I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7915 
To direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to design and establish a 
pilot program to facilitate voluntary information sharing between State, 
local, and regional fusion centers and certain technology companies re-
lated to threats of imminent violence, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 31, 2020 
Mr. MCCAUL (for himself and Mr. LANGEVIN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition 
to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently 
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provi-
sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to design 
and establish a pilot program to facilitate voluntary in-
formation sharing between State, local, and regional fu-
sion centers and certain technology companies related 
to threats of imminent violence, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This bill can be referred to as the ‘‘Protecting Amer-
ica through Information Sharing Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM TO RESPOND 
TO THREATS OF IMMINENT VIOLENCE. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT
OF
PILOT
PROGRAM.—Not 
later than one year after enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the pro-
gram manager of the information sharing environment de-
fined in section 1016(a)(3) of the Intelligence Reform and 
Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, the Attorney General, 
the Privacy Officer of the Department of Homeland Secu-
rity, the Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties of the 
Department of Homeland Security, the Office of the Gen-
eral Counsel of the Department of Homeland Security, 
and the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, and 
other relevant agency heads, shall establish a pilot pro-
gram to facilitate the voluntary sharing of information by 
social networking website companies regarding threats of 
imminent violence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as 
‘‘threats’’) posted on such websites. 
(b) PRINCIPLES.—Prior to establishing the pilot pro-
gram, the Secretary shall consult with the entities de-
scribed in subsection (a), social networking website compa-
nies, and civil liberty and privacy groups within 90 days 
of enactments to establish a policy framework to guide the 
activities of the pilot program. The framework shall in-
clude the following: 
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(1) The sharing of information between social 
networking website companies and law enforcement 
shall be consistent with federally recognized informa-
tion-sharing practices and utilize the Nationwide 
Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Initiative 
(NSI). 
(2) Nothing in this pilot program shall require 
social networking website companies to violate the 
website’s internal terms and conditions or to disclose 
any information to a participant in the pilot pro-
gram, beyond any existing legal requirements as of 
the date of enactment of this Act. 
(3) The pilot program shall establish a basis for 
what is determined to be a threat, and what the cri-
teria are for determining its credibility. 
(4) There is a policy framework established to 
protect the disclosure of threat information. 
(5) Any framework established for sharing 
threat information shall include the consultation of 
civil liberty and privacy groups on a biannual basis 
to discuss the development of a framework pro-
tecting civil liberties and privacy, and the enforce-
ment of policies guiding the pilot program in pro-
tecting civil liberties and privacy consistent with ex-
isting law. 
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(6) The pilot program is intended to focus on 
threats in the United States, while permitting the 
data collection and dissemination of all data whether 
international or domestic in origin. 
(7) The pilot program shall not infringe on civil 
liberties or privacy requirements consistent with ex-
isting law. 
(c) STRUCTURE.—In establishing this pilot program, 
the Secretary shall designate a Federal or SLTT law en-
forcement agency, or regional fusion center under section 
210A of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, to serve as 
a centralized clearinghouse between social networking 
website companies and appropriate law enforcement. 
(d) RESPONSIBILITY
OF
CLEARINGHOUSE.—This 
clearinghouse shall be responsible for— 
(1) receiving threats from social networking 
website companies and law enforcement regarding 
threats of imminent violence found on social media 
whether international or domestic; 
(2) analyzing such threats to turn such threats 
into actionable intelligence or distribute such threats 
to relevant Federal or SLTT law enforcement agen-
cies for further analysis whether international or do-
mestic; and 
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(3) disseminating such threats and actionable 
intelligence gathered from social networking website 
companies and law enforcement to appropriate Fed-
eral and SLTT law enforcement agencies. 
(e) CRITERIA FOR CLEARINGHOUSE.—Fusion centers 
shall apply for consideration as the centralized clearing-
house. In choosing the centralized clearinghouse, the Sec-
retary shall consider— 
(1) the entities’ capacity to work in partnership 
with social networking website companies and Fed-
eral, State and local law enforcement entities; 
(2) the entities’ capacity to disseminate threat 
information in a timely manner to the appropriate 
Federal or SLTT law enforcement agency; 
(3) similar existing programs that successfully 
leverage relationships with social networking website 
companies and Federal and SLTT law enforcement 
agencies to engage in information sharing related to 
threats of imminent violence; 
(4) the capacity of the clearinghouse to utilize 
existing information sharing networks; and 
(5) usage of existing, accredited information 
sharing networks such as the Homeland Security In-
formation Network. 
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(f) PARTICIPATION.—In establishing this pilot pro-
gram, the Secretary shall conduct outreach to fusion cen-
ters, other law enforcement agencies and social networking 
website companies to educate them on the pilot program, 
and invite appropriate entities to participate in this vol-
untary program. 
SEC. 3. OVERTIME PAY. 
Each member of the pilot program (other than those 
from participating social media networking website com-
panies) (and each individual from any SLTT law enforce-
ment agency working on the pilot program) shall remain 
as an employee of that member’s or individual’s respective 
agency for all purposes (including the purpose of perform-
ance review), and service with the pilot program shall be 
without interruption or loss of civil service privilege or sta-
tus and on a nonreimbursable basis, except if appropriate 
to reimburse SLTT law enforcement agencies for overtime 
costs for an individual appointed to work with the resource 
team. Additionally, reimbursement of travel and per diem 
expenses will occur for SLTT law enforcement officers for 
purposes of activities engaged in only by reason of partici-
pation in the pilot program. 
SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—No cause of action shall lie in any 
court— 
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(1) against a social media website company or 
other private entity for information provided in good 
faith regarding threats of imminent violence in the 
course of participation in the pilot program estab-
lished in section 2(a); 
(2) against a social media website company or 
other private entity for information withheld in good 
faith regarding threats of imminent violence to the 
pilot program established in section 2(a); 
(3) against the clearinghouse established in sec-
tion 2(c) or members of law enforcement for acting 
on a threat received via the pilot program estab-
lished in section 2(a); and 
(4) against the clearinghouse established in sec-
tion 2(c) or members of law enforcement for not act-
ing on a threat received via the pilot program estab-
lished in section 2(a). 
(b) INTENTIONAL, RECKLESS, OR
OTHER
MIS-
CONDUCT.—Subsection(a) does not apply to a claim if the 
social networking website company, or a director, officer, 
employee, parent, contractor, or agent of that social net-
working website company— 
(1) engaged in intentional misconduct; or 
(2) acted, or failed to act— 
(A) with actual malice; 
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(B) with reckless disregard to a substantial 
risk of causing injury without legal justification; 
or 
(C) for a purpose unrelated to the per-
formance of any responsibility or function de-
scribed in paragraph (3). 
(c) EXCEPTION.—The limitation of liability as de-
scribed in subsection (a)(1) and (a)(2) only applies should 
social networking website companies choose to participate 
in the pilot program as described in section 2(a). 
SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 
(a) SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITE COMPANY PAR-
TICIPATION.—Nothing in this Act may be construed to re-
quire any social networking website, to participate in the 
pilot program or to disclose any information to a partici-
pant in the pilot program. No Federal or State liability, 
or any other actionable adverse consequence, may be im-
posed on such website company based on its decision not 
to do so. 
(b) ACTING ON A REPORTED THREAT.—Nothing in 
this Act shall be construed to require any Federal or 
SLTT law enforcement agency to open an investigation 
or act in accordance with a threat received from the clear-
inghouse established in section 2(c). Any government ac-
tion with respect to information received from the clear-
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inghouse may only be taken consistent with existing au-
thorities and obligations. 
(c) CONSISTENT WITH EXISTING LAW.—Information 
voluntarily shared by social networking website companies 
through the pilot program established in this Act shall re-
main in accordance with section 2702(c) of title 18, 
United States Code. 
(d) PROTECTION OF CIVIL LIBERTIES.—The pilot 
program shall adhere to constitutional rights and existing 
laws on civil liberties and privacy. 
(e) SUBSCRIBER DATA.—Information shared through 
the pilot program shall not include subscriber data as de-
scribed in the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 
1986. 
SEC. 6. REPORT. 
No later than 2 years after enactment, the Secretary, 
in consultation with entities participating in the pilot pro-
gram, shall report to Congress on the pilot program estab-
lished in section 2 that assesses— 
(1) the capability of social networking website 
companies to identify public posts indicating threats 
of imminent violence, and their capacity to share 
such threats with the clearinghouse established as 
part of the pilot program; 
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(2) the total number of notifications shared be-
tween participating social networking website compa-
nies and the clearinghouse of the pilot program re-
garding threats of imminent violence; 
(3) the time it took participating social net-
working website companies to flag threats of immi-
nent violence posted on their platforms to the clear-
inghouse; 
(4) the time it took the clearinghouse to convert 
threats received from social networking website com-
panies into actionable intelligence; 
(5) the time it took the clearinghouse to dis-
seminate threats from social networking website 
companies to appropriate law enforcement entities; 
and 
(6) to the extent practicable, the number of 
times a threat passing through the clearinghouse led 
to an active law enforcement response. 
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITE COMPANY.— 
The term ‘‘social networking website company’’ 
means a company that maintains an internet 
website— 
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(A) that allows users, through the creation 
of web pages or profiles or by other means, to 
provide information about themselves or others 
that is available to the public or to other users; 
or 
(B) that offers a mechanism for commu-
nication with other users, including any con-
tractors or agents used by the website company 
to act on behalf of the website company in car-
rying out the purposes of this Act. 
(2) THREAT
OF
IMMINENT
VIOLENCE.—The 
term ‘‘threat of imminent violence’’ means any inci-
dent in which there is a reasonable indication that 
an individual or group suggest an intent to immi-
nently inflict injury or death to oneself or others, or 
terrorism as defined by section 2(18) of the Home-
land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101(18)) or an 
attack that otherwise lacks a clearly discernible po-
litical or ideological motivation. 
(3) SLTT LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.—The 
term ‘‘SLTT law enforcement agency’’ means a 
State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement 
agency. 
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SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There is authorized to be appropriated $3,000,000 
for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2021 to the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security to carry out subsections (a), 
(e), and (f) of section 2 and to pay overtime; any amounts 
remaining at the conclusion of fiscal year 2021 shall be 
transferred to the centralized clearinghouse to maintain 
the pilot program. 
Æ 
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