6 U.S.C. § 193 — Technology clearinghouse to encourage

Page 77 TITLE 6—DOMESTIC SECURITY § 194 text read as follows: ‘‘The Homeland Security Institute shall terminate 3 years after the effective date of this chapter.’’ § 193. Technology clearinghouse to encourage and support innovative solutions to enhance homeland security (a) Establishment of program The Secretary, acting through the Under Sec- retary for Science and Technology, shall estab- lish and promote a program to encourage tech- nological innovation in facilitating the mission of the Department (as described in section 111 of this title). (b) Elements of program The program described in subsection (a) shall include the following components: (1) The establishment of a centralized Fed- eral clearinghouse for information relating to technologies that would further the mission of the Department for dissemination, as appro- priate, to Federal, State, and local govern- ment and private sector entities for additional review, purchase, or use. (2) The issuance of announcements seeking unique and innovative technologies to advance the mission of the Department. (3) The establishment of a technical assist- ance team to assist in screening, as appro- priate, proposals submitted to the Secretary (except as provided in subsection (c)(2)) to as- sess the feasibility, scientific and technical merits, and estimated cost of such proposals, as appropriate. (4) The provision of guidance, recommenda- tions, and technical assistance, as appropriate, to assist Federal, State, and local government and private sector efforts to evaluate and im- plement the use of technologies described in paragraph (1) or (2). (5) The provision of information for persons seeking guidance on how to pursue proposals to develop or deploy technologies that would enhance homeland security, including infor- mation relating to Federal funding, regula- tion, or acquisition. (c) Miscellaneous provisions (1) In general Nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing the Secretary or the technical as- sistance team established under subsection (b)(3) to set standards for technology to be used by the Department, any other executive agency, any State or local government entity, or any private sector entity. (2) Certain proposals The technical assistance team established under subsection (b)(3) shall not consider or evaluate proposals submitted in response to a solicitation for offers for a pending procure- ment or for a specific agency requirement. (3) Coordination In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall coordinate with the Technical Support Working Group (organized under the April 1982 National Security Decision Directive Num- bered 30). (Pub. L. 107–296, title III, § 313, Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat. 2176.) § 194. Enhancement of public safety communica- tions interoperability (a) Coordination of public safety interoperable communications programs (1) Program The Secretary of Homeland Security, in con- sultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, shall establish a program to en- hance public safety interoperable communica- tions at all levels of government. Such pro- gram shall— (A) establish a comprehensive national ap- proach to achieving public safety interoper- able communications; (B) coordinate with other Federal agencies in carrying out subparagraph (A); (C) develop, in consultation with other ap- propriate Federal agencies and State and local authorities, appropriate minimum ca- pabilities for communications interoper- ability for Federal, State, and local public safety agencies; (D) accelerate, in consultation with other Federal agencies, including the National In- stitute of Standards and Technology, the private sector, and nationally recognized standards organizations as appropriate, the development of national voluntary con- sensus standards for public safety interoper- able communications, recognizing— (i) the value, life cycle, and technical ca- pabilities of existing communications in- frastructure; (ii) the need for cross-border interoper- ability between States and nations; (iii) the unique needs of small, rural communities; and (iv) the interoperability needs for daily operations and catastrophic events; (E) encourage the development and imple- mentation of flexible and open architectures incorporating, where possible, technologies that currently are commercially available, with appropriate levels of security, for short-term and long-term solutions to public safety communications interoperability; (F) assist other Federal agencies in identi- fying priorities for research, development, and testing and evaluation with regard to public safety interoperable communications; (G) identify priorities within the Depart- ment of Homeland Security for research, de- velopment, and testing and evaluation with regard to public safety interoperable com- munications; (H) establish coordinated guidance for Fed- eral grant programs for public safety inter- operable communications; (I) provide technical assistance to State and local public safety agencies regarding planning, acquisition strategies, interoper- ability architectures, training, and other functions necessary to achieve public safety communications interoperability; (J) develop and disseminate best practices to improve public safety communications interoperability; and (K) develop appropriate performance meas- ures and milestones to systematically meas-