FRIENDS Act
Latest action · Feb 4, 2021 Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
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.
- IntroducedJan 4, 2021
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
First Responder Identification of Emergency Needs in Disaster Situations or the FRIENDS Act
This bill directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to submit a report that describes select state and local programs and policies related to the preparedness and protection of first responders, which may include information on
- the degree to which such programs and policies include consideration of the presence of a first responder's family in an area impacted by a terrorist attack,
- the availability of personal protective equipment for first responders, and
- the availability of home Medkits for first responders and their families for biological incident response.
The GAO may provide information (1) in a format that delineates high risk urban areas from rural communities; and (2) on the degree to which the selected state and local programs and policies were developed or are being executed with funding from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including grants from the State Homeland Security Grant Program or the Urban Area Security Initiative.
DHS shall consider the report's findings and assess its applicability for federal first responders.
Cosponsors
Members who signed on, in the order they did.
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Transportation and Infrastructure Committee | Referred Jan 4, 2021 |
| Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subcommittee | Referred Feb 4, 2021 | |
| House | Homeland Security Committee | Referred Jan 4, 2021 |
| Emergency Management and Technology Subcommittee | Referred Jan 5, 2021 |
Actions 4
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Feb 4, 2021Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
- Jan 5, 2021Referred to the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery.
- Jan 4, 2021Introduced in House
- Jan 4, 2021Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Homeland Security, 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.
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.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 2, January 4, 2021, page H54.
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 42 | FRIENDS Act | Reintroduction of | Feb 7, 2019 |
| HR 275 | FRIENDS Act | Reintroduced Bill | Feb 8, 2023 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit a study on the circumstances which may impact the effectiveness and availability of first responders before, during, or after a terrorist threat or event, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- FRIENDS Act
- First Responder Identification of Emergency Needs in Disaster Situations
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Emergency Management.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jan 4, 2021Introduced 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.
