Sec. 2. Information sharing for Federal agencies
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The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall establish and maintain a web-based interagency electronic information sharing system, to be known as DisasterAssistance.gov , to— facilitate the administration of the universal application for direct Federal disaster assistance established under section 3; carry out the purposes of disaster assistance programs swiftly, efficiently, equitably, and in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and the privacy and data protections provided under this section; and support the detection, prevention, and investigation of waste, fraud, abuse, inequitable allocation of resources, or discrimination in the administration of disaster assistance programs.
In establishing and maintaining the electronic information sharing system under this subsection, the Administrator may collect and maintain disaster assistance information received from a disaster assistance agency, a block grant recipient, or an applicant for a disaster assistance program and share such information with any other disaster assistance agency or block grant recipient using such electronic information sharing system. The Administrator may facilitate the collection of disaster assistance information into the electronic information sharing system established under this section only after the following requirements have been met:
The Administrator certifies that the electronic information sharing system substantially complies with the data security standards and best practices established pursuant to subchapter II of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, and any other applicable Federal information security policy. The Secretary of Homeland Security publishes a privacy impact assessment for the electronic information sharing system, in accordance with section 222 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 142 ).
The Administrator, after consulting with disaster assistance agencies, publishes standard rules of behavior for disaster assistance agencies, block grant recipients, and personnel granted access to disaster assistance information to protect such information from improper disclosure. The Administrator may authorize the collection, maintenance, sharing, and use of additional disaster assistance information by publishing a notice on DisasterAssistance.gov that includes a detailed description of— the specific amendments to the collection, maintenance, and sharing of disaster assistance information authorized; why each such amendment to how disaster assistance information is collected, maintained, or shared is necessary to carry out the purposes of a disaster assistance program and consistent with the fair information practice principles; and the disaster assistance agencies and block grant recipients that will be granted access to the additional information to carry out the purposes of any disaster assistance program.
The publication of a notice under paragraph
(1)of a revision to the DisasterAssistance.gov system of records prior to any new collection, or uses, of Privacy Act categories of records, to carry out the purposes of a disaster assistance program with regard to a disaster declared by the President under section 401 or 501 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5170 ; 5191), shall be deemed to satisfy the notice and publication requirements of section 552a(e)(4) of title 5, United States Code, for the entire period of performance for any assistance provided under a disaster assistance program. Upon the declaration of a major disaster or emergency pursuant to sections 401 or 501 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5170 ; 5191), the President may direct the Administrator to waive the requirements of subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, with respect to voluntary collection of information for the duration of such major disaster or emergency. Upon exercising the waiver authority under subparagraph (A), the Administrator shall— promptly post on a website of the Federal Emergency Management Agency a brief justification for such waiver, the anticipated period of time such waiver will be in effect, and the disaster assistance offices within the Federal Emergency Management Agency to which such waiver shall apply; and update the information relating to such waiver, as applicable. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall issue a report describing the benefits and potential risks associated with authorizing the waiver of the information collection requirements described in paragraph (3). The report required under subparagraph
(A)shall include an assessment of the extent to which a waiver described in paragraph
(3)would— affect the paperwork burden for individuals, small businesses, State, local and tribal governments, and other persons; affect the consistent application of Federal laws relating to— privacy and confidentiality; security of information; and access to information; and encourage or deter a State or other entity from participating in the voluntary collection of information for the duration of a major disaster or emergency. The Administrator may permit a Federal agency other than a disaster assistance agency listed in subparagraphs
(A)through
(D)of subsection (f)(3) to use the electronic information sharing system established under this section for the purpose of facilitating disaster-related assistance if such agency enters into an agreement containing the terms described in paragraph (2). An agreement entered into under paragraph
(1)shall contain the following terms: The Federal agency shall— collect, share, maintain, and use disaster assistance information in compliance with this section and any policies of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and any information protection and use policies of such Federal agency; and train any personnel granted access to disaster assistance information on the rules of behavior established by the Administrator under subsection (b)(3). In the event of any unauthorized disclosure of disaster assistance information, the Federal agency shall— notify the Administrator within 24 hours of discovering any such unauthorized disclosure; cooperate fully with the Administrator in the investigation and remediation of any such disclosure; cooperate fully in the prosecution of a person responsible for such disclosure; and assume the responsibility for any compensation, civil liability, or other remediation measures, whether awarded by a judgment of a court or agreed as a compromise of any potential claims by or on behalf of an applicant, including by obtaining credit monitoring and remediation services, for an improper disclosure that is— caused, directly or indirectly, by the acts or omissions of officers, employees, and contractors of the agency; or from any electronic system of records that is created or maintained by the agency pursuant to section 552a(e) of title 5, United States Code. The Administrator shall publish an agency agreement entered into under this subsection on the same website as the electronic information sharing system established under this section. The sharing and use of disaster assistance information that is subject to the requirements of section 552a of title 5, United States Code, by disaster assistance agencies and block grant recipients shall not— be construed as a matching program for purposes of section 552a(a)(8) of such title; or be subject to the remaining computer matching provisions of section 552a of such title. In this section: The term applicant means— a person who applies for disaster assistance from a disaster assistance program; and a person on whose behalf a person described in subparagraph
(A)has applied for disaster assistance. The term block grant recipient means a State, local government, or Indian Tribe that receives assistance through the disaster assistance program described in paragraph (5)(B)(i). The term disaster assistance agency means— the Federal Emergency Management Agency; the Department of Housing and Urban Development; the Small Business Administration; the Department of Agriculture; any other Federal agency that the Administrator permits to use the electronic information sharing system under subsection (d). The term disaster assistance information includes any personal, demographic, biographical, geographical, financial information, or other information that a disaster assistance agency or block grant recipient is authorized to collect, maintain, share, or use to process an application for disaster assistance or otherwise carry out a disaster assistance program. The term disaster assistance program means— any program that provides assistance to individuals and households under title IV or title V of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5170 et seq. ); and any other assistance program carried out by a disaster assistance agency that provides assistance to an individual, household, or organization related to a major disaster or emergency declared under sections 401 or 501 of such Act, including— assistance for activities related to disaster relief, long-term recovery, restoration of infrastructure and housing, economic revitalization, and mitigation that are authorized under title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 ( 42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq. ); any loan that is authorized under section 7(b) of the Small Business Act ( 15 U.S.C. 636(b) ); and the distribution of food benefit allotments as authorized under section 412 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5179 ) and section 5(h) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 ( 7 U.S.C. 2014(h) ).
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Sec. 2
Information sharing for Federal agencies
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