,,ii #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #fii ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,march #g1 #bjai ,ms4 ,hassan 7for herself and ,ms4 ,ernst7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to establish an interagency committee on the development of green alert systems that would be activated when a veteran goes missing1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,national ,green ,alert ,act of #bjai4 #b4 ,establishment of interagency committee on development of green alert systems 7a7 ,establishment ,there is established the ,green ,alert ,system ,advisory and ,support ,committee 7referred to in this ,act as the ,committee74 7b7 ,membership 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,committee shall be composed of members appointed by the ,president1 of whom-- 7,a7 not fewer than one shall be an employee of the ,department of ,justice with experience in coordinating the ,,amber ,alert communications network1 as that term is used in subtitle ,a of title ,,iii of the ,,protect ,act 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #bjeja et seq472 7,b7 not fewer than one shall be an employee of the ,department of ,health and ,human ,services1 of which not fewer than one shall be an employee of the ,substance ,abuse and ,mental ,health ,services ,administration of the ,department of ,health and ,human ,services2 7,c7 not fewer than one shall be an employee of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs2 7,d7 not fewer than one shall be an employee of the ,department of ,transportation2 7,e7 not fewer than one shall be a veteran 7as defined in section #aja of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code7 who-- 7i7 is not eligible for appointment to the ,committee under subparagraph 7,a71 7,b71 7,c71 or 7,d72 and 7ii7 retired or otherwise honorably separated from the ,armed ,forces with a military pay grade of ,o-#g or higher2 and 7,f7 not fewer than one shall be a member of a veterans service organization who can demonstrate familiarity with1 or experience in1 the development of an alert or support system in a ,state for either missing veterans or veteran mental health4 7#b7 ,additional members ,the ,president shall appoint additional members of the ,committee from among individuals at the ,state1 local1 and tribal level who are experts in alert systems1 such as the ,,amber ,alert1 as that term is used in subtitle ,a of title ,,iii of the ,,protect ,act 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #bjeja et seq474 7#c7 ,date ,the appointments of the members of the ,committee shall be made not later than #abj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act4 7c7 ,period of appointment2 vacancies 7#a7 ,in general ,a member of the ,committee shall be appointed for the life of the ,committee4 7#b7 ,vacancies ,any vacancy in the ,committee-- 7,a7 shall not affect the powers of the ,committee2 and 7,b7 shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment4 7d7 ,initial meeting ,not later than #fj days after the date on which all members of the ,committee have been appointed1 the ,committee shall hold the first meeting of the ,committee4 7e7 ,meetings 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,committee shall meet not less frequently than twice each year4 7#b7 ,quorum ,a majority of the members of the ,committee shall constitute a quorum1 but a lesser number of members may hold hearings4 7f7 ,chairperson and ,vice ,chairperson ,the ,committee shall select a ,chairperson and ,vice ,chairperson from among the members of the ,committee4 7g7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,state ,the term ,state means any ,state of the ,united ,states1 the ,district of ,columbia1 the ,commonwealth of ,puerto ,rico1 the ,united ,states ,virgin ,islands1 ,guam1 ,american ,samoa1 the ,commonwealth of the ,northern ,mariana ,islands1 and any possession of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,veterans service organization ,the term veterans service organization means an organization recognized by the ,secretary for the representation of veterans under section #eijb of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 #c4 ,duties of ,committee 7a7 ,in general ,the ,committee shall develop best practices and provide technical assistance to ,states to establish ,state systems1 to be known as green alert systems1 that would be activated when a veteran with a history of mental health issues1 including neurocognitive disorders1 suicide attempts or impulses1 or substance use disorder goes missing4 7b7 ,missing veteran determination ,the ,committee shall determine the circumstances under which a veteran is considered missing for purposes of this section4 7c7 ,compliance with privacy laws ,the ,committee shall ensure that the ,state systems described in subsection 7a7 comply with applicable ,federal and ,state privacy laws4 7d7 ,report ,not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,committee shall submit to the ,president and ,congress a report that contains a detailed statement of the findings and conclusions of the ,committee1 together with the recommendations of the ,committee for such legislative and administrative action as the ,committee considers appropriate4 7e7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,state ,the term ,state has the meaning given that term in section #b7;g74 7#b7 ,veteran ,the term veteran means-- 7,a7 a veteran as defined in section #aja of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code2 and 7,b7 any former member of the ,armed ,forces1 including any individual who received a discharge under conditions other than honorable that is determined by the ,secretary of ,defense to have resulted from substance use disorder1 a mental health issue1 or a suicide attempt4 #d4 ,powers of ,committee 7a7 ,hearings ,the ,committee may hold such hearings1 sit and act at such times and places1 take such testimony1 and receive such evidence as the ,committee considers advisable to carry out this ,act4 7b7 ,information from ,federal agencies 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,committee may secure directly from any ,federal agency such information as the ,committee considers necessary to carry out this ,act4 7#b7 ,furnishing information ,on request of the ,chairperson of the ,committee1 the head of the ,federal agency shall furnish the information to the ,committee4 7c7 ,postal services ,the ,committee may use the ,united ,states mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other ,federal agencies4 7d7 ,gifts ,the ,committee may accept1 use1 and dispose of gifts or donations of services or property4 #e4 ,committee personnel matters 7a7 ,compensation of members 7#a7 ,in general ,a member of the ,committee who is not an officer or employee of the ,federal ,government shall be compensated at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level ,,iv of the ,executive ,schedule under section #ecae of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 for each day 7including travel time7 during which the member is engaged in the performance of the duties of the ,committee4 7#b7 ,federal members ,a member of the ,committee who is an officer or employee of the ,united ,states shall serve without compensation in addition to that received for service as an officer or employee of the ,united ,states4 7b7 ,travel expenses ,a member of the ,committee shall be allowed travel expenses1 including per diem in lieu of subsistence1 at rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter ,i of chapter #eg of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 while away from their home or regular places of business in the performance of services for the ,committee4 7c7 ,staff 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,chairperson of the ,committee may1 without regard to the civil service laws 7including regulations71 appoint and terminate an executive director and such other additional personnel as may be necessary to enable the ,committee to perform the duties of the ,committee1 except that the employment of an executive director shall be subject to confirmation by the ,committee4 7#b7 ,compensation ,the ,chairperson of the ,committee may fix the compensation of the executive director and other personnel without regard to chapter #ea and subchapter ,,iii of chapter #ec of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 relating to classification of positions and ,general ,schedule pay rates1 except that the rate of pay for the executive director and other personnel may not exceed the rate payable for level ,v of the ,executive ,schedule under section #ecaf of that title4 7d7 ,detail of ,government employees ,any ,federal ,government employee may be detailed to the ,committee without reimbursement1 and such detail shall be without interruption or loss of civil service status or privilege4 7e7 ,procurement of temporary and intermittent services ,the ,chairperson of the ,committee may procure temporary and intermittent services under section #caji7;b7 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 at rates for individuals that do not exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level ,v of the ,executive ,schedule under section #ecaf of that title4 #f4 ,termination of ,committee ,the ,committee shall terminate #ahj days after the date on which the ,committee submits the report required under section #c7;d74 #g4 ,authorization of appropriations 7a7 ,in general ,there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this ,act #ejj1jjj4 7b7 ,availability ,any amounts appropriated under the authorization contained in this section shall remain available1 without fiscal year limitation1 until expended4