Title: National Timing Resilience and Security Act of 2017
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
National Timing Resilience and Security Act of 2017
This bill requires the Department of Transportation to provide for the establishment, sustainment, and operation of a complement to and backup for the timing component of the Global Positioning System (GPS). (GPS satellites contain atomic clocks that provide precise time data and allow GPS receivers to synchronize to those clocks.) The system must: (1) reduce critical dependencies on the GPS network; (2) ensure the availability of uncorrupted and non-degraded timing signals for military and civilian users if GPS timing signals are corrupted or otherwise unavailable; and (3) be land-based, operational in 2 years, and capable of operation for 20 years.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2220 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2220

To provide for the development, construction and operation of a backup 
       to the Global Positioning System, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 12, 2017

 Mr. Cruz (for himself and Mr. Markey) introduced the following bill; 
    which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 
                      Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for the development, construction and operation of a backup 
       to the Global Positioning System, and for other purposes.

    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 ``National Timing Resilience and 
Security Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. BACKUP GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM.

    (a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, the 
Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the Secretary of 
Homeland Security, shall provide for the establishment, sustainment, 
and operation of a land-based, resilient, and reliable alternative 
timing system to--
            (1) reduce critical dependencies and provide a complement 
        to and backup for the timing component of the Global 
        Positioning System (in this section referred to as ``GPS''); 
        and
            (2) to ensure the availability of uncorrupted and non-
        degraded timing signals for military and civilian users in the 
        event that GPS timing signals are corrupted, degraded, 
        unreliable, or otherwise unavailable.
    (b) Establishment of Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation, in 
        consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall 
        establish requirements for the procurement of the system 
        required by subsection (a) as a complement to and backup for 
        the timing component of GPS in accordance with the timing 
        requirements study required by section 1618 of the National 
        Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 114-
        328; 130 Stat. 2595).
            (2) Requirements.--The Secretary of Transportation shall 
        ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that the system 
        established under subsection (a)--
                    (A) be wireless;
                    (B) be terrestrial;
                    (C) provide wide-area coverage;
                    (D) deliver a precise, high-power 100 kilohertz 
                signal;
                    (E) be synchronized with coordinated universal 
                time;
                    (F) be resilient and extremely difficult to disrupt 
                or degrade;
                    (G) be able to penetrate underground and inside 
                buildings;
                    (H) be capable of deployment to remote locations;
                    (I) take full advantage of the infrastructure and 
                spectrum of the existing, unused government long-range 
                navigation system (commonly known as ``LORAN'');
                    (J) be developed, constructed, and operated 
                incorporating applicable private sector expertise;
                    (K) work in concert with and complement any other 
                similar positioning, navigation, and timing systems, 
                including enhanced long-range navigation systems and 
                Nationwide Differential GPS systems;
                    (L) be made available by the Secretary of 
                Transportation for use by other Federal and non-Federal 
                Government agencies for public purposes at no cost;
                    (M) be capable of adaptation and expansion to 
                provide position and navigation capabilities;
                    (N) incorporate the recommendations from any GPS 
                back-up demonstration program initiated and completed 
                by the Secretary, in coordination with other Federal 
                agencies, before the date specified in subsection 
                (c)(1); and
                    (O) incorporate such other elements as the 
                Secretary considers appropriate.
    (c) Implementation Plan.--
            (1) Plan required.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation 
        shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
        Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
        Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
        Representatives a report setting forth the following:
                    (A) A plan to develop, construct, and operate the 
                system required by subsection (a).
                    (B) A description and assessment of the advantages 
                of a system to provide a follow-on complementary and 
                backup positioning and navigation capability to the 
                timing component of GPS.
            (2) Deadline for commencement of operation.--The system 
        required by subsection (a) shall be in operation by not later 
        than two years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
            (3) Minimum duration of operational capability.--The system 
        required by subsection (a) shall be designed to be fully 
        operational for not less than 20 years.
    (d) LORAN Facilities.--
            (1) In general.--If the Secretary of Transportation 
        determines that any LORAN infrastructure, including the 
        underlying real property and any spectrum associated with 
        LORAN, in the possession of the Coast Guard is required by the 
        Department of Transportation for the purpose of establishing 
        the system required by subsection (a), the Commandant of the 
        Coast Guard shall transfer such property, spectrum, and 
        equipment to the Secretary.
            (2) CERCLA not affected.--This subsection shall not be 
        construed to limit the application of or otherwise affect 
        section 120(h) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
        Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9620(h)) 
        with respect to the Federal Government facilities described in 
        paragraph (1).
    (e) Agreement.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Transportation, in 
        consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, may enter 
        into a cooperative agreement (as that term is defined in 
        section 6305 of title 31, United States Code) with an entity 
        upon such terms and conditions as the Secretary of 
        Transportation determines will fulfill the purpose and 
        requirements of this section and be in the public interest. 
        Such agreement shall, at a minimum, require the Secretary of 
        Transportation to--
                    (A) authorize the entity to sell timing and other 
                services to commercial and non-commercial third 
                parties, subject to any national security requirements 
                determined by the Secretary, in consultation with the 
                Secretary of Defense;
                    (B) require the entity to develop, construct, and 
                operate at private expense the backup timing system in 
                accordance with this section;
                    (C) allow the entity to make any investments in 
                technologies necessary over the life of such agreement 
                to meet future requirements for advanced timing 
                resilience and technologies;
                    (D) require the entity to share revenue so as to 
                provide for an equitable share of the revenue received 
                with the Secretary by the entity from the sale of 
                timing services to third parties, taking into account 
                the entity's capital investment and its costs to 
                operate, maintain, and upgrade the system;
                    (E) require the entity--
                            (i) to assume all financial risk for the 
                        completion and operational capability of the 
                        system, after the Secretary provides facilities 
                        necessary for the system under subsection (d); 
                        and
                            (ii) to furnish performance and payment 
                        bonds in connection with the system in a 
                        reasonable amount as determined by the 
                        Secretary; and
                    (F) require the entity to make any investments in 
                technologies necessary over the life of the agreement 
                to meet future requirements for advanced timing 
                resiliency.
            (2) Competition required.--The Secretary shall use 
        competitive procedures similar to those authorized under 
        section 2667 of title 10, United States Code, in selecting an 
        entity to enter into a cooperative agreement pursuant to this 
        subsection.
            (3) Authorization to purchase services.--The Secretary may, 
        subject to the availability of appropriations, purchase timing 
        system services from the entity, once the system achieves 
        operational status, for use by the Department of Transportation 
        and for provision to other Federal and non-Federal agencies as 
        described in this section. The costs of such services may be 
        offset, in whole or in part, pursuant to the revenue sharing 
        provision required by paragraph (1)(D).
            (4) Determination.--The Secretary may not enter into a 
        cooperative agreement under this subsection unless the 
        Secretary determines that the agreement is in the best 
        financial interest of the Federal Government. The Secretary 
        shall notify the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
        Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
        Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
        Representatives of such determination not later than 30 days 
        after the date of the determination.
            (5) Definition.--In this subsection the term ``entity'' 
        means a non-Federal entity with the demonstrated technical 
        expertise and requisite administrative and financial resources 
        to meet any terms and conditions established by the Secretary 
        for purposes of this subsection.
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