Civil Defense Preparedness Act of 2018

Bill: 115-hr-5399
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Gabbard, Tulsi [D-HI-2]
Introduced: 2018-03-22
Policy area: Emergency Management
Subjects: Chemical and biological weapons

Congressional oversight

Emergency planning and evacuation

Executive agency funding and structure

Government studies and investigations

Homeland security

Nuclear weapons

Terrorism
Latest action: action_date: 2018-04-10
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications.

Summaries:
action_date: 2018-03-22
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Civil Defense Preparedness Act of 2018</b></p> <p>This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to authorize the use of grants under the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) and the State Homeland Security Grant Program (SHSGP) to assist high-risk urban areas and high-risk states, respectively, to increase preparedness against rocket-propelled or other forms of kinetically-delivered weapons of mass destruction (WMD), including nuclear, biological, and chemical attacks.</p> <p>The bill includes a rocket-propelled or other form of kinetically-delivered WMD among the types of threats to critical infrastructure sectors and to U.S. populations that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) must assess.</p> <p>FEMA must permit a grant recipient under the UASI and the SHSGP to use grant funds for joint projects with governmental entities for the procurement of WMD protective equipment and nuclear weapons attack building reinforcement.</p>

tv_txt: I 115th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5399 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 22, 2018 Ms. Gabbard (for herself, Mr. Garrett , Ms. Bordallo , Mrs. Radewagen , Ms. Hanabusa , and Mr. Young of Alaska ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security A BILL To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to clarify that grants made pursuant to the Urban Area Security Initiative and the State Homeland Security Grant Program may be used to increase the preparedness of high-risk State, local, territorial, and tribal governments against weapons of mass destruction and biological and chemical attacks, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Civil Defense Preparedness Act of 2018 . 2. WMD grants (a) In general Title XX of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended— (1) in section 2001 ( 6 U.S.C. 601 )— (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), (11), (12), (13), and (14) as paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), (11), (12), (13), (14), (15), and (16), respectively; (B) by inserting before paragraph (2), as so redesignated, the following new paragraph: (1) Adversary country The term adversary country means a country referred to or described as hostile or as an adversary country in the most recent National Security Strategy. ; (C) by inserting after paragraph (4), as so redesignated, the following new paragraph: (5) High-risk State The term high-risk State means— (A) a State or territory that is geographically closest to known adversary countries; and (B) a State or territory proven or determined by the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, to be highly susceptible to a rocket-propelled or other form of kinetically-delivered weapon of mass destruction from an adversary country. ; and (D) by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (17) Weapon of mass destruction The term weapon of mass destruction means— (A) any explosive, incendiary, poison gas, or missile having an explosive or incendiary charge of more than one-quarter ounce; or (B) any weapon— (i) intended to cause widespread death or serious bodily injury through the release, dissemination, or impact of toxic chemicals or disease organisms; or (ii) that is designed to release radiation or radioactivity at a level dangerous to human life. ; (2) in subsection (a) of section 2003 ( 6 U.S.C. 604 ), by inserting , including to assist high-risk urban areas to increase preparedness against rocket-propelled or other forms of kinetically-delivered weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear, biological, and chemical attacks before the period at the end; (3) in subsection (a) of section 2004 ( 6 U.S.C. 605 ), by inserting , including to assist high-risk States to increase preparedness against rocket-propelled or other forms of kinetically-delivered weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear, biological, and chemical attacks before the period at the end; (4) in subsection (b) of section 2007 ( 6 U.S.C. 608 )— (A) by redesignating paragraph (9) as paragraph (10); and (B) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following new paragraph: (9) Rocket-propelled or other form of kinetically-delivered weapon of mass destruction. ; and (5) in subsection (a) of section 2008 ( 6 U.S.C. 609 )— (A) by redesignating paragraph (14) as paragraph (15); and (B) by inserting after paragraph (13) the following new paragraph: (14) joint projects with State, local, and tribal entities for the procurement of, building, and related training of biological weapons attack protective equipment, chemical weapons attack protective equipment, and nuclear weapons attack building reinforcement; . (b) Annual reports Not later than December 31, 2018, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and make publically available on an internet website of the Department of Homeland Security a report on the number of grants made under sections 2003 and 2004 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 604 and 605) during the immediately preceding fiscal year, with specific information relating to the number of such grants that pertained to increasing preparedness against rocket-propelled or other forms of kinetically-delivered weapons of mass destruction (as such term is defined in section 2001 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as amended by subsection (a)(1)), including nuclear, biological, and chemical attacks.