Sec. 7. Oceania infrastructure resilience program

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The Secretary of State, in collaboration with the Secretary of Transportation, the Chief of Engineers, and the Secretary of Energy, working through the directors of the national laboratories of the Department of Energy and the Secretary of the Treasury, shall develop a program to provide frequent and meaningful technical assistance to inform the needs assessments and planning of the countries of Oceania to protect against threats to critical infrastructure. The goal of the program established under subsection

(a)is to strengthen United States support of the countries of Oceania in assessing— existing and forecasted threats to the functionality and safety of infrastructure resulting from sea-level fluctuation, salt water intrusion, extreme weather, or other severe changes in the environment, as well as cyber threats and any other security risks that disrupt essential services or threaten public health; the strategies, designs, and engineering techniques for reinforcing or rebuilding failing infrastructure in ways that with withstand and maintain function in light of existing and forecasted threats to community infrastructure; rate and sources of deterioration, structural deficiencies, and most pressing risks to public safety from aging and failing infrastructure; priorities for infrastructure improvement, reinforcement, re-engineering, or replacement based on the significance of infrastructure to ensuring public health, safety, and economic growth; risks associated with the interconnectedness of supply chains and technology, communications, and financial systems; and the policy and governance needed to strengthen critical infrastructure resilience, including with respect to infrastructure financing to meet the contemporary needs of countries in Oceania. To achieve the purpose of the program established under subsection (a), the Secretary is encouraged to consider the following activities: Educational and information sharing with the countries of Oceania that helps develop the local capacity of government and civil society leaders to evaluate localized critical infrastructure risks, interdependencies across systems, and risk-mitigation solutions. Technology exchanges that provide the countries of Oceania with access to proven, cost-effective solutions for mitigating the risks associated with critical infrastructure vulnerabilities and related interdependencies. Financial and budget management and related technical assistance that provide the countries of Oceania with additional capacity to access, manage, and service financing for contemporary infrastructure projects to support the resilience needs of communities in the Oceania region.