The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW), at press time, approved the First Responder Terrorism Preparedness Act of 2002 (S. 2664), introduced by U.S. Senators Jim Jeffords (I-VT) and Bob Smith (R-NH). The bill, which amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, authorizes $3.5 billion for the first responder initiative and establishes a new first responder grant program to be administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The EPW Committee has jurisdiction over FEMA.
The legislation "clarifies and consolidates the authority of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to support first responders." It establishes the Office of National Preparedness within FEMA and creates a program to provide assistance to enhance first responders' ability to respond to incidents of terrorism, including incidents involving weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and to address issues relating to urban search and rescue task forces.
The new Office of National Preparedness would be headed by an associate director to be appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Among the associate director's duties would be to lead a coordinated and integrated overall effort to build viable terrorism preparedness and response capability at all levels of government; to establish standards for a national, interoperable emergency communications and warning system; and to establish standards for training first responders (as defined in section 630(a) and for equipment to be used by first responders for incidents of terrorism, including incidents involving WMD.
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