§2312. Emergency response assistance program
(a) Program required
(1) The Secretary of Defense shall carry out a program to provide civilian personnel of Federal, State, and local agencies with training and expert advice regarding emergency responses to a use or threatened use of a weapon of mass destruction or related materials.
(2) The President may designate the head of an agency other than the Department of Defense to assume the responsibility for carrying out the program on or after October 1, 1999, and relieve the Secretary of Defense of that responsibility upon the assumption of the responsibility by the designated official.
(3) In this section, the official responsible for carrying out the program is referred to as the "lead official".
(b) Coordination
In carrying out the program, the lead official shall coordinate with each of the following officials who is not serving as the lead official:
(1) The Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
(2) The Secretary of Energy.
(3) The Secretary of Defense.
(4) The heads of any other Federal, State, and local government agencies that have an expertise or responsibilities relevant to emergency responses described in subsection (a)(1) of this section.
(c) Eligible participants
The civilian personnel eligible to receive assistance under the program are civilian personnel of Federal, State, and local agencies who have emergency preparedness responsibilities.
(d) Involvement of other Federal agencies
(1) The lead official may use personnel and capabilities of Federal agencies outside the agency of the lead official to provide training and expert advice under the program.
(2)(A) Personnel used under paragraph (1) shall be personnel who have special skills relevant to the particular assistance that the personnel are to provide.
(B) Capabilities used under paragraph (1) shall be capabilities that are especially relevant to the particular assistance for which the capabilities are used.
(3) If the lead official is not the Secretary of Defense, and requests assistance from the Department of Defense that, in the judgment of the Secretary of Defense would affect military readiness or adversely affect national security, the Secretary of Defense may appeal the request for Department of Defense assistance by the lead official to the President.
(e) Available assistance
Assistance available under this program shall include the following:
(1) Training in the use, operation, and maintenance of equipment for-
(A) detecting a chemical or biological agent or nuclear radiation;
(B) monitoring the presence of such an agent or radiation;
(C) protecting emergency personnel and the public; and
(D) decontamination.
(2) Establishment of a designated telephonic link (commonly referred to as a "hot line") to a designated source of relevant data and expert advice for the use of State or local officials responding to emergencies involving a weapon of mass destruction or related materials.
(3) Use of the National Guard and other reserve components for purposes authorized under this section that are specified by the lead official (with the concurrence of the Secretary of Defense if the Secretary is not the lead official).
(4) Loan of appropriate equipment.
(f) Limitations on Department of Defense assistance to law enforcement agencies
Assistance provided by the Department of Defense to law enforcement agencies under this section shall be provided under the authority of, and subject to the restrictions provided in, chapter 18 of title 10.
(g) Administration of Department of Defense assistance
The Secretary of Defense shall designate an official within the Department of Defense to serve as the executive agent of the Secretary for the coordination of the provision of Department of Defense assistance under this section.
(h) Funding
(1) Of the total amount authorized to be appropriated under section 301,1 $35,000,000 is available for the program required under this section.
(2) Of the amount available for the program pursuant to paragraph (1), $10,500,000 is available for use by the Secretary of Defense to assist the Secretary of Health and Human Services in the establishment of metropolitan emergency medical response teams (commonly referred to as "Metropolitan Medical Strike Force Teams") to provide medical services that are necessary or potentially necessary by reason of a use or threatened use of a weapon of mass destruction.
(3) The amount available for the program under paragraph (1) is in addition to any other amounts authorized to be appropriated for the program under section 301.1
(
References in Text
Section 301, referred to in subsec. (h)(1), (3), is section 301 of