506 
markets, or (II) the transmission or processing 
of securities transactions (other than trans-
actions in exempted securities). 
‘‘(B) An order of the Commission under this 
paragraph (2) shall continue in effect for the period 
specified by the Commission, and may be extended. 
Except as provided in subparagraph (C), the Com-
mission’s action may not continue in effect for more 
than 30 business days, including extensions. 
‘‘(C) An order of the Commission under this 
paragraph (2) may be extended to continue in effect 
for more than 30 business days if, at the time of the 
extension, the Commission finds that the emergency 
still exists and determines that the continuation of 
the order beyond 30 business days is necessary in 
the public interest and for the protection of investors 
to attain an objective described in clause (i), (ii), or 
(iii) of subparagraph (A). In no event shall an order 
of the Commission under this paragraph (2) con-
tinue in effect for more than 90 calendar days. 
‘‘(D) If the actions described in subparagraph 
(A) involve a security futures product, the Commis-
sion shall consult with and consider the views of the 
Commodity Futures Trading Commission. In exer-
cising its authority under this paragraph, the Com-
507 
mission shall not be required to comply with the pro-
visions of section 553 of title 5, United States Code, 
or with the provisions of section 19(c) of this title. 
‘‘(E) Notwithstanding the exclusion of exempt-
ed securities (and markets therein) from the Com-
mission’s authority under subparagraph (A), the 
Commission may use such authority to take action 
to alter, supplement, suspend, or impose require-
ments or restrictions with respect to clearing agen-
cies for transactions in such exempted securities. In 
taking any action under this subparagraph, the 
Commission shall consult with and consider the 
views of the Secretary of the Treasury.’’. 
(b) CONSULTATION; DEFINITION OF EMERGENCY.— 
Section 12(k) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 
U.S.C. 78l(k)) is further amended by striking paragraph 
(6) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(6) CONSULTATION.—Prior to taking any ac-
tion described in paragraph (1)(B), the Commission 
shall consult with and consider the views of the Sec-
retary of the Treasury, Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System, and the Commodity Fu-
tures Trading Commission, unless such consultation 
is impracticable in light of the emergency. 
‘‘(7) DEFINITIONS.—
508 
‘‘(A) EMERGENCY.—For purposes of this 
subsection, the term ‘emergency’ means— 
‘‘(i) a major market disturbance char-
acterized by or constituting— 
‘‘(I) sudden and excessive fluc-
tuations of securities prices generally, 
or a substantial threat thereof, that 
threaten fair and orderly markets; or 
‘‘(II) a substantial disruption of 
the safe or efficient operation of the 
national system for clearance and set-
tlement of transactions in securities, 
or a substantial threat thereof; or 
‘‘(ii) a major disturbance that sub-
stantially disrupts, or threatens to substan-
tially disrupt— 
‘‘(I) the functioning of securities 
markets, investment companies, or 
any other significant portion or seg-
ment of the securities markets; or 
‘‘(II) the transmission or proc-
essing of securities transactions. 
‘‘(B) SECURITIES LAWS.—Notwithstanding 
section 3(a)(47), for purposes of this sub-
section, the term ‘securities laws’ does not in-
509 
clude the Public Utility Holding Company Act 
of 1935 (15 U.S.C. 79a et seq.).’’. 
SEC. 5083. PARALLEL AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY OF 
THE TREASURY WITH RESPECT TO GOVERN-
MENT SECURITIES. 
Section 15C of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(15 U.S.C. 78o–5) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection: 
‘‘(h) EMERGENCY AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may 
by order take any action with respect to a matter or action 
subject to regulation by the Secretary under this section, 
or the rules of the Secretary thereunder, involving a gov-
ernment security or a market therein (or significant por-
tion or segment of that market), that the Commission may 
take under section 12(k)(2) of this title with respect to 
transactions in securities (other than exempted securities) 
or a market therein (or significant portion or segment of 
that market).’’. 
Subtitle H—Other Matters 
Chapter 1—Privacy Matters 
SEC. 5091. REQUIREMENT THAT AGENCY RULEMAKING 
TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION IMPACTS ON IN-
DIVIDUAL PRIVACY. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 
‘‘Federal Agency Protection of Privacy Act of 2004’’.
510 
(b) IN GENERAL.—Title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by adding after section 553 the following new 
section: 
‘‘§ 553a. Privacy impact assessment in rulemaking 
‘‘(a) INITIAL PRIVACY IMPACT ASSESSMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever an agency is re-
quired by section 553 of this title, or any other law, 
to publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking 
for a proposed rule, or publishes a notice of pro-
posed rulemaking for an interpretative rule involving 
the internal revenue laws of the United States, and 
such rule or proposed rulemaking pertains to the 
collection, maintenance, use, or disclosure of person-
ally identifiable information from 10 or more indi-
viduals, other than agencies, instrumentalities, or 
employees of the Federal government, the agency 
shall prepare and make available for public comment 
an initial privacy impact assessment that describes 
the impact of the proposed rule on the privacy of in-
dividuals. Such assessment or a summary thereof 
shall be signed by the senior agency official with pri-
mary responsibility for privacy policy and be pub-
lished in the Federal Register at the time of the 
publication of a general notice of proposed rule-
making for the rule.
511 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each initial privacy impact 
assessment required under this subsection shall con-
tain the following: 
‘‘(A) A description and analysis of the ex-
tent to which the proposed rule will impact the 
privacy interests of individuals, including the 
extent to which the proposed rule— 
‘‘(i) provides notice of the collection of 
personally identifiable information, and 
specifies what personally identifiable infor-
mation is to be collected and how it is to 
be collected, maintained, used, and dis-
closed; 
‘‘(ii) allows access to such information 
by the person to whom the personally iden-
tifiable information pertains and provides 
an opportunity to correct inaccuracies; 
‘‘(iii) 
prevents 
such 
information, 
which is collected for one purpose, from 
being used for another purpose; and 
‘‘(iv) provides security for such infor-
mation. 
‘‘(B) A description of any significant alter-
natives to the proposed rule which accomplish 
the stated objectives of applicable statutes and
512 
which minimize any significant privacy impact 
of the proposed rule on individuals. 
‘‘(b) FINAL PRIVACY IMPACT ASSESSMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever an agency pro-
mulgates a final rule under section 553 of this title, 
after being required by that section or any other law 
to publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking, 
or promulgates a final interpretative rule involving 
the internal revenue laws of the United States, and 
such rule or proposed rulemaking pertains to the 
collection, maintenance, use, or disclosure of person-
ally identifiable information from 10 or more indi-
viduals, other than agencies, instrumentalities, or 
employees of the Federal government, the agency 
shall prepare a final privacy impact assessment, 
signed by the senior agency official with primary re-
sponsibility for privacy policy. 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each final privacy impact as-
sessment required under this subsection shall con-
tain the following: 
‘‘(A) A description and analysis of the ex-
tent to which the final rule will impact the pri-
vacy interests of individuals, including the ex-
tent to which such rule—
513 
‘‘(i) provides notice of the collection of 
personally identifiable information, and 
specifies what personally identifiable infor-
mation is to be collected and how it is to 
be collected, maintained, used, and dis-
closed; 
‘‘(ii) allows access to such information 
by the person to whom the personally iden-
tifiable information pertains and provides 
an opportunity to correct inaccuracies; 
‘‘(iii) 
prevents 
such 
information, 
which is collected for one purpose, from 
being used for another purpose; and 
‘‘(iv) provides security for such infor-
mation. 
‘‘(B) A summary of any significant issues 
raised by the public comments in response to 
the initial privacy impact assessment, a sum-
mary of the analysis of the agency of such 
issues, and a statement of any changes made in 
such rule as a result of such issues. 
‘‘(C) A description of the steps the agency 
has taken to minimize the significant privacy 
impact on individuals consistent with the stated 
objectives of applicable statutes, including a
514 
statement of the factual, policy, and legal rea-
sons for selecting the alternative adopted in the 
final rule and why each one of the other signifi-
cant alternatives to the rule considered by the 
agency which affect the privacy interests of in-
dividuals was rejected. 
‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY
TO
PUBLIC.—The agency 
shall make copies of the final privacy impact assess-
ment available to members of the public and shall 
publish in the Federal Register such assessment or 
a summary thereof. 
‘‘(c) WAIVERS.— 
‘‘(1) EMERGENCIES.—An agency head may 
waive or delay the completion of some or all of the 
requirements of subsections (a) and (b) to the same 
extent as the agency head may, under section 608, 
waive or delay the completion of some or all of the 
requirements of sections 603 and 604, respectively. 
‘‘(2) NATIONAL
SECURITY.—An agency head 
may, for national security reasons, or to protect 
from disclosure classified information, confidential 
commercial information, or information the disclo-
sure of which may adversely affect a law enforce-
ment effort, waive or delay the completion of some 
or all of the following requirements:
515 
‘‘(A) The requirement of subsection (a)(1) 
to make an assessment available for public com-
ment. 
‘‘(B) The requirement of subsection (a)(1) 
to have an assessment or summary thereof pub-
lished in the Federal Register. 
‘‘(C) The requirements of subsection 
(b)(3). 
‘‘(d) PROCEDURES FOR GATHERING COMMENTS.— 
When any rule is promulgated which may have a signifi-
cant privacy impact on individuals, or a privacy impact 
on a substantial number of individuals, the head of the 
agency promulgating the rule or the official of the agency 
with statutory responsibility for the promulgation of the 
rule shall assure that individuals have been given an op-
portunity to participate in the rulemaking for the rule 
through techniques such as— 
‘‘(1) the inclusion in an advance notice of pro-
posed rulemaking, if issued, of a statement that the 
proposed rule may have a significant privacy impact 
on individuals, or a privacy impact on a substantial 
number of individuals; 
‘‘(2) the publication of a general notice of pro-
posed rulemaking in publications of national circula-
tion likely to be obtained by individuals;
516 
‘‘(3) the direct notification of interested individ-
uals; 
‘‘(4) the conduct of open conferences or public 
hearings concerning the rule for individuals, includ-
ing soliciting and receiving comments over computer 
networks; and 
‘‘(5) the adoption or modification of agency 
procedural rules to reduce the cost or complexity of 
participation in the rulemaking by individuals. 
‘‘(e) PERIODIC REVIEW OF RULES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Each agency shall carry 
out a periodic review of the rules promulgated by the 
agency that have a significant privacy impact on in-
dividuals, or a privacy impact on a substantial num-
ber of individuals. Under such periodic review, the 
agency shall determine, for each such rule, whether 
the rule can be amended or rescinded in a manner 
that minimizes any such impact while remaining in 
accordance with applicable statutes. For each such 
determination, the agency shall consider the fol-
lowing factors: 
‘‘(A) The continued need for the rule. 
‘‘(B) The nature of complaints or com-
ments received from the public concerning the 
rule.
517 
‘‘(C) The complexity of the rule. 
‘‘(D) The extent to which the rule over-
laps, duplicates, or conflicts with other Federal 
rules, and, to the extent feasible, with State and 
local governmental rules. 
‘‘(E) The length of time since the rule was 
last reviewed under this subsection. 
‘‘(F) The degree to which technology, eco-
nomic conditions, or other factors have changed 
in the area affected by the rule since the rule 
was last reviewed under this subsection. 
‘‘(2) PLAN
REQUIRED.—Each agency shall 
carry out the periodic review required by paragraph 
(1) in accordance with a plan published by such 
agency in the Federal Register. Each such plan shall 
provide for the review under this subsection of each 
rule promulgated by the agency not later than 10 
years after the date on which such rule was pub-
lished as the final rule and, thereafter, not later 
than 10 years after the date on which such rule was 
last reviewed under this subsection. The agency may 
amend such plan at any time by publishing the revi-
sion in the Federal Register. 
‘‘(3) ANNUAL PUBLICATION.—Each year, each 
agency shall publish in the Federal Register a list of
518 
the rules to be reviewed by such agency under this 
subsection during the following year. The list shall 
include a brief description of each such rule and the 
need for and legal basis of such rule and shall invite 
public comment upon the determination to be made 
under this subsection with respect to such rule. 
‘‘(f) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For any rule subject to this 
section, an individual who is adversely affected or 
aggrieved by final agency action is entitled to judi-
cial review of agency compliance with the require-
ments of subsections (b) and (c) in accordance with 
chapter 7. Agency compliance with subsection (d) 
shall be judicially reviewable in connection with judi-
cial review of subsection (b). 
‘‘(2) JURISDICTION.—Each court having juris-
diction to review such rule for compliance with sec-
tion 553, or under any other provision of law, shall 
have jurisdiction to review any claims of noncompli-
ance with subsections (b) and (c) in accordance with 
chapter 7. Agency compliance with subsection (d) 
shall be judicially reviewable in connection with judi-
cial review of subsection (b). 
‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.—
519 
‘‘(A) An individual may seek such review 
during the period beginning on the date of final 
agency action and ending 1 year later, except 
that where a provision of law requires that an 
action challenging a final agency action be com-
menced before the expiration of 1 year, such 
lesser period shall apply to an action for judicial 
review under this subsection. 
‘‘(B) In the case where an agency delays 
the issuance of a final privacy impact assess-
ment pursuant to subsection (c), an action for 
judicial review under this section shall be filed 
not later than— 
‘‘(i) 1 year after the date the assess-
ment is made available to the public; or 
‘‘(ii) where a provision of law requires 
that an action challenging a final agency 
regulation be commenced before the expi-
ration of the 1-year period, the number of 
days specified in such provision of law that 
is after the date the assessment is made 
available to the public. 
‘‘(4) RELIEF.—In granting any relief in an ac-
tion under this subsection, the court shall order the 
agency to take corrective action consistent with this
520 
section and chapter 7, including, but not limited 
to— 
‘‘(A) remanding the rule to the agency; 
and 
‘‘(B) deferring the enforcement of the rule 
against individuals, unless the court finds that 
continued enforcement of the rule is in the pub-
lic interest. 
‘‘(5) RULE
OF
CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 
this subsection shall be construed to limit the au-
thority of any court to stay the effective date of any 
rule or provision thereof under any other provision 
of law or to grant any other relief in addition to the 
requirements of this subsection. 
‘‘(6) RECORD OF AGENCY ACTION.—In an ac-
tion for the judicial review of a rule, the privacy im-
pact assessment for such rule, including an assess-
ment prepared or corrected pursuant to paragraph 
(4), shall constitute part of the entire record of 
agency action in connection with such review. 
‘‘(7) EXCLUSIVITY.—Compliance or noncompli-
ance by an agency with the provisions of this section 
shall be subject to judicial review only in accordance 
with this subsection.
521 
‘‘(8) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this sub-
section bars judicial review of any other impact 
statement or similar assessment required by any 
other law if judicial review of such statement or as-
sessment is otherwise permitted by law. 
‘‘(g) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 
term ‘personally identifiable information’ means informa-
tion that can be used to identify an individual, including 
such individual’s name, address, telephone number, photo-
graph, social security number or other identifying infor-
mation. It includes information about such individual’s 
medical or financial condition.’’. 
(c) PERIODIC REVIEW TRANSITION PROVISIONS.— 
(1) INITIAL PLAN.—For each agency, the plan 
required by subsection (e) of section 553a of title 5, 
United States Code (as added by subsection (a)), 
shall be published not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
(2) In the case of a rule promulgated by an 
agency before the date of the enactment of this Act, 
such plan shall provide for the periodic review of 
such rule before the expiration of the 10-year period 
beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act. 
For any such rule, the head of the agency may pro-
vide for a 1-year extension of such period if the head
522 
of the agency, before the expiration of the period, 
certifies in a statement published in the Federal 
Register that reviewing such rule before the expira-
tion of the period is not feasible. The head of the 
agency may provide for additional 1-year extensions 
of the period pursuant to the preceding sentence, 
but in no event may the period exceed 15 years. 
(d) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW.—Section 801(a)(1)(B) 
of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating clauses (iii) and (iv) as 
clauses (iv) and (v), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after clause (ii) the following 
new clause: 
‘‘(iii) the agency’s actions relevant to section 
553a;’’. 
(e) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
at the beginning of chapter 5 of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by adding after the item relating to sec-
tion 553 the following new item: 
553a. Privacy impact assessment in rulemaking.’’. 
SEC. 5092. CHIEF PRIVACY OFFICERS FOR AGENCIES WITH 
LAW ENFORCEMENT OR ANTI-TERRORISM 
FUNCTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There shall be within each Fed-
eral agency with law enforcement or anti-terrorism func-
tions a chief privacy officer, who shall have primary re-
523 
sponsibility within that agency for privacy policy. The 
agency chief privacy officer shall be designated by the 
head of the agency. 
(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The responsibilities of each 
agency chief privacy officer shall include— 
(1) ensuring that the use of technologies sus-
tains, and does not erode, privacy protections relat-
ing to the use, collection, and disclosure of person-
ally identifiable information; 
(2) ensuring that personally identifiable infor-
mation contained in systems of records is handled in 
full compliance with fair information practices as set 
out in section 552a of title 5, United States Code; 
(3) evaluating legislative and regulatory pro-
posals involving collection, use, and disclosure of 
personally identifiable information by the Federal 
Government; 
(4) conducting a privacy impact assessment of 
proposed rules of the agency on the privacy of per-
sonally identifiable information, including the type of 
personally identifiable information collected and the 
number of people affected; 
(5) preparing and submitting a report to Con-
gress on an annual basis on activities of the agency 
that affect privacy, including complaints of privacy
524 
violations, implementation of section 552a of title 5, 
United States Code, internal controls, and other rel-
evant matters; 
(6) ensuring that the agency protects personally 
identifiable information and information systems 
from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disrup-
tion, modification, or destruction in order to pro-
vide— 
(A) 
integrity, 
which 
means 
guarding 
against improper information modification or 
destruction, and includes ensuring information 
nonrepudiation and authenticity; 
(B) confidentially, which means preserving 
authorized restrictions on access and disclosure, 
including means for protecting personal privacy 
and proprietary information; 
(C) availability, which means ensuring 
timely and reliable access to and use of that in-
formation; and 
(D) authentication, which means utilizing 
digital credentials to assure the identity of 
users and validate their access; and 
(7) advising the head of the agency and the Di-
rector of the Office of Management and Budget on
525 
information security and privacy issues pertaining to 
Federal Government information systems. 
CHAPTER 2—MUTUAL AID AND 
LITIGATION MANAGEMENT 
SEC. 5101. SHORT TITLE. 
This chapter may be cited as the ‘‘Mutual Aid and 
Litigation Management Authorization Act of 2004’’. 
SEC. 5102. MUTUAL AID AUTHORIZED. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION
TO
ENTER
INTO
AGREE-
MENTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The authorized representa-
tive of a State, locality, or the Federal Government 
may enter into an interstate mutual aid agreement 
or a mutual aid agreement with the Federal Govern-
ment on behalf of the State, locality, or Federal 
Government under which, at the request of any 
party to the agreement, the other party to the agree-
ment may— 
(A) provide law enforcement, fire, rescue, 
emergency health and medical services, trans-
portation, communications, public works and 
engineering, mass care, and resource support in 
an emergency or public service event occurring 
in the jurisdiction of the requesting party;
526 
(B) provide other services to prepare for, 
mitigate, manage, respond to, or recover from 
an emergency or public service event occurring 
in the jurisdiction of the requesting party; and 
(C) participate in training events occurring 
in the jurisdiction of the requesting party. 
(b) LIABILITY AND ACTIONS AT LAW.— 
(1) LIABILITY.—A responding party or its offi-
cers or employees shall be liable on account of any 
act or omission occurring while providing assistance 
or participating in a training event in the jurisdic-
tion of a requesting party under a mutual aid agree-
ment (including any act or omission arising from the 
maintenance or use of any equipment, facilities, or 
supplies in connection therewith), but only to the ex-
tent permitted under and in accordance with the 
laws and procedures of the State of the responding 
party and subject to this chapter. 
(2) JURISDICTION OF COURTS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B) and section 3, any action brought 
against a responding party or its officers or em-
ployees on account of an act or omission de-
scribed in subsection (b)(1) may be brought 
only under the laws and procedures of the State
527 
of the responding party and only in the State 
courts or United States District Courts located 
therein. 
(B) UNITED
STATES
AS
PARTY.—If the 
United States is the party against whom an ac-
tion described in paragraph (1) is brought, the 
action may be brought only in a United States 
District Court. 
(c) WORKERS’ COMPENSATION AND DEATH BENE-
FITS.— 
(1) PAYMENT
OF
BENEFITS.—A responding 
party shall provide for the payment of workers’ com-
pensation and death benefits with respect to officers 
or employees of the party who sustain injuries or are 
killed while providing assistance or participating in 
a training event under a mutual aid agreement in 
the same manner and on the same terms as if the 
injury or death were sustained within the jurisdic-
tion of the responding party. 
(2) LIABILITY FOR BENEFITS.—No party shall 
be liable under the law of any State other than its 
own (or, in the case of the Federal Government, 
under any law other than Federal law) for the pay-
ment of workers’ compensation and death benefits 
with respect to injured officers or employees of the
528 
party who sustain injuries or are killed while pro-
viding assistance or participating in a training event 
under a mutual aid agreement. 
(d) LICENSES AND PERMITS.—Whenever any person 
holds a license, certificate, or other permit issued by any 
responding party evidencing the meeting of qualifications 
for professional, mechanical, or other skills, such person 
will be deemed licensed, certified, or permitted by the re-
questing party to provide assistance involving such skill 
under a mutual aid agreement. 
(e) SCOPE.—Except to the extent provided in this 
section, the rights and responsibilities of the parties to a 
mutual aid agreement shall be as described in the mutual 
aid agreement. 
(f) EFFECT ON OTHER AGREEMENTS.—Nothing in 
this section precludes any party from entering into supple-
mentary mutual aid agreements with fewer than all the 
parties, or with another, or affects any other agreements 
already in force among any parties to such an agreement, 
including the Emergency Management Assistance Com-
pact (EMAC) under Public Law 104–321. 
(g) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.—Nothing in this sec-
tion may be construed to limit any other expressed or im-
plied authority of any entity of the Federal Government 
to enter into mutual aid agreements.
529 
(h) CONSISTENCY WITH STATE LAW.—A party may 
enter into a mutual aid agreement under this chapter only 
insofar as the agreement is in accord with State law. 
SEC. 5103. LITIGATION MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION TO ENTER INTO LITIGATION 
MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS.—The authorized represent-
ative of a State or locality may enter into a litigation man-
agement agreement on behalf of the State or locality. Such 
litigation management agreements may provide that all 
claims against such Emergency Response Providers aris-
ing out of, relating to, or resulting from an act of ter-
rorism when Emergency Response Providers from more 
than 1 State have acted in defense against, in response 
to, or recovery from such act shall be governed by the fol-
lowing provisions. 
(b) FEDERAL CAUSE OF ACTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall exist a Federal 
cause of action for claims against Emergency Re-
sponse Providers arising out of, relating to, or re-
sulting from an act of terrorism when Emergency 
Response Providers from more than 1 State have 
acted in defense against, in response to, or recovery 
from such act. As determined by the parties to a liti-
gation management agreement, the substantive law 
for decision in any such action shall be—
530 
(A) derived from the law, including choice 
of law principles, of the State in which such 
acts of terrorism occurred, unless such law is 
inconsistent with or preempted by Federal law; 
or 
(B) derived from the choice of law prin-
ciples agreed to by the parties to a litigation 
management agreement as described in the liti-
gation management agreement, unless such 
principles are inconsistent with or preempted by 
Federal law. 
(2) JURISDICTION.—Such appropriate district 
court of the United States shall have original and 
exclusive jurisdiction over all actions for any claim 
against Emergency Response Providers for loss of 
property, personal injury, or death arising out of, re-
lating to, or resulting from an act of terrorism when 
Emergency Response Providers from more than 1 
State have acted in defense against, in response to, 
or recovery from an act of terrorism. 
(3) SPECIAL RULES.—In an action brought for 
damages that is governed by a litigation manage-
ment agreement, the following provisions apply: 
(A) PUNITIVE
DAMAGES.—No punitive 
damages intended to punish or deter, exemplary
531 
damages, or other damages not intended to 
compensate a plaintiff for actual losses may be 
awarded, nor shall any party be liable for inter-
est prior to the judgment. 
(B) COLLATERAL SOURCES.—Any recovery 
by a plaintiff in an action governed by a litiga-
tion management agreement shall be reduced by 
the amount of collateral source compensation, if 
any, that the plaintiff has received or is entitled 
to receive as a result of such acts of terrorism. 
(4) EXCLUSIONS.—Nothing in this section shall 
in any way limit the ability of any person to seek 
any form of recovery from any person, government, 
or other entity that— 
(A) attempts to commit, knowingly partici-
pates in, aids and abets, or commits any act of 
terrorism, or any criminal act related to or re-
sulting from such act of terrorism; or 
(B) participates in a conspiracy to commit 
any such act of terrorism or any such criminal 
act. 
SEC. 5104. ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS. 
(a) NO ABROGATION
OF OTHER IMMUNITIES.— 
Nothing in this chapter shall abrogate any other immuni-
532 
ties from liability that any party may have under any 
other State or Federal law. 
(b) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN FEDERAL LAW EN-
FORCEMENT ACTIVITIES.—A mutual aid agreement or a 
litigation management agreement may not apply to law 
enforcement security operations at special events of na-
tional significance under section 3056(e) of title 18, 
United States Code, or to other law enforcement functions 
of the United States Secret Service. 
(c) SECRET SERVICE.—Section 3056 of title 18, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection: 
‘‘(g) The Secret Service shall be maintained as a dis-
tinct entity within the Department of Homeland Security 
and shall not be merged with any other department func-
tion. All personnel and operational elements of the United 
States Secret Service shall report to the Director of the 
Secret Service, who shall report directly to the Secretary 
of Homeland Security without being required to report 
through any other official of the Department.’’. 
SEC. 5105. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions 
apply: 
(1) AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE.—The term 
‘‘authorized representative’’ means—
533 
(A) in the case of the Federal Government, 
any individual designated by the President with 
respect to the executive branch, the Chief Jus-
tice of the United States with respect to the ju-
dicial branch, or the President pro Tempore of 
the Senate and Speaker of the House of Rep-
resentatives with respect to the Congress, or 
their designees, to enter into a mutual aid 
agreement; 
(B) in the case of a locality, the official 
designated by law to declare an emergency in 
and for the locality, or the official’s designee; 
(C) in the case of a State, the Governor or 
the Governor’s designee. 
(2) 
EMERGENCY.—The 
term 
‘‘emergency’’ 
means a major disaster or emergency declared by 
the President, or a State of Emergency declared by 
an authorized representative of a State or locality, in 
response to which assistance may be provided under 
a mutual aid agreement. 
(3) EMERGENCY
RESPONSE
PROVIDER.—The 
term ‘‘Emergency Response Provider’’ means State 
or local emergency public safety, law enforcement, 
emergency response, emergency medical (including 
hospital emergency facilities), and related personnel,
534 
agencies, and authorities that are a party to a litiga-
tion management agreement. 
(4) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ means, 
with respect to a party to a mutual aid agreement, 
the employees of the party, including its agents or 
authorized volunteers, who are committed to provide 
assistance under the agreement. 
(5) LITIGATION MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT.— 
The term ‘‘litigation management agreement’’ means 
an agreement entered into pursuant to the authority 
granted under section 5103. 
(6) LOCALITY.—The term ‘‘locality’’ means a 
county, city, or town. 
(7) MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘mu-
tual aid agreement’’ means an agreement entered 
into pursuant to the authority granted under section 
5102. 
(8) PUBLIC SERVICE EVENT.—The term ‘‘pub-
lic service event’’ means any undeclared emergency, 
incident, or situation in preparation for or response 
to which assistance may be provided under a mutual 
aid agreement. 
(9) REQUESTING PARTY.—The term ‘‘request-
ing party’’ means, with respect to a mutual aid 
agreement, the party in whose jurisdiction assistance
535 
is provided, or a training event is held, under the 
agreement. 
(10) RESPONDING PARTY.—The term ‘‘respond-
ing party’’ means, with respect to a mutual aid 
agreement, the party providing assistance, or partici-
pating in a training event, under the agreement, but 
does not include the requesting party. 
(11) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes each 
of the several States of the United States, the Dis-
trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, 
and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is-
lands, and any other territory or possession of the 
United States, and any political subdivision of any 
such place. 
(12) TRAINING
EVENT.—The term ‘‘training 
event’’ means an emergency and public service 
event-related exercise, test, or other activity using 
equipment and personnel to prepare for or simulate 
performance of any aspect of the giving or receiving 
of assistance during emergencies or public service 
events, but does not include an actual emergency or 
public service event.
536 
Chapter 3—Miscellaneous Matters 
SEC. 5131. ENHANCEMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY COMMU-
NICATIONS INTEROPERABILITY. 
(a) COORDINATION OF PUBLIC SAFETY INTEROPER-
ABLE COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAMS.— 
(1) PROGRAM.—The Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity, in consultation with the Secretary of Com-
merce and the Chairman of the Federal Communica-
tions Commission, shall establish a program to en-
hance public safety interoperable communications at 
all levels of government. Such program shall— 
(A) establish a comprehensive national ap-
proach to achieving public safety interoperable 
communications; 
(B) coordinate with other Federal agencies 
in carrying out subparagraph (A); 
(C) develop, in consultation with other ap-
propriate Federal agencies and State and local 
authorities, appropriate minimum capabilities 
for communications interoperability for Federal, 
State, and local public safety agencies; 
(D) accelerate, in consultation with other 
Federal agencies, including the National Insti-
tute of Standards and Technology, the private 
sector, and nationally recognized standards or-
537 
ganizations as appropriate, the development of 
national voluntary consensus standards for pub-
lic safety interoperable communications; 
(E) encourage the development and imple-
mentation of flexible and open architectures, 
with appropriate levels of security, for short- 
term and long-term solutions to public safety 
communications interoperability; 
(F) assist other Federal agencies in identi-
fying priorities for research, development, and 
testing and evaluation with regard to public 
safety interoperable communications; 
(G) identify priorities within the Depart-
ment of Homeland Security for research, devel-
opment, and testing and evaluation with regard 
to public safety interoperable communications; 
(H) establish coordinated guidance for 
Federal grant programs for public safety inter-
operable communications; 
(I) provide technical assistance to State 
and local public safety agencies regarding plan-
ning, acquisition strategies, interoperability ar-
chitectures, training, and other functions nec-
essary to achieve public safety communications 
interoperability;
538 
(J) develop and disseminate best practices 
to improve public safety communications inter-
operability; and 
(K) develop appropriate performance meas-
ures and milestones to systematically measure 
the Nation’s progress towards achieving public 
safety communications interoperability, includ-
ing the development of national voluntary con-
sensus standards. 
(2) OFFICE FOR INTEROPERABILITY AND COM-
PATIBILITY.— 
(A) ESTABLISHMENT
OF
OFFICE.—The 
Secretary may establish an Office for Interoper-
ability and Compatibility to carry out this sub-
section. 
(B) FUNCTIONS.—If the Secretary estab-
lishes such office, the Secretary shall, through 
such office— 
(i) carry out Department of Home-
land Security responsibilities and authori-
ties relating to the SAFECOM Program; 
and 
(ii) carry out subsection (c) (relating 
to rapid interoperable communications ca-
pabilities for high risk jurisdictions).
539 
(3) APPLICABILITY
OF
FEDERAL
ADVISORY 
COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee 
Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to advisory 
groups established and maintained by the Secretary 
for purposes of carrying out this subsection. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall report 
to the Congress on Department of Homeland Security 
plans for accelerating the development of national vol-
untary consensus standards for public safety interoperable 
communications, a schedule of milestones for such devel-
opment, and achievements of such development. 
(c) RAPID INTEROPERABLE COMMUNICATIONS CAPA-
BILITIES
FOR HIGH RISK JURISDICTIONS.—The Sec-
retary, in consultation with other relevant Federal, State, 
and local government agencies, shall provide technical, 
training, and other assistance as appropriate to support 
the rapid establishment of consistent, secure, and effective 
interoperable communications capabilities for emergency 
response providers in jurisdictions determined by the Sec-
retary to be at consistently high levels of risk of terrorist 
attack. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) INTEROPERABLE
COMMUNICATIONS.—The 
term ‘‘interoperable communications’’ means the
540 
ability of emergency response providers and relevant 
Federal, State, and local government agencies to 
communicate with each other as necessary, through 
a dedicated public safety network utilizing informa-
tion technology systems and radio communications 
systems, and to exchange voice, data, or video with 
one another on demand, in real time, as necessary. 
(2) EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROVIDERS.—The 
term ‘‘emergency response providers’’ has the mean-
ing that term has under section 2 of the Homeland 
Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101) 
(e) CLARIFICATION OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR INTER-
OPERABLE COMMUNICATIONS.— 
(1) UNDER SECRETARY FOR EMERGENCY PRE-
PAREDNESS AND RESPONSE.—Section 502(7) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 312(7)) 
is amended— 
(A) by striking ‘‘developing comprehensive 
programs for developing interoperative commu-
nications technology, and’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘such’’ and inserting 
‘‘interoperable communications’’. 
(2) OFFICE FOR DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS.— 
Section 430(c) of such Act (6 U.S.C. 238(c)) is 
amended—
541 
(A) in paragraph (7) by striking ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon; 
(B) in paragraph (8) by striking the period 
and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(9) helping to ensure the acquisition of inter-
operable communication technology by State and 
local governments and emergency response pro-
viders.’’. 
SEC. 5132. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE INCI-
DENT COMMAND SYSTEM. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that— 
(1) in Homeland Security Presidential Direc-
tive–5, the President directed the Secretary of 
Homeland Security to develop an incident command 
system to be known as the National Incident Man-
agement System (NIMS), and directed all Federal 
agencies to make the adoption of NIMS a condition 
for the receipt of Federal emergency preparedness 
assistance by States, territories, tribes, and local 
governments beginning in fiscal year 2005; 
(2) in March 2004, the Secretary of Homeland 
Security established NIMS, which provides a unified 
structural framework for Federal, State, territorial, 
tribal, and local governments to ensure coordination
542 
of command, operations, planning, logistics, finance, 
and administration during emergencies involving 
multiple jurisdictions or agencies; and 
(3) the National Commission on Terrorist At-
tacks Upon the United States strongly supports the 
adoption of NIMS by emergency response agencies 
nationwide, and the decision by the President to con-
dition Federal emergency preparedness assistance 
upon the adoption of NIMS. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the 
Congress that all levels of government should adopt 
NIMS, and that the regular use of and training in NIMS 
by States, territories, tribes, and local governments should 
be a condition for receiving Federal preparedness assist-
ance. 
SEC. 5133. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING UNITED 
STATES NORTHERN COMMAND PLANS AND 
STRATEGIES. 
It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of De-
fense should regularly assess the adequacy of United 
States Northern Command’s plans and strategies with a 
view to ensuring that the United States Northern Com-
mand is prepared to respond effectively to all military and 
paramilitary threats within the United States. 
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