Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018
Latest action · Sep 17, 2018 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJun 22, 2018
- Passed HouseSep 12, 2018
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018
(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) a Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office, headed by an Assistant Secretary. The Assistant Secretary shall serve as the principal advisor to DHS on weapons of mass destruction matters and strategies, and on coordinating efforts to counter weapons of mass destruction.
The office shall coordinate DHS strategy and policy to plan, detect, and protect against the importation, possession, storage, transportation, development, or use of unauthorized chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear materials, devices, or agents.
The Assistant Secretary shall establish the Securing the Cities program to detect and prevent terrorist attacks and other high consequence events utilizing nuclear or other radiological materials that pose a high risk to homeland security in high-risk urban areas.
The bill establishes in the office a Chief Medical Officer who shall serve as the principal advisor to DHS on medical and public health issues. The DHS Under Secretary for Management shall be responsible for workforce-focused health and medical activities of DHS.
DHS shall: (1) transfer to the office all personnel, budget authority, and assets of the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office and the Office of Health Affairs; and (2) provide a briefing and report to Congress on DHS chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear activities.
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Jun 22, 2018.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-TX | Michael T. McCaul | Original | Jun 22, 2018 |
Committees 3
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Homeland Security Committee | Referred Jun 22, 2018Markup Jul 24, 2018Reported Sep 7, 2018 |
| Emergency Management and Technology Subcommittee | Referred Jul 16, 2018Discharged Jul 24, 2018 | |
| House | Energy and Commerce Committee | Referred Jun 22, 2018Discharged Sep 7, 2018 |
| Senate | Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee | Referred Sep 17, 2018 |
Actions 15
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Sep 17, 2018Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
- Sep 12, 2018Mr. Donovan moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Sep 12, 2018Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H8113-8117)
- Sep 12, 2018DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 6198.
- Sep 12, 2018Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H8113-8115)
- Sep 12, 2018Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Sep 7, 2018Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Homeland Security. H. Rept. 115-923, Part I.
- Sep 7, 2018Committee on Energy and Commerce discharged.
- Sep 7, 2018Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 716.
- Jul 24, 2018Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications Discharged.
- Jul 24, 2018Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Jul 24, 2018Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Unanimous Consent.
- Jul 16, 2018Referred to the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications.
- Jun 22, 2018Introduced in House
- Jun 22, 2018Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H8113–H8117Text printed H8113–H8115 | Daniel M. Donovan, Jr. R-NY, Donald M. Payne, Jr. D-NJ, Michael T. McCaul R-TX | Sep 12, 2018 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Aug 7, 2018H.R. 6198, Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018As ordered reported by the House Committee on Homeland Security on July 24, 2018
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 164, no. 105, June 22, 2018, page H5581.
Related bills 3
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 655 | Securing the Cities Act of 2017 | Related bill | Feb 1, 2017 |
| HR 2825 | DHS Authorization Act | Related bill | Nov 13, 2018 |
| HR 7213 | Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018 | Related bill | Dec 21, 2018 |
Titles 4
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018
- Short Titles as Reported to House
- Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018
- Short Titles as Passed House
- Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2018
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Emergency Management.
- Chemical and biological weapons
- Congressional oversight
- Department of Homeland Security
- Emergency Management
- Emergency medical services and trauma care
- Emergency planning and evacuation
- Executive agency funding and structure
- Federal officials
- Federal-Indian relations
- Health personnel
- Intergovernmental relations
- Nuclear weapons
- State and local government operations
- Terrorism
- Urban and suburban affairs and development
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Sep 17, 2018Referred in Senate
- Sep 12, 2018Engrossed in House
- Sep 7, 2018Reported in House
- Jun 22, 2018Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
