42 U.S.C. § 7704a — Report on seismic safety property stand-

Page 7483 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 7704a dinator(s) to serve as focal points for the agency’s com- pliance with this order and to participate in the ICSSC as appropriate. Within 30 days of the date of this order, each agency shall identify its Seismic Safety Coordi- nator(s) to the Director of NIST. (c) The Director of NIST, on behalf of the ICSSC, shall issue implementing guidelines to assist agency compliance with this order within 8 months of the date of this order. The implementing guidelines shall pro- vide specific guidance, including guidance about the roles and responsibilities of the agencies under section 2 of this order. The implementing guidelines shall also describe the responsibilities and necessary qualifica- tions of the Seismic Safety Coordinator. (d) The Director of NIST, on behalf of the ICSSC, shall provide assistance in interpreting the imple- menting guidelines to the Federal departments and agencies. (e) The ICSSC shall publish updated Standards for as- sessing and enhancing the earthquake resilience of ex- isting buildings as required by this order. The ICSSC shall review and update the Standards as needed to comply with this order at the maximum interval of every 6 years. Participation in the ICSSC shall con- tinue to be open to all agencies with programs affected by this order. The Director of NIST shall provide sup- port for the secretariat of the ICSSC and determine the frequency and scope of the ICSSC meetings as nec- essary to support this order. (f) Agencies whose activities are covered by this order shall submit biennial reports to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Director of NIST on their progress in implementing the order, commencing 2 years from the date of this order. (g) Agency compliance shall be summarized in the NEHRP reports to the Congress. SEC. 5. Revocation. Executive Order 12699 of January 5, 1990 (Seismic Safety of Federal and Federally Assisted or Regulated New Building Construction), as amended, and Executive Order 12941 of December 1, 1994 (Seismic Safety of Existing Federally Owned or Leased Build- ings) are hereby revoked. SEC. 6. Definitions. As used in this order: (a) ‘‘building’’ means any structure, fully or partially enclosed, used or intended for sheltering persons or property; (b) ‘‘alteration to an existing building’’ means an ac- tion that alters, as defined in 40 U.S.C. 3301(a)(1), a building and that significantly extends the building’s useful life and totals more than the replacement values established in the Standards for the building’s assigned Seismic Design Category; and (c) ‘‘programming’’ means developing and validating project assumptions, scope, budgets, and implementa- tion strategy for a building. SEC. 7. Exemption Authority. (a) The head of an agency may exempt a building from sections 2 and 3 of this order: (i) to the extent the head of an agency determines that exempting such building is substantially related to an important law enforcement purpose; or (ii) to the extent the head of an agency determines that exempting such building is necessary to address an extraordinary circumstance relating to national secu- rity or public safety. (b) Even when otherwise eligible for an exemption under this section, each agency shall strive to comply with the purposes, goals, and requirements set forth in this order to the maximum extent practicable. (c) If the head of an agency issues an exemption under this section, the agency must notify the Director of OMB in writing within 30 days of issuance of the ex- emption under this subsection. SEC. 8. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect: (i) the authority granted by law to an executive de- partment, agency, or the head thereof; or (ii) the functions of the Director of OMB relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. (b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appro- priations. (c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforce- able at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person. (d) Nothing in this order shall apply to assistance provided for emergency work essential to save lives and protect property and public health and safety, per- formed pursuant to agencies’ statutory authorities, and sections 402, 403, 502, and 503 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (the ‘‘Stafford Act’’) (42 U.S.C. 5170a, 5170b, 5192, and 5193), or for temporary housing assistance programs and indi- vidual and family grants performed pursuant to section 408 of the Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. 5174). This order shall, however, apply to other provisions of the Stafford Act after a Presidentially declared major disaster or emer- gency when assistance actions involve new construc- tion or alterations to an existing building. (e) This order applies only to buildings within the United States and its territories and possessions. BARACK OBAMA. § 7704a. Report on seismic safety property stand- ards (a) Authority The Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop- ment (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Sec- retary’’) shall assess the risk of earthquake-re- lated damage to properties assisted under pro- grams administered by the Secretary and shall develop seismic safety standards for such prop- erties. This section may not be construed to pro- hibit the Secretary from deferring to local building codes that meet the requirements of the seismic safety standards developed under this section. (b) Standards The standards shall be designed to reduce the risk of loss of life to building occupants to the maximum extent feasible and to reduce the risk of shake-related property damage to the max- imum extent practicable. (c) Consultation In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall consult with the Administrator of the Fed- eral Emergency Management Agency and may utilize the resources under the National Earth- quake Hazards Reduction Program (established under the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 [42 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.]) and any other re- sources as may be required to carry out the ac- tivities under this section. (Pub. L. 101–625, title IX, § 947, Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 4416; Pub. L. 109–295, title VI, § 612(c), Oct. 4, 2006, 120 Stat. 1410.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977, re- ferred to in subsec. (c), is Pub. L. 95–124, Oct. 7, 1977, 91 Stat. 1098, which is classified generally to this chapter (§ 7701 et seq.). For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 7701 of this title and Tables. CODIFICATION Subsec. (d) of this section, which required the Sec- retary to submit a report to Congress not less than bi- ennially on the findings of the risk assessment study conducted under this section and the activities under- Page 7484 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE §§ 7705, 7705a taken, and the expenditures made, by the Secretary to carry out this section and Executive Order No. 12699, terminated, effective May 15, 2000, pursuant to section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance. See, also, the 4th item on page 104 of House Document No. 103–7. Section was enacted as part of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act, and not as part of the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 which com- prises this chapter. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME ‘‘Administrator of the Federal Emergency Manage- ment Agency’’ substituted for ‘‘Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’’ in subsec. (c) on au- thority of section 612(c) of Pub. L. 109–295, set out as a note under section 313 of Title 6, Domestic Security. Any reference to the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in title VI of Pub. L. 109–295 or an amendment by title VI to be considered to refer and apply to the Director of the Federal Emer- gency Management Agency until Mar. 31, 2007, see sec- tion 612(f)(2) of Pub. L. 109–295, set out as a note under section 313 of Title 6. TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of all functions, personnel, assets, com- ponents, authorities, grant programs, and liabilities of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including the functions of the Under Secretary for Federal Emer- gency Management relating thereto, to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, see section 315(a)(1) of Title 6, Domestic Security. For transfer of functions, personnel, assets, and li- abilities of the Federal Emergency Management Agen- cy, including the functions of the Director of the Fed- eral Emergency Management Agency relating thereto, to the Secretary of Homeland Security, and for treat- ment of related references, see former section 313(1) and sections 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Secu- rity, and the Department of Homeland Security Reor- ganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6. §§ 7705, 7705a. Repealed. Pub. L. 105–47, § 4, Oct. 1, 1997, 111 Stat. 1164 Section 7705, Pub. L. 95–124, § 6, Oct. 7, 1977, 91 Stat. 1102; Pub. L. 96–472, title I, § 102(a), Oct. 19, 1980, 94 Stat. 2259; Pub. L. 101–614, § 6, Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3236, re- lated to Office of Science and Technology Policy re- port. Section 7705a, Pub. L. 95–124, § 7, as added Pub. L. 101–614, § 7(2), Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3236, related to es- tablishment of a National Earthquake Hazards Reduc- tion Program Advisory Committee. § 7705b. Seismic standards (a) Assessment and recommendations Not later than December 1, 2019, the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Tech- nology and the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall jointly convene a committee of experts from Federal agencies, nongovernmental organizations, pri- vate sector entities, disaster management pro- fessional associations, engineering professional associations, and professional construction and homebuilding industry associations, to assess and recommend options for improving the built environment and critical infrastructure to re- flect performance goals stated in terms of post- earthquake reoccupancy and functional recov- ery time. (b) Report to Congress Not later than June 30, 2020, the committee convened under paragraph (1) shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, the Committee on Nat- ural Resources, and the Committee on Home- land Security of the House of Representatives a report on recommended options for improving the built environment and critical infrastruc- ture to reflect performance goals stated in terms of post-earthquake reoccupancy and func- tional recovery time. (Pub. L. 95–124, § 8, as added Pub. L. 101–614, § 8(a), Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3237; amended Pub. L. 115–307, § 5, Dec. 11, 2018, 132 Stat. 4415.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2018—Pub. L. 115–307 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section related to adoption of seismic safety standards. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries REPORT ON VULNERABILITY OF BUILDINGS OWNED AND LEASED BY GOVERNMENT Pub. L. 101–614, § 8(b), Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3238, di- rected Comptroller General, not later than 18 months after Nov. 16, 1990, to report to Congress on vulner- ability of buildings owned and leased by the Federal Government and on efforts of Federal agencies to im- prove the seismic resistance of buildings they own or lease, and for each such agency, the Comptroller Gen- eral to enumerate the number of buildings owned or leased by the agency, the seriousness of the seismic risk to such buildings, and the value of the buildings at risk, as well as tabulate the expenditures each such agency had devoted to reducing earthquake damage and estimate the total expenditure necessary to ad- dress the problem adequately. Executive Documents EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 12941 Ex. Ord. No. 12941, Dec. 1, 1994, 59 F.R. 62545, which re- lated to seismic safety of existing federally owned or leased buildings, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 13717, § 5, Feb. 2, 2016, 81 F.R. 6409, set out as a note under section 7704 of this title. § 7705c. Acceptance of gifts (a) Authority In furtherance of the purposes of this chapter, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency may accept and use be- quests, gifts, or donations of services, money, or property, notwithstanding section 1342 of title 31. (b) Criteria The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall establish by regula- tion criteria for determining whether to accept bequests, gifts, or donations of services, money, or property. Such criteria shall take into con- sideration whether the acceptance of the be- quest, gift, or donation would reflect unfavor-