United States Commission on an Open Society with Security Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.770 | Sponsor: Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes (D-DC)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
United States Commission on an Open Society with Security Act of 2021
This bill establishes the United States Commission on an Open Society with Security to study how the government may provide for both security in, and public access to, federal buildings and other federal property and sites.
The commission shall examine (1) government and private security practices and proposals, building design, public space management, counterterrorism needs, and refurbishment of existing federal facilities; (2) the effect of access to public facilities and spaces on constitutional rights and civil liberties, economies of affected jurisdictions, architectural aesthetics, traffic and congestion, and employee job performance; (3) technology to augment or replace traditional modes of security; and (4) methods of assessing the risks posed by terrorism, balanced against the needs and values of open access.

To establish the United States Commission on an Open Society with 
                               Security.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``United States Commission on an Open 
Society with Security Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) an open society which affords free access to public 
        facilities and spaces and which protects the right to engage in 
        open discussion is an essential premise of American 
        governmental institutions and democratic values;
            (2) the United States is currently facing a challenge to 
        the safety and security of the public, public employees, and 
        public facilities and spaces that is unique in the history of 
        this Nation;
            (3) to meet this challenge without eroding or harming any 
        of the basic tenets of the Republic and of our democracy, this 
        Nation needs to assemble the best thinking available; and
            (4) a commission of experts from a broad base of 
        disciplines and backgrounds is necessary to examine all the 
        factors that should be considered in securing public safety 
        from terrorist attacks while maintaining the highest level of 
        free and open access to the public.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established a commission to be known 
as the ``United States Commission on an Open Society with Security'' 
(in this Act referred to as the ``Commission'').
    (b) Composition.--The Commission shall be composed of 21 members 
appointed in accordance with subsection (d)(1) from among individuals 
representing such fields or groups as the following: architecture, 
technology, civil libertarians, humanists, members of the Armed Forces, 
Federal Government employees, city planners, business leaders, lawyers, 
artists, public building security, engineers, philosophers, historians, 
sociologists, and psychologists. The President shall designate one of 
those members to be the Chairperson of the Commission.
    (c) Terms; Quorum; Meetings; Vacancies.--Members shall be appointed 
for the life of the Commission. Nine members of the Commission shall 
constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings. After its 
initial meeting, the Commission shall meet at the call of the 
Chairperson of the Commission or a majority of its members. Any vacancy 
in the Commission shall not affect its powers and shall be filled in 
the same manner as the original appointment.
    (d) Appointments; Initial Meeting.--
            (1) Appointments.--Appointments to the Commission shall be 
        made as follows:
                    (A) Nine members appointed by the President.
                    (B) Three members appointed by the Speaker of the 
                House of Representatives.
                    (C) Three members appointed by the minority leader 
                of the House of Representatives.
                    (D) Three members appointed by the majority leader 
                of the Senate.
                    (E) Three members appointed by the minority leader 
                of the Senate.
            (2) Initial meeting.--If, after 90 days following the date 
        of enactment of this Act, 9 or more members of the Commission 
        have been appointed, the members who have been appointed may 
        meet, and the Chairperson shall have the authority to begin the 
        operations of the Commission, including the hiring of staff.

SEC. 4. FUNCTIONS OF COMMISSION.

    (a) In General.--The Commission shall study and make findings and 
recommendations relating to the question of how the Government of the 
United States may provide, in a balanced manner, for both security in 
and public access to Federal buildings and other Federal property and 
sites.
    (b) Matters To Be Examined.--In carrying out this Act, the 
Commission shall specifically examine matters that relate to the 
security of, and open access to, public facilities and spaces, 
including--
            (1) Federal, other governmental, and private security 
        practices and proposals, building design, public space 
        management, counterterrorism needs, and refurbishment of 
        existing Federal facilities;
            (2) the effect of access to public facilities and spaces 
        on--
                    (A) maintenance of security and safety;
                    (B) free speech, the right to petition the 
                Government, and other constitutional rights and civil 
                liberties;
                    (C) economies of affected jurisdictions or parts 
                thereof;
                    (D) physical changes and architectural aesthetics 
                of affected areas;
                    (E) traffic and congestion; and
                    (F) job performance of employees within the 
                affected facilities;
            (3) current and potential uses of technology to augment or 
        replace traditional modes of security;
            (4) practices of and comparisons with other entities and 
        nations; and
            (5) current and potential analytical methods of assessing 
        the risks posed by the various forms of terrorism, balanced 
        against the specific needs and values of open access.
    (c) Coordination of Activities.--The Commission shall take 
appropriate measures to avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts 
previously or currently being undertaken by any other person or entity.

SEC. 5. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

    (a) In General.--The Commission or, on the authorization of the 
Commission, any member or agent of the Commission may hold such 
hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such testimony, 
and receive such evidence as the Commission considers appropriate to 
carry out this Act.
    (b) Obtaining Official Information.--The Commission may secure 
directly from any department, agency, or other entity of the United 
States information necessary to enable it to carry out this Act. Upon 
request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head of such 
governmental entity shall furnish, to the extent authorized by law, 
such information to the Commission.
    (c) Security.--
            (1) Security clearances.--The members and staff of the 
        Commission shall hold, as a condition of appointment to or 
        employment with the Commission, appropriate security clearances 
        for access to the classified briefing, records, and materials 
        to be reviewed by the Commission or its staff and shall follow 
        the guidance and practices on security under applicable 
        Executive orders and agency directives.
            (2) Conditions to granting access.--The head of an agency 
        shall require, as a condition of granting access to a member of 
        the Commission or a member of the staff of the Commission to 
        classified records or materials of the agency under this Act, 
        require the member to--
                    (A) execute an agreement regarding the security of 
                such records or materials that is approved by the head 
                of the agency; and
                    (B) hold an appropriate security clearance granted 
                or recognized under the standard procedures and 
                eligibility criteria of the agency, including any 
                special access approval required for access to such 
                records or materials.
            (3) Restriction on use.--The members of the Commission and 
        the members of the staff of the Commission may not use any 
        information acquired in the course of their official activities 
        on the Commission for nonofficial purposes.
            (4) Need to know.--For purposes of any law or regulation 
        governing access to classified information that pertains to the 
        national security of the United States and to facilitate the 
        advisory functions of the Commission under this Act, a member 
        of the Commission or a member of the staff of the Commission 
        seeking access to a record or material under this Act shall be 
        deemed for purposes of this subsection to have a need to know 
        the contents of the record or material.
            (5) Rule of construction.--A reference in this subsection 
        to the ``staff of the Commission'' includes individuals 
        described in sections 6(d) and 6(e).
    (d) Mails.--The Commission may use the United States mails in the 
same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and 
agencies of the United States.
    (e) Gifts.--The Commission may accept, use, and dispose of gifts or 
donations of services or property.
    (f) Administrative Support Services.--The Administrator of General 
Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reimbursable basis, such 
administrative support services as the Commission may request.

SEC. 6. PERSONNEL MATTERS.

    (a) Compensation of Members.--Members of the Commission shall not 
be compensated by reason of their service on the Commission.
    (b) Travel Expenses.--The members of the Commission shall be 
allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at 
rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 
chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes 
or regular places of business in the performance of services for the 
Commission.
    (c) Staff.--Subject to such rules as the Commission may prescribe, 
the Chairperson of the Commission, without regard to the provisions of 
title 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive 
service, and without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and 
subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title (relating to classification 
and General Schedule pay rates), may appoint and fix the pay of a staff 
director and such other personnel as may be necessary to enable the 
Commission to carry out its functions; except that no rate of pay fixed 
under this subsection may exceed the maximum rate of basic pay payable 
for GS-15 of the General Schedule.
    (d) Staff of Federal Agencies.--Upon request of the Chairperson of 
the Commission, the head of any department or agency of the United 
States may detail, on a nonreimbursable basis, any of the personnel of 
that department or agency to the Commission to assist it in carrying 
out its functions under this Act.
    (e) Experts and Consultants.--With the approval of the Commission, 
the Chairperson of the Commission may procure temporary and 
intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States 
Code, at rates for individuals not to exceed the daily equivalent of 
the maximum rate of basic pay payable for GS-15 of the General 
Schedule.

SEC. 7. REPORT.

    (a) Submission to the President.--The Commission shall transmit its 
final report to the President not later than 2 years after the initial 
meeting of the Commission. Such report shall contain a detailed 
statement of the findings and conclusions of the Commission, together 
with its recommendations for such legislative, administrative, or other 
action as the Commission considers appropriate.
    (b) Submission to the Congress.--Not later than 6 months after 
receiving the final report of the Commission under subsection (a), the 
President shall transmit such report to Congress, together with any 
comments or recommendations (including any proposed legislation) which 
the President considers appropriate.

SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.

    The Commission shall terminate on the 90th day after the date on 
which the Commission is required to submit its final report under 
section 7(a).

SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act--
            (1) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
            (2) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2023.
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