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‘‘SEC. 
1804. 
RISK-BASED 
EVALUATION 
AND 
PRIORITIZATION. 
‘‘(a) FIRST RESPONDER GRANTS BOARD.— 
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT
OF
BOARD.—The Sec-
retary shall establish a First Responder Grants 
Board, consisting of— 
‘‘(A) the Secretary; 
‘‘(B) the Under Secretary for Emergency 
Preparedness and Response; 
‘‘(C) the Under Secretary for Border and 
Transportation Security; 
‘‘(D) the Under Secretary for Information 
Analysis and Infrastructure Protection; 
‘‘(E) the Under Secretary for Science and 
Technology; 
‘‘(F) the Director of the Office for Domes-
tic Preparedness; 
‘‘(G) the Administrator of the United 
States Fire Administration; and 
‘‘(H) the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service. 
‘‘(2) CHAIRMAN.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall be 
the Chairman of the Board. 
‘‘(B) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITIES BY DEP-
UTY
SECRETARY.—The Deputy Secretary of
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Homeland Security may exercise the authorities 
of the Chairman, if the Secretary so directs. 
‘‘(b) FUNCTIONS
OF UNDER SECRETARIES.—The 
Under Secretaries referred to in subsection (a)(1) shall 
seek to ensure that the relevant expertise and input of the 
staff of their directorates are available to and considered 
by the Board. 
‘‘(c) PRIORITIZATION OF GRANT APPLICATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) FACTORS
TO
BE
CONSIDERED.—The 
Board shall evaluate and annually prioritize all 
pending applications for covered grants based upon 
the degree to which they would, by achieving, main-
taining, or enhancing the essential capabilities of the 
applicants on a nationwide basis, lessen the threat 
to, vulnerability of, and consequences for persons 
(including transient commuting and tourist popu-
lations) and critical infrastructure. Such evaluation 
and prioritization shall be based upon the most cur-
rent risk assessment available by the Directorate for 
Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection 
of the threats of terrorism against the United 
States. The Board shall coordinate with State, local, 
regional, and tribal officials in establishing criteria 
for evaluating and prioritizing applications for cov-
ered grants.
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‘‘(2) CRITICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE
SECTORS.— 
The Board specifically shall consider threats of ter-
rorism against the following critical infrastructure 
sectors in all areas of the United States, urban and 
rural: 
‘‘(A) Agriculture and food. 
‘‘(B) Banking and finance. 
‘‘(C) Chemical industries. 
‘‘(D) The defense industrial base. 
‘‘(E) Emergency services. 
‘‘(F) Energy. 
‘‘(G) Government facilities. 
‘‘(H) Postal and shipping. 
‘‘(I) Public health and health care. 
‘‘(J) Information technology. 
‘‘(K) Telecommunications. 
‘‘(L) Transportation systems. 
‘‘(M) Water. 
‘‘(N) Dams. 
‘‘(O) Commercial facilities. 
‘‘(P) National monuments and icons. 
The order in which the critical infrastructure sectors 
are listed in this paragraph shall not be construed 
as an order of priority for consideration of the im-
portance of such sectors.
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‘‘(3) TYPES OF THREAT.—The Board specifi-
cally shall consider the following types of threat to 
the critical infrastructure sectors described in para-
graph (2), and to populations in all areas of the 
United States, urban and rural: 
‘‘(A) Biological threats. 
‘‘(B) Nuclear threats. 
‘‘(C) Radiological threats. 
‘‘(D) Incendiary threats. 
‘‘(E) Chemical threats. 
‘‘(F) Explosives. 
‘‘(G) Suicide bombers. 
‘‘(H) Cyber threats. 
‘‘(I) Any other threats based on proximity 
to specific past acts of terrorism or the known 
activity of any terrorist group. 
The order in which the types of threat are listed in 
this paragraph shall not be construed as an order of 
priority for consideration of the importance of such 
threats. 
‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION
OF
ADDITIONAL
FAC-
TORS.—The Board shall take into account any other 
specific threat to a population (including a transient 
commuting or tourist population) or critical infra-
structure sector that the Board has determined to
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exist. In evaluating the threat to a population or 
critical infrastructure sector, the Board shall give 
greater weight to threats of terrorism based upon 
their specificity and credibility, including any pat-
tern of repetition. 
‘‘(5) MINIMUM
AMOUNTS.—After evaluating 
and prioritizing grant applications under paragraph 
(1), the Board shall ensure that, for each fiscal 
year— 
‘‘(A) each of the States, other than the 
Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and 
the Northern Mariana Islands, that has an ap-
proved State homeland security plan receives no 
less than 0.25 percent of the funds available for 
covered grants for that fiscal year for purposes 
of implementing its homeland security plan in 
accordance with the prioritization of needs 
under section 1803(c)(1)(D); 
‘‘(B) each of the States, other than the 
Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and 
the Northern Mariana Islands, that has an ap-
proved State homeland security plan and that 
meets one or both of the additional high-risk 
qualifying criteria under paragraph (6) receives 
no less than 0.45 percent of the funds available
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for covered grants for that fiscal year for pur-
poses of implementing its homeland security 
plan in accordance with the prioritization of 
needs under section 1803(c)(1)(D); 
‘‘(C) the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, 
Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands each 
receives no less than 0.08 percent of the funds 
available for covered grants for that fiscal year 
for purposes of implementing its approved State 
homeland security plan in accordance with the 
prioritization 
of 
needs 
under 
section 
1803(c)(1)(D); and 
‘‘(D) directly eligible tribes collectively re-
ceive no less than 0.08 percent of the funds 
available for covered grants for such fiscal year 
for purposes of addressing the needs identified 
in the applications of such tribes, consistent 
with the homeland security plan of each State 
within the boundaries of which any part of any 
such tribe is located, except that this clause 
shall not apply with respect to funds available 
for a fiscal year if the Secretary receives less 
than 5 applications for such fiscal year from 
such tribes under section 1803(e)(6)(A) or does 
not approve at least one such application.
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‘‘(6) ADDITIONAL HIGH-RISK QUALIFYING CRI-
TERIA.—For purposes of paragraph (5)(B), addi-
tional high-risk qualifying criteria consist of— 
‘‘(A) having a significant international 
land border; or 
‘‘(B) adjoining a body of water within 
North America through which an international 
boundary line extends. 
‘‘(d) EFFECT OF REGIONAL AWARDS ON STATE MIN-
IMUM.—Any regional award, or portion thereof, provided 
to a State under section 1803(e)(5)(C) shall not be consid-
ered in calculating the minimum State award under sub-
section (c)(5) of this section. 
‘‘SEC. 1805. TASK FORCE ON TERRORISM PREPAREDNESS 
FOR FIRST RESPONDERS. 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—To assist the Secretary in 
updating, revising, or replacing essential capabilities for 
terrorism preparedness, the Secretary shall establish an 
advisory body pursuant to section 871(a) not later than 
60 days after the date of the enactment of this section, 
which shall be known as the Task Force on Terrorism Pre-
paredness for First Responders. 
‘‘(b) UPDATE, REVISE, OR REPLACE.—The Secretary 
shall regularly update, revise, or replace the essential ca-
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pabilities for terrorism preparedness as necessary, but not 
less than every 3 years. 
‘‘(c) REPORT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Task Force shall sub-
mit to the Secretary, by not later than 12 months 
after its establishment by the Secretary under sub-
section (a) and not later than every 2 years there-
after, a report on its recommendations for essential 
capabilities for terrorism preparedness. 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each report shall— 
‘‘(A) include a priority ranking of essential 
capabilities in order to provide guidance to the 
Secretary and to the Congress on determining 
the appropriate allocation of, and funding levels 
for, first responder needs; 
‘‘(B) set forth a methodology by which any 
State or local government will be able to deter-
mine the extent to which it possesses or has ac-
cess to the essential capabilities that States and 
local governments having similar risks should 
obtain; 
‘‘(C) describe the availability of national 
voluntary consensus standards, and whether 
there is a need for new national voluntary con-
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sensus standards, with respect to first re-
sponder training and equipment; 
‘‘(D) include such additional matters as 
the Secretary may specify in order to further 
the terrorism preparedness capabilities of first 
responders; and 
‘‘(E) include such revisions to the contents 
of previous reports as are necessary to take into 
account changes in the most current risk as-
sessment available by the Directorate for Infor-
mation Analysis and Infrastructure Protection 
or other relevant information as determined by 
the Secretary. 
‘‘(3) CONSISTENCY
WITH
FEDERAL
WORKING 
GROUP.—The Task Force shall ensure that its rec-
ommendations for essential capabilities for terrorism 
preparedness are, to the extent feasible, consistent 
with any preparedness goals or recommendations of 
the Federal working group established under section 
319F(a) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
247d–6(a)). 
‘‘(4) COMPREHENSIVENESS.—The Task Force 
shall ensure that its recommendations regarding es-
sential capabilities for terrorism preparedness are
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made within the context of a comprehensive State 
emergency management system. 
‘‘(5) PRIOR MEASURES.—The Task Force shall 
ensure that its recommendations regarding essential 
capabilities for terrorism preparedness take into ac-
count any capabilities that State or local officials 
have determined to be essential and have undertaken 
since September 11, 2001, to prevent, prepare for, 
respond to, or recover from terrorist attacks. 
‘‘(d) MEMBERSHIP.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Task Force shall con-
sist of 25 members appointed by the Secretary, and 
shall, to the extent practicable, represent a geo-
graphic (including urban and rural) and substantive 
cross section of governmental and nongovernmental 
first responder disciplines from the State and local 
levels, including as appropriate— 
‘‘(A) members selected from the emergency 
response field, including fire service and law en-
forcement, hazardous materials response, emer-
gency medical services, and emergency manage-
ment personnel (including public works per-
sonnel routinely engaged in emergency re-
sponse);
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‘‘(B) health scientists, emergency and in-
patient medical providers, and public health 
professionals, including experts in emergency 
health care response to chemical, biological, ra-
diological, and nuclear terrorism, and experts in 
providing mental health care during emergency 
response operations; 
‘‘(C) experts from Federal, State, and local 
governments, and the private sector, rep-
resenting standards-setting organizations, in-
cluding representation from the voluntary con-
sensus codes and standards development com-
munity, particularly those with expertise in first 
responder disciplines; and 
‘‘(D) State and local officials with exper-
tise in terrorism preparedness, subject to the 
condition that if any such official is an elected 
official representing one of the two major polit-
ical parties, an equal number of elected officials 
shall be selected from each such party. 
‘‘(2) COORDINATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT 
OF HEALTH AND HEALTH SERVICES.—In the selec-
tion of members of the Task Force who are health 
professionals, including emergency medical profes-
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sionals, the Secretary shall coordinate such selection 
with the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 
‘‘(3) EX
OFFICIO
MEMBERS.—The Secretary 
and the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
shall each designate one or more officers of their re-
spective Departments to serve as ex officio members 
of the Task Force. One of the ex officio members 
from the Department of Homeland Security shall be 
the designated officer of the Federal Government for 
purposes of subsection (e) of section 10 of the Fed-
eral Advisory Committee Act (5 App. U.S.C.). 
‘‘(e) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM-
MITTEE ACT.—Notwithstanding section 871(a), the Fed-
eral Advisory Committee Act (5 App. U.S.C.), including 
subsections (a), (b), and (d) of section 10 of such Act, 
and section 552b(c) of title 5, United States Code, shall 
apply to the Task Force. 
‘‘SEC. 1806. USE OF FUNDS AND ACCOUNTABILITY RE-
QUIREMENTS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A covered grant may be used 
for— 
‘‘(1) purchasing or upgrading equipment, in-
cluding computer software, to enhance terrorism 
preparedness;
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‘‘(2) exercises to strengthen terrorism prepared-
ness; 
‘‘(3) training for prevention (including detec-
tion) of, preparedness for, response to, or recovery 
from attacks involving weapons of mass destruction, 
including training in the use of equipment and com-
puter software; 
‘‘(4) developing or updating State homeland se-
curity plans, risk assessments, mutual aid agree-
ments, and emergency management plans to enhance 
terrorism preparedness; 
‘‘(5) establishing or enhancing mechanisms for 
sharing terrorism threat information; 
‘‘(6) systems architecture and engineering, pro-
gram planning and management, strategy formula-
tion and strategic planning, life-cycle systems de-
sign, product and technology evaluation, and proto-
type development for terrorism preparedness pur-
poses; 
‘‘(7) additional personnel costs resulting from— 
‘‘(A) elevations in the threat alert level of 
the Homeland Security Advisory System by the 
Secretary, or a similar elevation in threat alert 
level issued by a State, region, or local govern-
ment with the approval of the Secretary;
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‘‘(B) travel to and participation in exer-
cises and training in the use of equipment and 
on prevention activities; and 
‘‘(C) the temporary replacement of per-
sonnel during any period of travel to and par-
ticipation in exercises and training in the use of 
equipment and on prevention activities; 
‘‘(8) the costs of equipment (including software) 
required to receive, transmit, handle, and store clas-
sified information; 
‘‘(9) protecting critical infrastructure against 
potential attack by the addition of barriers, fences, 
gates, and other such devices, except that the cost 
of such measures may not exceed the greater of— 
‘‘(A) $1,000,000 per project; or 
‘‘(B) such greater amount as may be ap-
proved by the Secretary, which may not exceed 
10 percent of the total amount of the covered 
grant; 
‘‘(10) the costs of commercially available inter-
operable communications equipment (which, where 
applicable, is based on national, voluntary consensus 
standards) that the Secretary, in consultation with 
the Chairman of the Federal Communications Com-
mission, deems best suited to facilitate interoper-
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ability, coordination, and integration between and 
among emergency communications systems, and that 
complies with prevailing grant guidance of the De-
partment for interoperable communications; 
‘‘(11) educational curricula development for 
first responders to ensure that they are prepared for 
terrorist attacks; 
‘‘(12) training and exercises to assist public ele-
mentary and secondary schools in developing and 
implementing programs to instruct students regard-
ing age-appropriate skills to prevent, prepare for, re-
spond to, mitigate against, or recover from an act of 
terrorism; 
‘‘(13) paying of administrative expenses directly 
related to administration of the grant, except that 
such expenses may not exceed 3 percent of the 
amount of the grant; 
‘‘(14) paying for the conduct of any activity 
permitted under the Law Enforcement Terrorism 
Prevention Program, or any such successor to such 
program; and 
‘‘(15) other appropriate activities as determined 
by the Secretary. 
‘‘(b) PROHIBITED USES.—Funds provided as a cov-
ered grant may not be used—
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‘‘(1) to supplant State or local funds; 
‘‘(2) to construct buildings or other physical fa-
cilities; 
‘‘(3) to acquire land; or 
‘‘(4) for any State or local government cost 
sharing contribution. 
‘‘(c) MULTIPLE-PURPOSE FUNDS.—Nothing in this 
section shall be construed to preclude State and local gov-
ernments from using covered grant funds in a manner 
that also enhances first responder preparedness for emer-
gencies and disasters unrelated to acts of terrorism, if 
such use assists such governments in achieving essential 
capabilities for terrorism preparedness established by the 
Secretary. 
‘‘(d) REIMBURSEMENT OF COSTS.—(1) In addition 
to the activities described in subsection (a), a covered 
grant may be used to provide a reasonable stipend to paid- 
on-call or volunteer first responders who are not otherwise 
compensated for travel to or participation in training cov-
ered by this section. Any such reimbursement shall not 
be considered compensation for purposes of rendering 
such a first responder an employee under the Fair Labor 
Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.). 
‘‘(2) An applicant for a covered grant may petition 
the Secretary for the reimbursement of the cost of any
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activity relating to prevention (including detection) of, pre-
paredness for, response to, or recovery from acts of ter-
rorism that is a Federal duty and usually performed by 
a Federal agency, and that is being performed by a State 
or local government (or both) under agreement with a 
Federal agency. 
‘‘(e) ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 
may not require that equipment paid for, wholly or in part, 
with funds provided as a covered grant be made available 
for responding to emergencies in surrounding States, re-
gions, and localities, unless the Secretary undertakes to 
pay the costs directly attributable to transporting and op-
erating such equipment during such response. 
‘‘(f) FLEXIBILITY IN UNSPENT HOMELAND SECU-
RITY GRANT FUNDS.—Upon request by the recipient of 
a covered grant, the Secretary may authorize the grantee 
to transfer all or part of funds provided as the covered 
grant from uses specified in the grant agreement to other 
uses authorized under this section, if the Secretary deter-
mines that such transfer is in the interests of homeland 
security. 
‘‘(g) STATE, REGIONAL, AND TRIBAL RESPONSIBIL-
ITIES.— 
‘‘(1) PASS-THROUGH.—The Secretary shall re-
quire a recipient of a covered grant that is a State
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to obligate or otherwise make available to local gov-
ernments, first responders, and other local groups, 
to the extent required under the State homeland se-
curity plan or plans specified in the application for 
the grant, not less than 80 percent of the grant 
funds, resources purchased with the grant funds 
having a value equal to at least 80 percent of the 
amount of the grant, or a combination thereof, by 
not later than the end of the 45-day period begin-
ning on the date the grant recipient receives the 
grant funds. 
‘‘(2) COST SHARING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Federal share of 
the costs of an activity carried out with a cov-
ered grant to a State, region, or directly eligible 
tribe awarded after the 2-year period beginning 
on the date of the enactment of this section 
shall not exceed 75 percent. 
‘‘(B) INTERIM RULE.—The Federal share 
of the costs of an activity carried out with a 
covered grant awarded before the end of the 2- 
year period beginning on the date of the enact-
ment of this section shall be 100 percent. 
‘‘(C) IN-KIND MATCHING.—Each recipient 
of a covered grant may meet the matching re-
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quirement under subparagraph (A) by making 
in-kind contributions of goods or services that 
are directly linked with the purpose for which 
the grant is made, including, but not limited to, 
any necessary personnel overtime, contractor 
services, administrative costs, equipment fuel 
and maintenance, and rental space. 
‘‘(3) CERTIFICATIONS
REGARDING
DISTRIBU-
TION OF GRANT FUNDS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.— 
Any State that receives a covered grant shall certify 
to the Secretary, by not later than 30 days after the 
expiration of the period described in paragraph (1) 
with respect to the grant, that the State has made 
available for expenditure by local governments, first 
responders, and other local groups the required 
amount of grant funds pursuant to paragraph (1). 
‘‘(4) QUARTERLY REPORT ON HOMELAND SECU-
RITY SPENDING.—The Federal share described in 
paragraph (2)(A) may be increased by up to 2 per-
cent for any State, region, or directly eligible tribe 
that, not later than 30 days after the end of each 
fiscal quarter, submits to the Secretary a report on 
that fiscal quarter. Each such report must include, 
for each recipient of a covered grant or a pass- 
through under paragraph (1)—
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‘‘(A) the amount obligated to that recipient 
in that quarter; 
‘‘(B) the amount expended by that recipi-
ent in that quarter; and 
‘‘(C) a summary description of the items 
purchased by such recipient with such amount. 
‘‘(5) ANNUAL
REPORT
ON
HOMELAND
SECU-
RITY SPENDING.—Each recipient of a covered grant 
shall submit an annual report to the Secretary not 
later than 60 days after the end of each Federal fis-
cal year. Each recipient of a covered grant that is 
a region must simultaneously submit its report to 
each State of which any part is included in the re-
gion. Each recipient of a covered grant that is a di-
rectly eligible tribe must simultaneously submit its 
report to each State within the boundaries of which 
any part of such tribe is located. Each report must 
include the following: 
‘‘(A) The amount, ultimate recipients, and 
dates of receipt of all funds received under the 
grant during the previous fiscal year. 
‘‘(B) The amount and the dates of dis-
bursements of all such funds expended in com-
pliance with paragraph (1) or pursuant to mu-
tual aid agreements or other sharing arrange-
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ments that apply within the State, region, or di-
rectly eligible tribe, as applicable, during the 
previous fiscal year. 
‘‘(C) How the funds were utilized by each 
ultimate recipient or beneficiary during the pre-
ceding fiscal year. 
‘‘(D) The extent to which essential capa-
bilities identified in the applicable State home-
land security plan or plans were achieved, main-
tained, or enhanced as the result of the expend-
iture of grant funds during the preceding fiscal 
year. 
‘‘(E) The extent to which essential capa-
bilities identified in the applicable State home-
land security plan or plans remain unmet. 
‘‘(6) INCLUSION OF RESTRICTED ANNEXES.—A 
recipient of a covered grant may submit to the Sec-
retary an annex to the annual report under para-
graph (5) that is subject to appropriate handling re-
strictions, if the recipient believes that discussion in 
the report of unmet needs would reveal sensitive but 
unclassified information. 
‘‘(7) PROVISION OF REPORTS.—The Secretary 
shall ensure that each annual report under para-
graph (5) is provided to the Under Secretary for
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Emergency Preparedness and Response and the Di-
rector of the Office for Domestic Preparedness. 
‘‘(h) INCENTIVES TO EFFICIENT ADMINISTRATION 
OF HOMELAND SECURITY GRANTS.— 
‘‘(1) PENALTIES
FOR
DELAY
IN
PASSING 
THROUGH LOCAL SHARE.—If a recipient of a cov-
ered grant that is a State fails to pass through to 
local governments, first responders, and other local 
groups funds or resources required by subsection 
(g)(1) within 45 days after receiving funds under 
the grant, the Secretary may— 
‘‘(A) reduce grant payments to the grant 
recipient from the portion of grant funds that 
is not required to be passed through under sub-
section (g)(1); 
‘‘(B) terminate payment of funds under 
the grant to the recipient, and transfer the ap-
propriate portion of those funds directly to local 
first responders that were intended to receive 
funding under that grant; or 
‘‘(C) impose additional restrictions or bur-
dens on the recipient’s use of funds under the 
grant, which may include—
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‘‘(i) prohibiting use of such funds to 
pay the grant recipient’s grant-related 
overtime or other expenses; 
‘‘(ii) requiring the grant recipient to 
distribute to local government beneficiaries 
all or a portion of grant funds that are not 
required to be passed through under sub-
section (g)(1); or 
‘‘(iii) for each day that the grant re-
cipient fails to pass through funds or re-
sources in accordance with subsection 
(g)(1), reducing grant payments to the 
grant recipient from the portion of grant 
funds that is not required to be passed 
through under subsection (g)(1), except 
that the total amount of such reduction 
may not exceed 20 percent of the total 
amount of the grant. 
‘‘(2) EXTENSION OF PERIOD.—The Governor of 
a State may request in writing that the Secretary 
extend 
the 
45-day 
period 
under 
section 
1803(e)(5)(E) or paragraph (1) for an additional 
15-day period. The Secretary may approve such a 
request, and may extend such period for additional 
15-day periods, if the Secretary determines that the
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resulting delay in providing grant funding to the 
local government entities that will receive funding 
under the grant will not have a significant detri-
mental impact on such entities’ terrorism prepared-
ness efforts. 
‘‘(3) PROVISION
OF
NON-LOCAL
SHARE
TO 
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may 
upon request by a local government pay to the 
local government a portion of the amount of a 
covered grant awarded to a State in which the 
local government is located, if— 
‘‘(i) the local government will use the 
amount paid to expedite planned enhance-
ments to its terrorism preparedness as de-
scribed in any applicable State homeland 
security plan or plans; 
‘‘(ii) the State has failed to pass 
through funds or resources in accordance 
with subsection (g)(1); and 
‘‘(iii) the local government complies 
with subparagraphs (B) and (C). 
‘‘(B) SHOWING REQUIRED.—To receive a 
payment under this paragraph, a local govern-
ment must demonstrate that—
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‘‘(i) it is identified explicitly as an ul-
timate recipient or intended beneficiary in 
the approved grant application; 
‘‘(ii) it was intended by the grantee to 
receive a severable portion of the overall 
grant for a specific purpose that is identi-
fied in the grant application; 
‘‘(iii) it petitioned the grantee for the 
funds or resources after expiration of the 
period within which the funds or resources 
were required to be passed through under 
subsection (g)(1); and 
‘‘(iv) it did not receive the portion of 
the overall grant that was earmarked or 
designated for its use or benefit. 
‘‘(C) EFFECT OF PAYMENT.—Payment of 
grant funds to a local government under this 
paragraph— 
‘‘(i) shall not affect any payment to 
another local government under this para-
graph; and 
‘‘(ii) shall not prejudice consideration 
of a request for payment under this para-
graph that is submitted by another local 
government.
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‘‘(D) DEADLINE
FOR
ACTION
BY
SEC-
RETARY.—The Secretary shall approve or dis-
approve each request for payment under this 
paragraph by not later than 15 days after the 
date the request is received by the Department. 
‘‘(i) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall 
submit an annual report to the Congress by January 31 
of each year covering the preceding fiscal year— 
‘‘(1) describing in detail the amount of Federal 
funds provided as covered grants that were directed 
to each State, region, and directly eligible tribe in 
the preceding fiscal year; 
‘‘(2) containing information on the use of such 
grant funds by grantees; and 
‘‘(3) describing— 
‘‘(A) the Nation’s progress in achieving, 
maintaining, and enhancing the essential capa-
bilities established by the Secretary as a result 
of the expenditure of covered grant funds dur-
ing the preceding fiscal year; and 
‘‘(B) an estimate of the amount of expend-
itures required to attain across the United 
States the essential capabilities established by 
the Secretary.
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‘‘SEC. 1807. NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR FIRST RESPONDER 
EQUIPMENT AND TRAINING. 
‘‘(a) EQUIPMENT STANDARDS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with the Under Secretaries for Emergency Pre-
paredness and Response and Science and Tech-
nology and the Director of the Office for Domestic 
Preparedness, shall, not later than 6 months after 
the date of enactment of this section, support the 
development of, promulgate, and update as nec-
essary national voluntary consensus standards for 
the performance, use, and validation of first re-
sponder 
equipment 
for 
purposes 
of 
section 
1805(e)(7). Such standards— 
‘‘(A) shall be, to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, consistent with any existing voluntary 
consensus standards; 
‘‘(B) shall take into account, as appro-
priate, new types of terrorism threats that may 
not have been contemplated when such existing 
standards were developed; 
‘‘(C) shall be focused on maximizing inter-
operability, interchangeability, durability, flexi-
bility, efficiency, efficacy, portability, sustain-
ability, and safety; and
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‘‘(D) shall cover all appropriate uses of the 
equipment. 
‘‘(2) REQUIRED CATEGORIES.—In carrying out 
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall specifically con-
sider the following categories of first responder 
equipment: 
‘‘(A) Thermal imaging equipment. 
‘‘(B) Radiation detection and analysis 
equipment. 
‘‘(C) Biological detection and analysis 
equipment. 
‘‘(D) Chemical detection and analysis 
equipment. 
‘‘(E) Decontamination and sterilization 
equipment. 
‘‘(F) Personal protective equipment, in-
cluding garments, boots, gloves, and hoods and 
other protective clothing. 
‘‘(G) Respiratory protection equipment. 
‘‘(H) Interoperable communications, in-
cluding wireless and wireline voice, video, and 
data networks. 
‘‘(I) Explosive mitigation devices and ex-
plosive detection and analysis equipment. 
‘‘(J) Containment vessels.
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‘‘(K) Contaminant-resistant vehicles. 
‘‘(L) Such other equipment for which the 
Secretary determines that national voluntary 
consensus standards would be appropriate. 
‘‘(b) TRAINING STANDARDS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with the Under Secretaries for Emergency Pre-
paredness and Response and Science and Tech-
nology and the Director of the Office for Domestic 
Preparedness, shall support the development of, pro-
mulgate, and regularly update as necessary national 
voluntary consensus standards for first responder 
training carried out with amounts provided under 
covered grant programs, that will enable State and 
local government first responders to achieve optimal 
levels of terrorism preparedness as quickly as prac-
ticable. Such standards shall give priority to pro-
viding training to— 
‘‘(A) enable first responders to prevent, 
prepare for, respond to, mitigate against, and 
recover from terrorist threats, including threats 
from chemical, biological, nuclear, and radio-
logical weapons and explosive devices capable of 
inflicting significant human casualties; and
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‘‘(B) familiarize first responders with the 
proper use of equipment, including software, 
developed pursuant to the standards established 
under subsection (a). 
‘‘(2) REQUIRED CATEGORIES.—In carrying out 
paragraph (1), the Secretary specifically shall in-
clude the following categories of first responder ac-
tivities: 
‘‘(A) Regional planning. 
‘‘(B) Joint exercises. 
‘‘(C) Intelligence collection, analysis, and 
sharing. 
‘‘(D) Emergency notification of affected 
populations. 
‘‘(E) Detection of biological, nuclear, radi-
ological, and chemical weapons of mass destruc-
tion. 
‘‘(F) Such other activities for which the 
Secretary determines that national voluntary 
consensus training standards would be appro-
priate. 
‘‘(3) CONSISTENCY.—In carrying out this sub-
section, the Secretary shall ensure that such training 
standards are consistent with the principles of emer-
gency preparedness for all hazards.
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‘‘(c) CONSULTATION WITH STANDARDS ORGANIZA-
TIONS.—In establishing national voluntary consensus 
standards for first responder equipment and training 
under this section, the Secretary shall consult with rel-
evant public and private sector groups, including— 
‘‘(1) the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology; 
‘‘(2) the National Fire Protection Association; 
‘‘(3) the National Association of County and 
City Health Officials; 
‘‘(4) the Association of State and Territorial 
Health Officials; 
‘‘(5) the American National Standards Insti-
tute; 
‘‘(6) the National Institute of Justice; 
‘‘(7) the Inter-Agency Board for Equipment 
Standardization and Interoperability; 
‘‘(8) the National Public Health Performance 
Standards Program; 
‘‘(9) the National Institute for Occupational 
Safety and Health; 
‘‘(10) ASTM International; 
‘‘(11) the International Safety Equipment Asso-
ciation;
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‘‘(12) the Emergency Management Accredita-
tion Program; and 
‘‘(13) to the extent the Secretary considers ap-
propriate, other national voluntary consensus stand-
ards development organizations, other interested 
Federal, State, and local agencies, and other inter-
ested persons. 
‘‘(d) COORDINATION WITH SECRETARY OF HHS.— 
In establishing any national voluntary consensus stand-
ards under this section for first responder equipment or 
training that involve or relate to health professionals, in-
cluding emergency medical professionals, the Secretary 
shall coordinate activities under this section with the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services.’’. 
(b) DEFINITION OF EMERGENCY RESPONSE PRO-
VIDERS.—Paragraph (6) of section 2 of the Homeland Se-
curity Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–296; 6 U.S.C. 
101(6)) is amended by striking ‘‘includes’’ and all that 
follows and inserting ‘‘includes Federal, State, and local 
governmental and nongovernmental emergency public 
safety, law enforcement, fire, emergency response, emer-
gency medical (including hospital emergency facilities), 
and related personnel, organizations, agencies, and au-
thorities.’’.
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SEC. 4. SUPERSEDED PROVISION. 
This Act supersedes section 1014(c)(3) of Public Law 
107–56. 
SEC. 5. OVERSIGHT. 
The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish 
within the Office for Domestic Preparedness an Office of 
the Comptroller to oversee the grants distribution process 
and the financial management of the Office for Domestic 
Preparedness. 
SEC. 6. GAO REPORT ON AN INVENTORY AND STATUS OF 
HOMELAND SECURITY FIRST RESPONDER 
TRAINING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 
United States shall report to the Congress in accordance 
with this section— 
(1) on the overall inventory and status of first 
responder training programs of the Department of 
Homeland Security and other departments and 
agencies of the Federal Government; and 
(2) the extent to which such programs are co-
ordinated. 
(b) CONTENTS OF REPORTS.—The reports under this 
section shall include— 
(1) an assessment of the effectiveness of the 
structure and organization of such training pro-
grams;
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(2) recommendations to— 
(A) improve the coordination, structure, 
and organization of such training programs; 
and 
(B) increase the availability of training to 
first responders who are not able to attend cen-
tralized training programs; 
(3) the structure and organizational effective-
ness of such programs for first responders in rural 
communities; 
(4) identification of any duplication or redun-
dancy among such programs; 
(5) a description of the use of State and local 
training institutions, universities, centers, and the 
National Domestic Preparedness Consortium in de-
signing and providing training; 
(6) a cost-benefit analysis of the costs and time 
required for first responders to participate in train-
ing courses at Federal institutions; 
(7) an assessment of the approval process for 
certifying non-Department of Homeland Security 
training courses that are useful for anti-terrorism 
purposes as eligible for grants awarded by the De-
partment;
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(8) a description of the use of Department of 
Homeland Security grant funds by States and local 
governments to acquire training; 
(9) an analysis of the feasibility of Federal, 
State, and local personnel to receive the training 
that is necessary to adopt the National Response 
Plan and the National Incident Management Sys-
tem; and 
(10) the role of each first responder training in-
stitution within the Department of Homeland Secu-
rity in the design and implementation of terrorism 
preparedness and related training courses for first 
responders. 
(c) DEADLINES.—The Comptroller General shall— 
(1) submit a report under subsection (a)(1) by 
not later than 60 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act; and 
(2) submit a report on the remainder of the 
topics required by this section by not later than 120 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 7. REMOVAL OF CIVIL LIABILITY BARRIERS THAT DIS-
COURAGE THE DONATION OF FIRE EQUIP-
MENT TO VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANIES. 
(a) LIABILITY PROTECTION.—A person who donates 
fire control or fire rescue equipment to a volunteer fire
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company shall not be liable for civil damages under any 
State or Federal law for personal injuries, property dam-
age or loss, or death caused by the equipment after the 
donation. 
(b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) does not apply to 
a person if— 
(1) the person’s act or omission causing the in-
jury, damage, loss, or death constitutes gross neg-
ligence or intentional misconduct; or 
(2) the person is the manufacturer of the fire 
control or fire rescue equipment. 
(c) PREEMPTION.—This Act preempts the laws of 
any State to the extent that such laws are inconsistent 
with this Act, except that notwithstanding subsection (b) 
this Act shall not preempt any State law that provides 
additional protection from liability for a person who do-
nates fire control or fire rescue equipment to a volunteer 
fire company. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ includes any 
governmental or other entity. 
(2) FIRE CONTROL OR RESCUE EQUIPMENT.— 
The term ‘‘fire control or fire rescue equipment’’ in-
cludes any fire vehicle, fire fighting tool, communica-
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tions equipment, protective gear, fire hose, or 
breathing apparatus. 
(3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the 
several States, the District of Columbia, the Com-
monwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, 
the Virgin Islands, any other territory or possession 
of the United States, and any political subdivision of 
any such State, territory, or possession. 
(4) VOLUNTEER
FIRE
COMPANY.—The term 
‘‘volunteer fire company’’ means an association of 
individuals who provide fire protection and other 
emergency services, where at least 30 percent of the 
individuals receive little or no compensation com-
pared with an entry level full-time paid individual in 
that association or in the nearest such association 
with an entry level full-time paid individual. 
(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This Act applies only to li-
ability for injury, damage, loss, or death caused by equip-
ment that, for purposes of subsection (a), is donated on 
or after the date that is 30 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act. 
Passed the House of Representatives May 12, 2005. 
Attest: 
JEFF TRANDAHL, 
Clerk.