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108th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1007
To provide for homeland security block grants.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 27, 2003
Mr. McNulty (for himself and Ms. Loretta Sanchez of California)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on
the Judiciary, Energy and Commerce, and Select Homeland Security, for a
period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for homeland security block grants.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Homeland Security
Block Grant Act of 2003''.
(b) Table of Contents.--
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings and purpose.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
Sec. 4. Grants to States, units of general local government and Indian
tribes; authorizations.
Sec. 5. Statement of activities and review.
Sec. 6. Activities eligible for assistance.
Sec. 7. Allocation and distribution of funds.
Sec. 8. State and regional planning communication systems.
Sec. 9. Nondiscrimination in programs and activities.
Sec. 10. Remedies for noncompliance with requirements.
Sec. 11. Reporting requirements.
Sec. 12. Consultation by Secretary.
Sec. 13. Interstate agreements or compacts; purposes.
Sec. 14. Matching requirements; suspension of requirements for
economically distressed areas.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks on our country, communities all across American now
find themselves on the front lines in the war against terrorism
on United States soil.
(2) We recognize that these communities will be forced to
shoulder a significant portion of the burden that goes along
with that responsibility. We believe that local governments
should not have to bear that responsibility alone.
(3) Our homeland defense will only be as strong as the
weakest link at the State and local level. By providing our
communities with the resources and tools they need to bolster
emergency response efforts and provide for other emergency
response initiatives, we will have a better-prepared home front
and a stronger America.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide needed funds to
first responders to be used for the purpose of bolstering emergency
response efforts and other emergency response initiatives in case of
terrorist or other attack on our home front.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
(a) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Homeland Security.
(2) City.--The term ``city'' means--
(A) any unit of general local government that is
classified as a municipality by the United States
Bureau of the Census; or
(B) any other unit of general local government that
is a town or township and which, in the determination
of the Secretary--
(i) possesses powers and performs functions
comparable to those associated with
municipalities;
(ii) is closely settled; and
(iii) contains within its boundaries no
incorporated places as defined by the United
States Bureau of the Census that have not
entered into cooperation agreements with such
town or township to undertake or to assist in
the performance of homeland security
objectives.
(3) Federal grant-in-aid program.--The term ``Federal
grant-in-aid program'' means a program of Federal financial
assistance other than loans and other than the assistance
provided by this Act.
(4) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' means any
Indian tribe, band, group, and nation, including Alaska
Indians, Aleuts, and Eskimos, and any Alaskan Native Village,
of the United States, which is considered an eligible recipient
under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance
Act (Public Law 93-638) or was considered an eligible recipient
under chapter 67 of title 31, United States Code, prior to the
repeal of such chapter.
(5) Metropolitan area.--The term ``metropolitan area''
means a standard metropolitan statistical area as established
by the Office of Management and Budget.
(6) Metropolitan city.--
(A) In general.--The term ``metropolitan city''
means--
(i) a city within a metropolitan area that
is the central city of such area, as defined
and used by the Office of Management and
Budget; or
(ii) any other city, within a metropolitan
area, which has a population of not less than
50,000.
(B) Period of classification.--Any city that was
classified as a metropolitan city for at least 2 years
pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall remain classified as
a metropolitan city. Any unit of general local
government that becomes eligible to be classified as a
metropolitan city, and was not classified as a
metropolitan city in the immediately preceding fiscal
year, may, upon submission of written notification to
the Secretary, defer its classification as a
metropolitan city for all purposes under this Act, if
it elects to have its population included in an urban
county under subsection (d).
(C) Election by a city.--Notwithstanding
subparagraph (B), a city may elect not to retain its
classification as a metropolitan city. Any unit of
general local government that was classified as a
metropolitan city in any year, may, upon submission of
written notification to the Secretary, relinquish such
classification for all purposes under this Act if it
elects to have its population included with the
population of a county for purposes of qualifying for
assistance (for such following fiscal year) under
section 5(e) as an urban county.
(7) Nonqualifying community.--The term ``nonqualifying
community'' means an area that is not a metropolitan city or
part of an urban county and does not include Indian tribes.
(8) Population.--The term ``population'' means total
resident population based on data compiled by the United States
Bureau of the Census and referable to the same point or period
of time.
(9) State.--The term ``State'' means any State of the
United States, or any instrumentality thereof approved by the
Governor; and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United
States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern
Mariana Islands.
(10) Unit of general local government.--The term ``unit of
general local government'' means any city, county, town,
township, parish, village, or other general purpose political
subdivision of a State; a combination of such political
subdivisions is recognized by the Secretary; and the District of
Columbia.
(11) Urban county.--The term ``urban county'' means any
county within a metropolitan area.
(b) Basis and Modification of Definitions.--Where appropriate, the
definitions in subsection (a) shall be based, with respect to any
fiscal year, on the most recent data compiled by the United States
Bureau of the Census and the latest published reports of the Office of
Management and Budget available ninety days prior to the beginning of
such fiscal year. The Secretary may by regulation change or otherwise
modify the meaning of the terms defined in subsection (a) in order to
reflect any technical change or modification thereof made subsequent to
such date by the United States Bureau of the Census or the Office of
Management and Budget.
(c) Designation of Public Agencies.--One or more public agencies,
including existing local public agencies, may be designated by the
chief executive officer of a State or a unit of general local
government to undertake activities assisted under this Act.
(d) Local Governments, Inclusion in Urban County Population.--With
respect to program years beginning with the program year for which
grants are made available from amounts appropriated for fiscal year
2003 under section 4, the population of any unit of general local
government which is included in that of an urban county as provided in
subsection (a)(11) shall be included in the population of such urban
county for three program years beginning with the program year in which
its population was first so included and shall not otherwise be
eligible for a grant as a separate entity, unless the urban county does
not receive a grant for any year during such three-year period.
(e) Urban County.--Any county seeking qualification as an urban
county, including any urban county seeking to continue such
qualification, shall notify, as provided in this subsection, each unit
of general local government, which is included therein and is eligible
to elect to have its population excluded from that of an urban county,
of its opportunity to make such an election. Such notification shall,
at a time and in a manner prescribed by the Secretary, be provided so
as to provide a reasonable period for response prior to the period for
which such qualification is sought. The population of any unit of
general local government which is provided such notification and which
does not inform, at a time and in a manner prescribed by the Secretary,
the county of its election to exclude its population from that of the
county shall, if the county qualifies as an urban county, be included
in the population of such urban county as provided in subsection (d).
SEC. 4. GRANTS TO STATES, UNITS OF GENERAL LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND INDIAN
TRIBES; AUTHORIZATIONS.
(a) Authorization.--The Secretary is authorized to make grants to
States, units of general local government, and Indian tribes to carry
out activities in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated
$3,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2003 through 2006, and
such sums as may be necessary thereafter, for the purpose of
carrying out the provisions under section 7.
(2) State, regional, and local planning, training, and
communication systems.--There are authorized to be appropriated
$500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2003 through 2006, and
such sums as may be necessary thereafter, for the purpose of
carrying out the provisions under section 8.
SEC. 5. STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES AND REVIEW.
(a) Application.--
(1) In general.--Prior to the receipt in any fiscal year of
a grant under section 7(b) by any metropolitan city or urban
county, section 7(i) by any State, or section 7(i)(3) by any
unit of general local government, the grantee shall--
(i) indicate its interest in receiving
funds by preparing a statement of homeland
security objectives and projected use of funds;
and
(ii) provide the Secretary with the
certifications required under paragraph (2)
and, where appropriate, subsection (b).
(2) Grantee statement.--
(A) Contents.--
(i) Local government.--In the case of
metropolitan cities or urban counties receiving
grants under section 7(b) and units of general
local government receiving grants under section
7(i)(3), the statement of projected use of
funds shall consist of proposed homeland
security activities.
(ii) States.--In the case of States
receiving grants under section 7(d), the
statement of projected use of funds shall
consist of the method by which the States will
distribute funds to units of general local
government.
(B) Consultation.--In preparing the statement, the
grantee shall consult with appropriate law enforcement
agencies and emergency response authorities.
(C) Final statement.--A copy of the final statement
and the certifications required under paragraph (3)
and, where appropriate, subsection (b) shall be
furnished to the Secretary and the Attorney General.
(D) Modifications.--Any final statement of
activities may be modified or amended from time to time
by the grantee in accordance with the same procedures
required in this paragraph for the preparation and
submission of such statement.
(3) Certification of enumerated criteria by grantee to
secretary.--Any grant under section 7 shall be made only if the
grantee certifies to the satisfaction of the Secretary that--
(A) it has developed a homeland security plan
pursuant to section 6(a)(8) that identifies both short-
and long-term homeland security needs that have been
developed in accordance with the primary objective and
requirements of this Act; and
(B) the grantee will comply with the other
provisions of this Act and with other applicable laws.
(b) Submission of Annual Performance Reports, Audits and
Adjustments.--
(1) In general.--Each grantee shall submit to the
Secretary, at a time determined by the Secretary, a performance
and evaluation report concerning the use of funds made
available under section 7, together with an assessment by the
grantee of the relationship of such use to the objectives
identified in the grantee's statement under subsection (a)(2).
(2) Uniform reporting requirements.--
(A) Recommendations by national associations.--The
Secretary shall encourage and assist national
associations of grantees eligible under section 7,
national associations of States, and national
associations of units of general local government in
nonqualifying areas to develop and recommend to the
Secretary, within 1 year after the effective date of
this Act, uniform recordkeeping, performance reporting,
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