation 

19 might affect aviation safety, civilian aviation 

20 and aerospace operations, aircraft airworthi21 ness, or the use of airspace. 

22 ‘‘(e) PRIVACY PROTECTION.—The regulations pre23 scribed or guidance issued under subsection (d) shall en24 sure that— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(1) the interception or acquisition of, or access 

2 to, communications to or from an unmanned aircraft 

3 system under this section is conducted in a manner 

4 consistent with the Fourth amendment to the Con5 stitution of the United States and applicable provi6 sions of Federal law; 

7 ‘‘(2) communications to or from an unmanned 

8 aircraft system are intercepted, acquired, or accessed 

9 only to the extent necessary to support a function of 

10 the Department of Homeland Security or the De11 partment of Justice; 

12 ‘‘(3) records of such communications are not 

13 maintained for more than 180 days unless the Sec14 retary or the Attorney General determine that main15 tenance of such records— 

16 ‘‘(A) is necessary to support one or more 

17 functions of the Department of Homeland Secu18 rity or the Department of Justice, respectively; 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(B) is required for a longer period to sup21 port a civilian law enforcement agency or by 

22 any other applicable statute or regulation; and 

23 ‘‘(4) such communications are not disclosed 

24 outside the Department of Homeland Security or the 

25 Department of Justice unless the disclosure— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(A) would fulfill a function of the Depart2 ment of Homeland Security or the Department 

3 of Justice, respectively; 

4 ‘‘(B) would support the Department of De5 fense, another civilian law enforcement agency, 

6 or the activities of a regulatory agency of the 

7 Federal Government in connection with a crimi8 nal or civil investigation of, or any regulatory, 

9 statutory, or other enforcement action arising 

10 out of an action described in subsection (b)(1); 

11 or 

12 ‘‘(C) is otherwise required by law. 

13 ‘‘(f) BUDGET.—The Secretary and the Attorney Gen14 eral shall submit to Congress, as a part of the homeland 

15 security or justice budget materials for each fiscal year 

16 after fiscal year 2018, a consolidated funding display that 

17 identifies the funding source and funding requirements for 

18 the actions described in subsection (b)(1) within the De19 partment of Homeland Security or the Department of 

20 Justice. The funding display shall be in unclassified form, 

21 but may contain a classified annex. 

22 ‘‘(g) SEMIANNUAL BRIEFINGS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On a semiannual basis dur24 ing the 5-year period beginning 6 months after the 

25 date of enactment of this section, the Secretary and 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 2836 RS

1 the Attorney General shall, respectively, provide a 

2 briefing to the appropriate congressional committees 

3 on the activities carried out pursuant to this section. 

4 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—Each briefing required 

5 under paragraph (1) shall be conducted jointly with 

6 the Secretary of Transportation. 

7 ‘‘(3) CONTENT.—Each briefing required under 

8 paragraph (1) shall include— 

9 ‘‘(A) policies, programs, and procedures to 

10 mitigate or eliminate impacts of such activities 

11 to the National Airspace System; 

12 ‘‘(B) a description of instances where ac13 tions described in subsection (b)(1) have been 

14 taken; 

15 ‘‘(C) how the Secretary and the Attorney 

16 General have informed the public as to the pos17 sible use of authorities under this section; and 

18 ‘‘(D) how the Secretary and the Attorney 

19 General have engaged with Federal, State, and 

20 local law enforcement agencies to implement 

21 and use such authorities. 

22 ‘‘(4) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—Each briefing re23 quired under paragraph (1) shall be in unclassified 

24 form, consistent with the needs of law enforcement 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 2836 RS

1 agencies and national security, but may be accom2 panied by an additional classified briefing. 

3 ‘‘(h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec4 tion may be construed to— 

5 ‘‘(1) vest in the Secretary or the Attorney Gen6 eral any authority of the Secretary of Transpor7 tation or the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

8 Administration under title 49, United States Code; 

9 ‘‘(2) vest in the Secretary of Transportation or 

10 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis11 tration any authority of the Secretary or the Attor12 ney General under this title; 

13 ‘‘(3) vest in the Secretary of Homeland Secu14 rity any authority of the Attorney General under 

15 this title; and 

16 ‘‘(4) vest in the Attorney General any authority 

17 of the Secretary of Homeland Security under this 

18 title. 

19 ‘‘(i) TERMINATION.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para21 graph (2), the authority to carry out this section 

22 with respect to the covered facilities or assets shall 

23 terminate on the date that is 5 years after the date 

24 of enactment of this section. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(2) EXTENSION.—The President may extend 

2 by 180 days the termination date described in para3 graph (1) if, not later than 45 days before the ter4 mination date described in paragraph (1), the Presi5 dent certifies to Congress that such extension is in 

6 the national security interest of the United States. 

7 ‘‘(j) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this section 

8 shall be construed to provide the Secretary or the Attorney 

9 General with additional authorities beyond those described 

10 in subsections (a), (b)(1), and (k)(3)(C)(iii). 

11 ‘‘(k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

12 ‘‘(1) The term ‘appropriate congressional com13 mittees’ means— 

14 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

15 and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on 

16 Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and 

17 the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Homeland Secu20 rity, the Committee on Transportation and In21 frastructure, the Committee on Energy and 

22 Commerce, and the Committee on the Judiciary 

23 of the House of Representatives. 

24 ‘‘(2) The term ‘budget’, with respect to a fiscal 

25 year, means the budget for that fiscal year that is 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 2836 RS

1 submitted to Congress by the President under sec2 tion 1105(a) of title 31. 

3 ‘‘(3) The term ‘covered facility or asset’ means 

4 any facility or asset that— 

5 ‘‘(A) is identified by the Secretary or the 

6 Attorney General, in consultation with the Sec7 retary of Transportation with respect to poten8 tially impacted airspace, through a risk-based 

9 assessment for purposes of this section; 

10 ‘‘(B) is located in the United States (in11 cluding the territories and possessions, terri12 torial seas or navigable waters of the United 

13 States); and 

14 ‘‘(C) directly relates to— 

15 ‘‘(i) a mission authorized to be per16 formed by the Department, consistent with 

17 governing statutes, regulations, and orders 

18 issued by the Secretary, relating to— 

19 ‘‘(I) security operations by the 

20 United States Coast Guard and U.S. 

21 Customs and Border Protection, in22 cluding securing facilities, aircraft, 

23 and authorized vessels, whether 

24 moored or underway; 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(II) United States Secret Serv2 ice protection operations pursuant to 

3 sections 3056 and 3056A of title 18, 

4 United States Code; or 

5 ‘‘(III) protection of facilities pur6 suant to section 1315 of title 40, 

7 United States Code; 

8 ‘‘(ii) a mission authorized to be per9 formed by the Department of Justice, con10 sistent with governing statutes, regula11 tions, and orders issued by the Attorney 

12 General, relating to— 

13 ‘‘(I) personnel protection oper14 ations by the Federal Bureau of In15 vestigation and the United States 

16 Marshals Service, including the pro17 tection of Federal jurists, court offi18 cers, witnesses and other persons in 

19 the interests of justice, as specified in 

20 section 566(e) of title 28, United 

21 States Code; 

22 ‘‘(II) penal, detention, and cor23 rectional operations conducted by the 

24 Federal Bureau of Prisons considered 

25 to be high-risk or assessed to be a poVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Sep 04, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2836.RS S2836

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 2836 RS

1 tential target for unlawful unmanned 

2 aircraft activity; or 

3 ‘‘(III) protection of the buildings 

4 and grounds leased, owned, or oper5 ated by or for the Department of Jus6 tice identified as essential to the func7 tion of the Department of Justice, 

8 and the provision of security for Fed9 eral courts, as specified in section 

10 566(a) of title 28, United States 

11 Code; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) a mission authorized to be per13 formed by the Department of Homeland 

14 Security or the Department of Justice, act15 ing together or separately, consistent with 

16 governing statutes, regulations, and orders 

17 issued by the Secretary or the Attorney 

18 General, respectively, relating to— 

19 ‘‘(I) National Special Security 

20 Events and Special Event Assessment 

21 Rating events; 

22 ‘‘(II) upon the request of a 

23 State’s governor or attorney general, 

24 providing support to State, local, or 

25 tribal law enforcement to ensure proVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Sep 04, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2836.RS S2836

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 2836 RS

1 tection of people and property at mass 

2 gatherings, where appropriate and 

3 within available resources; 

4 ‘‘(III) active Federal law enforce5 ment investigations, emergency re6 sponses, or security operations; or 

7 ‘‘(IV) in the event that either the 

8 Department of Homeland Security or 

9 the Department of Justice has identi10 fied a national security threat against 

11 the United States and the threat 

12 could involve unlawful use of an un13 manned aircraft, responding to such 

14 national security threat. 

15 ‘‘(4) The terms ‘electronic communication’, 

16 ‘intercept’, ‘oral communication’, and ‘wire commu17 nication’ have the meaning given those terms in sec18 tion 2510 of title 18, United States Code. 

19 ‘‘(5) The term ‘homeland security or justice 

20 budget materials’, with respect to a fiscal year, 

21 means the materials submitted to Congress by the 

22 Secretary and the Attorney General in support of 

23 the budget for that fiscal year. 

24 ‘‘(6) For purposes of subsection (a), the term 

25 ‘personnel’ means— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(A) officers and employees of the Depart2 ment of Homeland Security or the Department 

3 of Justice; or 

4 ‘‘(B) individuals employed by contractors 

5 of the Department of Homeland Security who 

6 are subject to the supervision, control, or direc7 tion of the respective department and are as8 signed by that department to perform the du9 ties described in subsection (a) in accordance 

10 with regulations or guidance established under 

11 subsection (d). 

12 ‘‘(7) The terms ‘unmanned aircraft’ and ‘un13 manned aircraft system’ have the meanings given 

14 those terms in section 331 of the FAA Moderniza15 tion and Reform Act of 2012 (49 U.S.C. 40101 

16 note). 

17 ‘‘(l) DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY AS18 SESSMENT.— 

19 ‘‘(1) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

20 date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary 

21 shall issue an assessment to the appropriate congres22 sional committees, including— 

23 ‘‘(A) an evaluation of the threat from un24 manned aircraft systems to United States crit25 ical infrastructure (as defined in this Act) and 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 2836 RS

1 to domestic large hub airports (as defined in 

2 section 40102(a)(29) of title 49, United States 

3 Code); 

4 ‘‘(B) an evaluation of current Federal and 

5 State, local, or tribal law enforcement authori6 ties to counter the threat identified in subpara7 graph (A), including section 99.7 of title 14, 

8 Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 

9 thereto; 

10 ‘‘(C) an evaluation of the knowledge of, ef11 ficiency of, and effectiveness of current proce12 dures and resources available to owners of crit13 ical infrastructure and domestic large hub air14 ports when they believe a threat from un15 manned aircraft systems is present and what 

16 additional actions, if any, the Department could 

17 implement under existing authorities to assist 

18 these entities to counter the threat identified in 

19 subparagraph (A); 

20 ‘‘(D) an assessment of what, if any, addi21 tional authorities the Department needs to 

22 counter the threat identified in subparagraph 

23 (A); and 

24 ‘‘(E) an assessment of what, if any, addi25 tional research and development the DepartVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Sep 04, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2836.RS S2836

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 2836 RS

1 ment needs to counter the threat identified in 

2 subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(2) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—The report re4 quired under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in 

5 unclassified form, but may contain a classified 

6 annex.’’. 

7 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

8 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

9 after the item relating to section 210F the following: 

‘‘Sec. 210G. Protection of certain facilities and assets from unmanned aircraft.’’. 

10 SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY EFFORTS 

11 TO HELP PROTECT INDIVIDUALS FROM VE12 HICULAR TERRORISM. 

13 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section— 

14 (1) the term ‘‘emergency response providers’’ 

15 has the meaning given the term in section 2 of the 

16 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101); and 

17 (2) the term ‘‘vehicular terrorism’’ means an 

18 action that uses automotive transportation to inflict 

19 violence and intimidation on individuals for a polit20 ical purpose. 

21 (b) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

22 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland 

23 Security shall— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 2836 RS

1 (1) assess the threat of vehicular terrorism and 

2 activities the Department of Homeland Security is 

3 undertaking to support emergency response pro4 viders and the private sector to prevent, mitigate, 

5 and respond to vehicular terrorism; and 

6 (2) based on the assessment conducted under 

7 paragraph (1), brief the Committee on Homeland 

8 Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate 

9 and the Committee on Homeland Security of the 

10 House of Representatives on— 

11 (A) the findings of the assessment; and 

12 (B) a strategy to improve the efforts of the 

13 Department of Homeland Security to support 

14 emergency response providers and the private 

15 sector to prevent, mitigate, and respond to the 

16 threat of vehicular terrorism. 

17 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

18 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Preventing Emerging 

19 Threats Act of 2018’’. 

20 SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF CERTAIN FACILITIES AND ASSETS 

21 FROM UNMANNED AIRCRAFT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title II of the Home23 land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 121 et seq.) is amended 

24 by adding at the end the following: 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘§ 210G. Protection of certain facilities and assets 

2 from unmanned aircraft 

3 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

5 46502 of title 49, United States Code, or any provi6 sion of title 18, United States Code, the Secretary and 

7 the Attorney General may, for their respective De8 partments, take, and may authorize personnel of the 

9 Department of Homeland Security or the Department 

10 of Justice with assigned duties that include safety, se11 curity, or protection of personnel, facilities, or assets, 

12 to take, such actions described in subsection (b)(1) 

13 that are necessary to mitigate the threat (as defined 

14 by the Secretary or the Attorney General, in consulta15 tion with the Secretary of Transportation, in accord16 ance with paragraph (3)) that an unmanned aircraft 

17 system or unmanned aircraft poses to the safety or se18 curity of a covered facility or asset. 

19 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In taking the actions de20 scribed in subsection (b)(1), the Secretary or the At21 torney General, as the case may be, shall— 

22 ‘‘(A) avoid infringement of the privacy and 

23 civil liberties of the people of the United States 

24 and the freedom of the press consistent with Fed25 eral law and the Constitution of the United 

26 States, including with regard to the testing of 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 2836 RS

1 any equipment and the interception or acquisi2 tion of unmanned aircraft or systems; 

3 ‘‘(B) limit the geographic reach and dura4 tion of the actions to only those areas and time5 frames that are reasonably necessary to address 

6 a reasonable threat; and 

7 ‘‘(C) use reasonable care not to interfere 

8 with authorized or non-threatening manned or 

9 unmanned aircraft, communications, equipment, 

10 facilities or services. 

11 ‘‘(3) THREAT DEFINED.—In defining the term 

12 ‘threat’ for purposes of carrying out paragraph (1), 

13 the Secretary or the Attorney General, as the case 

14 may be, shall take into account factors, including, but 

15 not limited to, the potential for bodily harm or loss 

16 of human life, the potential loss or compromise of sen17 sitive national security information, or the potential 

18 severe economic damage resulting from use of an un19 authorized unmanned aerial system in the vicinity of 

20 a covered facility or asset. 

21 ‘‘(b) ACTIONS DESCRIBED.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The actions authorized in 

23 subsection (a) are the following: 

24 ‘‘(A) Detect, identify, monitor, and track 

25 the unmanned aircraft system or unmanned airVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Sep 04, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2836.RS S2836

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 2836 RS

1 craft, without prior consent, including by means 

2 of intercept or other access of a wire communica3 tion, an oral communication, or an electronic 

4 communication used to control the unmanned 

5 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

6 ‘‘(B) Warn the operator of the unmanned 

7 aircraft system or unmanned aircraft, including 

8 by passive or active, and direct or indirect phys9 ical, electronic, radio, and electromagnetic 

10 means. 

11 ‘‘(C) Disrupt control of the unmanned air12 craft system or unmanned aircraft, without 

13 prior consent, including by disabling the un14 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft 

15 by intercepting, interfering, or causing inter16 ference with wire, oral, electronic, or radio com17 munications used to control the unmanned air18 craft system or unmanned aircraft. 

19 ‘‘(D) Seize or exercise control of the un20 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

21 ‘‘(E) Seize or otherwise confiscate the un22 manned aircraft system or unmanned aircraft. 

23 ‘‘(F) Use reasonable force to disable, dam24 age, or destroy the unmanned aircraft system or 

25 unmanned aircraft. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED COORDINATION.—The Secretary 

2 and the Attorney General shall develop for their re3 spective Departments the actions described in para4 graph (1) in coordination with the Secretary of 

5 Transportation. 

6 ‘‘(3) RESEARCH, TESTING, TRAINING, AND EVAL7 UATION.—The Secretary and the Attorney General 

8 may conduct research, testing, training on, and eval9 uation of any equipment, including any electronic 

10 equipment, to determine its capability and utility to 

11 enable any of the actions described in paragraph (1). 

12 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall co13 ordinate with the Administrator of the Federal Avia14 tion Administration when paragraph (3) might affect 

15 aviation safety, civilian aviation, use of airspace, 

16 aerospace operations, or aircraft airworthiness. 

17 ‘‘(c) FORFEITURE.—Any unauthorized unmanned air18 craft system or unmanned aircraft described in subsection 

19 (a) that is seized by the Secretary or the Attorney General 

20 is subject to forfeiture to the United States. 

21 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, the Attorney 

23 General, and the Secretary of Transportation may 

24 prescribe regulations and shall issue guidance in the 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 2836 RS

1 respective areas of each Secretary or the Attorney 

2 General to carry out this section. 

3 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION.— 

4 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION WITH DEPARTMENT OF

5 TRANSPORTATION.—The Secretary and the Attor6 ney General shall coordinate the development of 

7 their respective guidance under paragraph (1) 

8 with the Secretary of Transportation. 

9 ‘‘(B) EFFECT ON AVIATION SAFETY.—The 

10 Secretary and the Attorney General shall respec11 tively coordinate with the Secretary of Transpor12 tation and the Administrator of the Federal 

13 Aviation Administration before issuing any 

14 guidance, or otherwise implementing this section, 

15 if such guidance or implementation might affect 

16 aviation safety, civilian aviation and aerospace 

17 operations, aircraft airworthiness, or the use of 

18 airspace. 

19 ‘‘(3) RISK-BASED ASSESSMENT.—The guidance 

20 issued by the Secretary and the Attorney General, re21 spectively, shall include criteria of the risk-based as22 sessment required under subsection (k)(3)(A) that in23 cludes an evaluation of the potential impacts on the 

24 use of the authorities granted in this section on the 

25 safety and efficiency of the national airspace system, 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 2836 RS

1 including the ability to provide advance notice to air2 craft operators as appropriate, and the needs of law 

3 enforcement agencies and national security. 

4 ‘‘(e) PRIVACY PROTECTION.—In carrying out actions 

5 authorized under subsection (b), the Secretary or the Attor6 ney General, as the case may be, shall ensure that— 

7 ‘‘(1) the interception or acquisition of, or access 

8 to, communications to or from an unmanned aircraft 

9 system under this section is conducted in a manner 

10 consistent with the Fourth amendment to the Con11 stitution of the United States and applicable provi12 sions of Federal law; 

13 ‘‘(2) communications to or from an unmanned 

14 aircraft system are intercepted, acquired, or accessed 

15 only to the extent necessary to mitigate the reasonable 

16 threat that an unmanned aircraft system or un17 manned aircraft poses to the safety or security of a 

18 covered facility or asset, or to investigate or prosecute 

19 a threat, as defined by the Secretary or the Attorney 

20 General, respectively, under subsection (a)(1); 

21 ‘‘(3) records of such communications are main22 tained only for as long as necessary, and in no event 

23 for more than 180 days, unless the Secretary or the 

24 Attorney General determine that maintenance of such 

25 records— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(A) is necessary to support one or more 

2 safety or security functions of the Department of 

3 Homeland Security or the Department of Jus4 tice, respectively, or to investigate or prosecute a 

5 threat, as defined by the Secretary or the Attor6 ney General, respectively, under subsection 

7 (a)(1); or 

8 ‘‘(B) is required for a longer period to sup9 port a civilian law enforcement agency or by 

10 any other applicable statute or regulation; and 

11 ‘‘(4) such communications are not disclosed out12 side the Department of Homeland Security or the De13 partment of Justice unless the disclosure— 

14 ‘‘(A) would fulfill a safety or security func15 tion of the Department of Homeland Security or 

16 the Department of Justice, respectively, or to in17 vestigate or prosecute a threat, as defined by the 

18 Secretary or the Attorney General, respectively, 

19 under subsection (a)(1); 

20 ‘‘(B) would support the Department of De21 fense, another civilian law enforcement agency, 

22 or the activities of a regulatory agency of the 

23 Federal Government in connection with a crimi24 nal or civil investigation of, or any regulatory, 

25 statutory, or other enforcement action arising 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 2836 RS

1 out of, an action described in subsection (b)(1); 

2 or 

3 ‘‘(C) is otherwise required by law. 

4 ‘‘(f) BUDGET.—The Secretary and the Attorney Gen5 eral shall submit to Congress, as a part of the homeland 

6 security or justice budget materials for each fiscal year after 

7 fiscal year 2018, a consolidated funding display that identi8 fies the funding source and funding requirements for the 

9 actions described in subsection (b)(1) within the Depart10 ment of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice. 

11 The funding display shall be in unclassified form, but may 

12 contain a classified annex. 

13 ‘‘(g) SEMIANNUAL BRIEFINGS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On a semiannual basis dur15 ing the 5-year period beginning 6 months after the 

16 date of enactment of this section, the Secretary and 

17 the Attorney General shall, respectively, provide a 

18 briefing to the appropriate congressional committees 

19 on the activities carried out pursuant to this section. 

20 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—Each briefing required 

21 under paragraph (1) shall be conducted jointly with 

22 the Secretary of Transportation. 

23 ‘‘(3) CONTENT.—Each briefing required under 

24 paragraph (1) shall include— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(A) policies, programs, and procedures to 

2 mitigate or eliminate impacts of such activities 

3 to the National Airspace System; 

4 ‘‘(B) a description of instances where ac5 tions described in subsection (b)(1) have been 

6 taken; 

7 ‘‘(C) a description of efforts to address pri8 vacy, civil rights, and civil liberties issues impli9 cated by the actions allowed under this section; 

10 ‘‘(D) how the Secretary and the Attorney 

11 General have informed the public as to the pos12 sible use of authorities under this section; 

13 ‘‘(E) a description of actions the Secretary 

14 and the Attorney General have taken to inform 

15 owners and operators of covered facilities of their 

16 status under this section; and 

17 ‘‘(F) how the Secretary and the Attorney 

18 General have engaged with Federal, State, and 

19 local law enforcement agencies to implement and 

20 use such authorities. 

21 ‘‘(4) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—Each briefing re22 quired under paragraph (1) shall be in unclassified 

23 form, consistent with the needs of law enforcement 

24 agencies and national security, but may be accom25 panied by an additional classified briefing. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec2 tion may be construed to— 

3 ‘‘(1) vest in the Secretary or the Attorney Gen4 eral any authority of the Secretary of Transportation 

5 or the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Admin6 istration under title 49, United States Code; 

7 ‘‘(2) vest in the Secretary of Transportation or 

8 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis9 tration any authority of the Secretary or the Attorney 

10 General under this title or title 14, United States 

11 Code; 

12 ‘‘(3) vest in the Secretary of Homeland Security 

13 any authority of the Attorney General under this 

14 title; and 

15 ‘‘(4) vest in the Attorney General any authority 

16 of the Secretary of Homeland Security under this 

17 title. 

18 ‘‘(i) TERMINATION.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), the authority to carry out this section with 

21 respect to the covered facilities or assets shall termi22 nate on the date that is 5 years after the date of en23 actment of this section. 

24 ‘‘(2) EXTENSION.—The President may extend by 

25 180 days the termination date described in paragraph 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 2836 RS

1 (1) if, not later than 45 days before the termination 

2 date described in paragraph (1), the President cer3 tifies to Congress that such extension is in the na4 tional security interest of the United States. 

5 ‘‘(j) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this section 

6 shall be construed to provide the Secretary or the Attorney 

7 General with additional authorities beyond those described 

8 in subsections (a), (b)(1), and (k)(3)(C)(iii). 

9 ‘‘(k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 ‘‘(1) The term ‘appropriate congressional com11 mittees’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

13 and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on 

14 Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and the 

15 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate; and 

16 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Homeland Security, 

17 the Committee on Transportation and Infra18 structure, the Committee on Energy and Com19 merce, and the Committee on the Judiciary of 

20 the House of Representatives. 

21 ‘‘(2) The term ‘budget’, with respect to a fiscal 

22 year, means the budget for that fiscal year that is 

23 submitted to Congress by the President under section 

24 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(3) The term ‘covered facility or asset’ means 

2 any facility or asset that— 

3 ‘‘(A) is identified by the Secretary or the 

4 Attorney General, in consultation with the Sec5 retary of Transportation with respect to poten6 tially impacted airspace, through a risk-based 

7 assessment for purposes of this section; 

8 ‘‘(B) is located in the United States (includ9 ing the territories and possessions, territorial 

10 seas, or navigable waters of the United States); 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(C) directly relates to— 

13 ‘‘(i) a mission authorized to be per14 formed by the Department, consistent with 

15 governing statutes, regulations, and orders 

16 issued by the Secretary, relating to— 

17 ‘‘(I) security operations by the 

18 United States Coast Guard and U.S. 

19 Customs and Border Protection, in20 cluding securing facilities, aircraft, 

21 and authorized vessels, whether moored 

22 or underway; 

23 ‘‘(II) United States Secret Service 

24 protection operations pursuant to secVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Sep 04, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2836.RS S2836

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
31 

•S 2836 RS

1 tions 3056 and 3056A of title 18, 

2 United States Code; or 

3 ‘‘(III) protection of facilities pur4 suant to section 1315 of title 40, 

5 United States Code, considered to be 

6 high-risk or assessed to be a potential 

7 target for unlawful unmanned aircraft 

8 activity; 

9 ‘‘(ii) a mission authorized to be per10 formed by the Department of Justice, con11 sistent with governing statutes, regulations, 

12 and orders issued by the Attorney General, 

13 relating to— 

14 ‘‘(I) personnel protection oper15 ations by the Federal Bureau of Inves16 tigation and the United States Mar17 shals Service, including the protection 

18 of Federal jurists, court officers, wit19 nesses, and other persons in the inter20 ests of justice, as specified in section 

21 566(e) of title 28, United States Code; 

22 ‘‘(II) penal, detention, and correc23 tional operations conducted by the 

24 Federal Bureau of Prisons considered 

25 to be high-risk or assessed to be a poVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Sep 04, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2836.RS S2836

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
32 

•S 2836 RS

1 tential target for unlawful unmanned 

2 aircraft activity; or 

3 ‘‘(III) protection of the buildings 

4 and grounds leased, owned, or operated 

5 by or for the Department of Justice 

6 identified as essential to the function of 

7 the Department of Justice, and the 

8 provision of security for Federal 

9 courts, as specified in section 566(a) of 

10 title 28, United States Code, considered 

11 to be high-risk or assessed to be a po12 tential target for unlawful unmanned 

13 aircraft activity; and 

14 ‘‘(iii) a mission authorized to be per15 formed by the Department of Homeland Se16 curity or the Department of Justice, acting 

17 together or separately, consistent with gov18 erning statutes, regulations, and orders 

19 issued by the Secretary or the Attorney 

20 General, respectively, relating to— 

21 ‘‘(I) National Special Security 

22 Events and Special Event Assessment 

23 Rating events; 

24 ‘‘(II) upon the request of a State’s 

25 governor or attorney general, providing 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
33 

•S 2836 RS

1 support to State, local, or tribal law 

2 enforcement authorities to ensure pro3 tection of people and property at mass 

4 gatherings, where appropriate and 

5 within available resources; 

6 ‘‘(III) active Federal law enforce7 ment investigations, emergency re8 sponses, or security operations; or 

9 ‘‘(IV) in the event that either the 

10 Department of Homeland Security or 

11 the Department of Justice has identi12 fied a national security threat against 

13 the United States and the threat could 

14 involve unlawful use of an unmanned 

15 aircraft, responding to such national 

16 security threat. 

17 ‘‘(4) The terms ‘electronic communication’, 

18 ‘intercept’, ‘oral communication’, and ‘wire commu19 nication’ have the meanings given those terms in sec20 tion 2510 of title 18, United States Code. 

21 ‘‘(5) The term ‘homeland security or justice 

22 budget materials’, with respect to a fiscal year, means 

23 the materials submitted to Congress by the Secretary 

24 and the Attorney General in support of the budget for 

25 that fiscal year. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
34 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(6) For purposes of subsection (a), the term 

2 ‘personnel’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) officers and employees of the Depart4 ment of Homeland Security or the Department 

5 of Justice; or 

6 ‘‘(B) individuals employed by contractors of 

7 the Department of Homeland Security who are 

8 subject to the supervision, control, or direction of 

9 the Department and are assigned by the Depart10 ment to perform the duties described in sub11 section (a) in accordance with regulations or 

12 guidance established under subsection (d). 

13 ‘‘(7) The terms ‘unmanned aircraft’ and ‘un14 manned aircraft system’ have the meanings given 

15 those terms in section 331 of the FAA Modernization 

16 and Reform Act of 2012 (49 U.S.C. 40101 note). 

17 ‘‘(l) DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY ASSESS18 MENT.— 

19 ‘‘(1) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

20 date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary 

21 shall conduct, in coordination with the Attorney Gen22 eral and the Secretary of Transportation, and submit 

23 an assessment to the appropriate congressional com24 mittees, including— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
35 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(A) an evaluation of the threat from un2 manned aircraft systems to United States crit3 ical infrastructure (as defined in this Act) and 

4 to domestic large hub airports (as defined in sec5 tion 40102(a)(29) of title 49, United States 

6 Code); 

7 ‘‘(B) an evaluation of current Federal and 

8 State, local, or tribal law enforcement authorities 

9 to counter the threat identified in subparagraph 

10 (A); 

11 ‘‘(C) an evaluation of the knowledge of, effi12 ciency of, and effectiveness of current procedures 

13 and resources available to owners of critical in14 frastructure and domestic large hub airports 

15 when they believe a threat from unmanned air16 craft systems is present and what additional ac17 tions, if any, the Department could implement 

18 under existing authorities to assist these entities 

19 to counter the threat identified in subparagraph 

20 (A); 

21 ‘‘(D) an assessment of what, if any, addi22 tional authorities the Department needs to 

23 counter the threat identified in subparagraph 

24 (A); and 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
36 

•S 2836 RS

1 ‘‘(E) an assessment of what, if any, addi2 tional research and development the Department 

3 needs to counter the threat identified in subpara4 graph (A). 

5 ‘‘(2) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—The report required 

6 under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassi7 fied form, but may contain a classified annex.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections in 

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

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

11 after the item relating to section 210F the following: 

‘‘Sec. 210G. Protection of certain facilities and assets from unmanned aircraft.’’. 

12 SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY EFFORTS 

13 TO HELP PROTECT INDIVIDUALS FROM VE14 HICULAR TERRORISM. 

15 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section— 

16 (1) the term ‘‘emergency response providers’’ has 

17 the meaning given the term in section 2 of the Home18 land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101); and 

19 (2) the term ‘‘vehicular terrorism’’ means an ac20 tion that uses automotive transportation to inflict vi21 olence and intimidation on individuals for a political 

22 purpose. 

23 (b) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

24 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Secu25 rity shall— 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
37 

•S 2836 RS

1 (1) assess the threat of vehicular terrorism and 

2 activities the Department of Homeland Security is 

3 undertaking to support emergency response providers 

4 and the private sector to prevent, mitigate, and re5 spond to vehicular terrorism; and 

6 (2) based on the assessment conducted under 

7 paragraph (1), brief the Committee on Homeland Se8 curity and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and 

9 the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 

10 Representatives on— 

11 (A) the findings of the assessment; and 

12 (B) a strategy to improve the efforts of the 

13 Department of Homeland Security to support 

14 emergency response providers and the private 

15 sector to prevent, mitigate, and respond to the 

16 threat of vehicular terrorism. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 564 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2836 

[Report No. 115–332] 

A BILL 

To assist the Department of Homeland Security in 

craft and vehicles, and for other purposes. preventing emerging threats from unmanned airSEPTEMBER 4, 2018 

Reported with an amendment 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS