Federal Building Threat Notification Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. PETERS. Mr. President, I will shortly ask for unanimous consent to pass the Federal Building Threat Notification Act, a bipartisan legislation that I introduced with Senators Lankford and Ernst to improve emergency communications in Federal buildings. This bill was voted unanimously out of committee yesterday.

The men and women who serve our country should be able to do their jobs in a safe and secure workplace, and members of the public who enter Federal buildings to receive essential services should be confident of that--if a violent threat occurs, that they will be quickly informed and told that they need to say safe.

Unfortunately, that is not what is always happening today. Last January, shots were fired directly outside the McNamara Federal Building in Detroit, in my home State of Michigan. Yet the Federal employees working inside the building were not informed about the incident until hours after it happened. This is simply unacceptable.

When a firearm is discharged near a Federal building and chaos ensues, the people inside should not be left wondering what the heck is happening. They should not have to rely on social media, a phone call from a family member, or news reports to learn about a threat outside of their workplace. They should receive clear and timely information from the officials responsible for protecting that building in an emergency because, as you know, every minute matters. Employees and visitors need to know whether they should shelter in place, evacuate the building, avoid a particular entrance, or take other immediate steps to protect themselves and to protect the public.

The incident in Detroit exposed a serious gap in our Federal security procedures, and it occurred at a time when threats against government facilities are increasing. Over the last 5 years, there has been a sharp increase in terrorist attacks and plots against government targets, including bomb threats.

We have a responsibility to make sure everyone inside these buildings has the information they need during a crisis, and that is exactly what this bipartisan bill will do.

The Federal Building Threat Notification Act would require the Federal Protective Service and the Department of Homeland Security to develop and implement clear guidance for emergency communications within 1 year. That guidance would establish best practices and protocols for promptly notifying building tenants that violent threats are occurring inside or immediately surrounding a Federal building. That includes shootings and other firearm incidents, threats involving other types of weapons, and potential terrorist activity as well as suspicious devices.

Just as importantly, the guidance must provide employees and other building tenants with clear instructions about the appropriate safety measures they should take in response. This bill would also ensure that every building protected by the Federal Protective Service has a designated security official responsible for carrying out these procedures.

Finally, the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Protective Service would report back to Congress on the guidance they put into place.

These are straightforward, commonsense protections, and I am proud to have the support of my colleagues from across the aisle, Senator Lankford and Senator Ernst. We know these threats are real, we know there is a gap in our current system, and we know what needs to be done to address it.

This legislation is bipartisan because keeping Federal employees and the public safe should never be a partisan issue. We should not wait for another dangerous incident or a tragedy before taking action. So I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense bill, strengthen emergency communications in Federal buildings, and help ensure that employees and visitors receive timely information when their safety is at risk.

545, S. 2542.
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