TITLE III —CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL, RADIOLOGICAL, AND NUCLEAR COUNTERMEASURES

This title concerns the responsibilities of the Department of Homeland Security for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear countermeasures.

Section 301. Under Secretary for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Countermeasures.

This section specifies primary responsibilities of the Under Secretary for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Countermeasures. These include: (1) securing the people, infrastructures, property, resources, and systems in the United States from acts of terrorism involving chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear weapons or other emerging threats, (2) conducting a national scientific research and development program to support the mission of the Department, including developing national policy and coordinating the federal government's (non-military) efforts to counter these types of terrorist threats, including relevant research and development, (3) establishing priorities and directing and supporting national research and development and procurement of technology and systems for detecting, preventing, protecting against, and responding to terrorist attacks using chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or related weapons and materials, and for preventing the importation of such weapons and materials into the United States, and (4) establishing guidelines for state and local efforts to develop and implement countermeasures in this area.

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Section 302. Functions transferred.

This section identifies agencies and functions relevant to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear countermeasures that are to be transferred to the Department of Homeland Security. These include the select agent registration enforcement programs and activities of the Department of Health and Human Services, certain relevant programs and activities of the Department of Energy, the National Bio-Weapons Defense Analysis Center of the Department of Defense, and the Plum Island Animal Disease Center of the Department of Agriculture.

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Section 303. Conduct of certain public health-related activities.

This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to carry out his civilian human health-related biological, biomedical, and infectious disease defense research and development responsibilities through agreements with the Department of Health and Human Services unless the President otherwise directs, and gives the Secretary specific transfer authority to fund such agreements. In carrying out these responsibilities, however, the Secretary retains full authority to establish the research and development program, including the setting of priorities. The section also gives the Secretary specific authority to fund other research and development projects that he elects to carry out through the Department of Health and Human Services or other federal agencies.

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Section 304. Military activities.

This section clarifies that nothing in the bill confers upon the Secretary of Homeland Security any authority to engage in warfighting, the military defense of the United States, or other traditional military activities.

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