S.Amdt. 4277

SA 4277. Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Ms. Collins, Mr. Brown, and Mr.
Kaine) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA
3867 submitted by Mr. Reed and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R.
4350, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2022 for military
activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and
for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe
military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

TITLE __--COMMISSION ON THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC IN THE
UNITED STATES

SEC. _01. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ``National Coronavirus
Commission Act of 2021''.

SEC. _02. DEFINITIONS.

In this title:
(1) COVID-19.--The term ``COVID-19'' means the 2019 novel
coronavirus disease.
(2) Relevant committees of congress.--The term ``relevant
committees of Congress''--
(A) means all committees for which information in the
report or plan being provided might be relevant; and
(B) includes, at a minimum--
(i) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions, the Committee on Finance, the Committee on Foreign
Relations, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs, the Committee on Homeland Security and Government
Affairs, the Committee on Appropriations, and the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and
(ii) the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on
Ways and Means, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the
Committee on Oversight and Reform, the Committee on Homeland
Security, the Committee on Appropriations, and the Permanent
Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of
Representatives.

SEC. _03. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.

There is established in the legislative branch the
Commission on the Coronavirus Pandemic in the United States
(referred to in this title as the ``Commission'').

SEC. _04. PURPOSES.

The purposes of the Commission are to--
(1) examine and report on the facts and the causes relating
to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, which may
include investigating and reporting on--
(A) the origins of COVID-19; and
(B) the spread of COVID-19 internationally and within the
United States;
(2) make a full and nonpartisan accounting of the United
States' preparedness for, and response to, the COVID-19
pandemic, to include investigating and reporting on--
(A) medical intelligence;
(B) international public health surveillance;
(C) domestic public health surveillance;
(D) communication and coordination between the Federal
Government and foreign governments, the private sector,
nongovernmental organizations, and international public
health organizations related to public health threats and
early warning, detection, and prevention and response
measures;
(E) communication and coordination related to public health
threats and early warning, detection, and prevention and
response measures among the Federal national security
agencies, Federal public health agencies, other relevant
Federal agencies, and State, Tribal, local, and territorial
governments;
(F) Federal funding and support for, engagement with, and
management of, international prevention, preparedness, and
response efforts;
(G) Federal guidance, assistance, and requirements for
State, Tribal, local, and territorial governments;
(H) Federal acquisition and financing efforts and supply
chain management, including use of the authorities provided
under the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4501 et
seq.), related to personal protective equipment, testing
supplies, ventilators and other medical equipment or
supplies, diagnostics, therapeutics, vaccines, or other
relevant items for domestic and international use;
(I) management, allocation, and distribution of relevant
resources (including resources and assets for domestic use
held by United States agencies that provide foreign aid)
between the Federal Government and State, Tribal, local, and
territorial governments, hospitals and health care
organizations, and private sector entities, including
personal protective equipment, testing supplies, ventilators
and other medical equipment or supplies, diagnostics,
therapeutics, vaccines, or other relevant items;
(J) management, allocation, and distribution of personal
protective equipment, testing supplies, ventilators and other
medical equipment or supplies, diagnostics, therapeutics,
vaccines, or other relevant items as aid to foreign
countries;
(K) domestic and global supply chain vulnerabilities with
respect to personal protective equipment, testing supplies,
ventilators and other medical equipment or supplies,
diagnostics, therapeutics, vaccines, or other relevant items;
(L) the operation of government-maintained stockpiles;
(M) scams and profiteering;
(N) misinformation and disinformation;
(O) the readiness of Federal, State, Tribal, local, and
territorial public health departments and agencies and
relevant regional entities;
(P) testing and contact tracing operations;
(Q) emergency management;
(R) military engagement, including the National Guard
Bureau;
(S) Federal, State, Tribal, local, and territorial orders
and guidance to reduce disease transmission, including travel
restrictions, stay-at-home orders, in-person school and
institution of higher education closures or modifications,
workplace protections or closures, or business closures or
modifications;
(T) Federal, State, Tribal, local, and territorial
guidance, public health education, and resource provision
related to masking, social distancing, hygiene, therapeutics,
testing, quarantining, vaccination, or other relevant topics;
(U) scientific and technological preparedness and response,
which may include--
(i) the Federal role in executing, supporting, and
coordinating domestic and global research on diagnostics,
therapeutics, and vaccines;
(ii) the efficacy and scientific integrity of the Federal
authorization and approval processes for vaccines,
therapeutics, and diagnostics; and
(iii) the use of technology to detect and prevent
contagion, including privacy concerns;
(V) the preparedness and response of specific types of
institutions that experienced high rates of COVID-19
infection or that are critical to national security, which
may include--
(i) hospitals;
(ii) skilled nursing facilities and nursing facilities;
(iii) assisted living facilities;
(iv) prisons, jails, and immigration detention centers;
(v) elementary and secondary schools and institutions of
higher education;
(vi) food production, processing, and distribution
facilities;
(vii) other congregate settings and confined or high-
density workplaces; and
(viii) other critical infrastructure facilities;
(W) Federal economic relief programs, including--
(i) loan, grant, and other financial assistance;
(ii) unemployment insurance;
(iii) tax and loan deferment;
(iv) direct payments;
(v) rental and mortgage assistance, eviction moratoria, and
foreclosure relief; and
(vi) fiscal relief to States, Tribes, localities, and
territories;
(X) health and economic impacts on underserved communities,
rural populations, racial and ethnic minority populations,
older adults, and all other populations with relevant health
or economic disparities, which may include--
(i) immigrant populations;
(ii) lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer
individuals;
(iii) people with disabilities;
(iv) people who live on or near Indian reservations or in
Alaska Native villages;
(v) residents of territories of the United States; and
(vi) veterans;
(Y) the division of authority and responsibilities between
the Federal Government and State, Tribal, local, and
territorial governments;
(Z) any other aspect of Federal, State, Tribal, local, and
territorial government preparedness and response; and
(AA) other areas as determined relevant and appropriate by
the Commission (by agreement of the chair and vice chair of
the Commission); and
(3) investigate and report to the President and Congress on
its findings, conclusions, and recommendations to improve the
ability of the Federal Government, State, Tribal, local, and
territorial governments, and the private sector to--
(A) prevent, detect, respond to, and prepare for future
epidemics and pandemics, whether naturally occurring or
caused by State or non-State actors, and other public health
emergencies;
(B) protect the health security of the United States; and
(C) reestablish the role of the United States as a global
leader in epidemic and pandemic preparedness and response.

SEC. _05. COMPOSITION OF THE COMMISSION.

(a) Members.--The Commission shall be comprised of 10
members, of whom--
(1) 1 member shall be appointed by the President, who shall
serve as the chair of the Commission;
(2) 1 member shall--
(A) be appointed by the leader of the Senate who represents
the major political party that the President does not
represent, in consultation with the leader of the House of
Representatives from the same political party; and
(B) serve as the vice chair of the Commission;

[[Page S7809]]

(3) 2 members shall be appointed by the senior member of
the Senate leadership of the Democratic Party;
(4) 2 members shall be appointed by the senior member of
the Senate leadership of the Republican Party;
(5) 2 members shall be appointed by the senior member of
the leadership of the House of Representatives of the
Republican Party; and
(6) 2 members shall be appointed by the senior member of
the leadership of the House of Representatives of the
Democratic Party.
(b) Qualifications.--
(1) Political party affiliation.--Not more than 5 members
of the Commission shall be from the same political party.
(2) Nongovernmental appointees.--An individual appointed to
the Commission shall not--
(A) be an officer or employee of the Federal Government or
any State, Tribal, local, or territorial government, except
in the case of a State employee who works at a public
institution of higher education or State-funded research
institution; or
(B) have held a position in any agency, office, or other
establishment in the executive, legislative, or judicial
branch of the Federal Government, the functions and duties of
which included planning, coordinating, or implementing any
aspect of the Federal Government response to the public
health emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and
Human Services under section 319 of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 247d) on January 31, 2020, with respect to
COVID-19, including a position that required the individual
holding the position to attend meetings relating to that
response.
(3) Ethics and conflicts report.--The Commission shall hire
an ethics counsel, and not later than 30 days after the
initial meeting of the Commission, the ethics counsel shall
submit a detailed plan for identifying and resolving
potential and actual conflicts of interest by any member of
the Commission, including of an ethical, financial, or
personal nature, or that could lead a reasonable person to
conclude a conflict may exist, to the relevant committees of
Congress.
(4) Other qualifications.--
(A) Governors, public health experts, and economic policy
experts.--In appointing members to the Commission, the
appointing individuals described in subsection (a) of the
same political party shall coordinate to ensure that the
members appointed by each political party include--
(i) at least 1 former governor of a State;
(ii) at least 1 public health expert; and
(iii) at least 1 economic policy expert.
(B) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
individuals appointed to the Commission should be prominent
United States citizens, with national recognition and
significant depth of experience in such professions as
governmental service, public health, global health,
infectious diseases, pandemic preparedness and response,
humanitarian response and relief, scientific research, public
administration, intelligence gathering, commerce, national
security, and foreign affairs.
(5) Timeline for appointment.--All members of the
Commission shall be appointed not later than 60 days after
the date of enactment of this Act.
(6) Vacancies.--Any vacancy in the Commission shall not
affect its powers, but shall be filled in the same manner in
which the original appointment was made.
(c) Meetings.--
(1) Initial meeting.--The Commission shall meet and begin
the operations of the Commission within 45 days after the
appointment of all Commission members.
(2) Additional meetings.--After the initial meeting of the
Commission, the Commission shall meet upon the call of the
chair or a majority of the members of the Commission.
(3) Quorum.--Six members of the Commission shall constitute
a quorum. If required for public health reasons, Commission
members may attend meetings virtually and virtual attendance
shall count towards constituting a quorum.

SEC. _06. FUNCTIONS OF THE COMMISSION.

The functions of the Commission are to--
(1) conduct an investigation that--
(A) addresses the purposes described in section 4;
(B) investigates relevant facts and circumstances relating
to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, including
preparedness for, and the response to, the COVID-19 pandemic
by the Federal Government and, as appropriate, State, Tribal,
territorial, and local governments, including any relevant
legislation, Executive order, regulation, plan, policy,
practice, or procedure;
(C) includes relevant facts and circumstances relating to--
(i) domestic and international public health agencies;
(ii) health care agencies;
(iii) financial, labor and housing agencies;
(iv) education agencies;
(v) intelligence agencies;
(vi) defense and national security agencies;
(vii) diplomacy and development agencies;
(viii) White House offices and councils;
(ix) health care organizations;
(x) private sector entities;
(xi) scientific research agencies;
(xii) immigration and border control agencies;
(xiii) international trade organizations;
(xiv) Congress;
(xv) State, Tribal, local, and territorial government
agencies;
(xvi) the role of congressional and State government
oversight and resource allocation; and
(xvii) other areas of the public and private sectors
determined relevant by the Commission for its inquiry;
(D) coordinates with and reviews the findings, conclusions,
and recommendations of other relevant international,
executive branch, congressional, State, or independent
commission investigations into the COVID-19 pandemic, to the
extent determined appropriate by Commission members; and
(E) may include a comparative analysis of relevant domestic
or international best practices;
(2) identify, review, and evaluate the lessons learned from
the COVID-19 pandemic regarding the structure, coordination,
management policies, and procedures of the Federal
Government, State, Tribal, local, and territorial
governments, and nongovernmental entities relative to
detecting, preventing, and responding to--
(A) epidemics and pandemics, whether naturally occurring or
caused by State or non-State actors; and
(B) other public health emergencies; and
(3) submit to the President and Congress such reports as
are required by this title containing such findings,
conclusions, and legislative, regulatory, and policy
recommendations as the Commission shall determine, including
proposing organization, coordination, planning, management
arrangements, procedures, rules, and regulations.

SEC. _07. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.

(a) In General.--
(1) Hearings and evidence.--The Commission or, on the
authority of the Commission, any subcommittee or member
thereof, may, for the purpose of carrying out this title--
(A) hold such hearings, sit and act at such times and
places, take such testimony, receive such evidence, and
administer such oaths as the Commission or such designated
subcommittee or designated member may determine advisable;
and
(B) subject to paragraph (2)(A), require, by subpoena or
otherwise, the attendance and testimony of such witnesses and
the production of such written, recorded, and electronic
materials as the Commission or such designated subcommittee
or designated member may determine advisable, including
correspondence, memoranda, diplomatic cables, papers,
documents, reports, books, notes, records, text messages,
emails, voicemails, and communications, including
communications sent from or received on both official and
personal accounts and devices.
(2) Subpoenas.--
(A) Issuance.--
(i) In general.--A subpoena may be issued under this
subsection only--

(I) by the agreement of the chair and the vice chair; or
(II) by the affirmative vote of a majority of the members
of the Commission.

(ii) Signature.--Subject to clause (i), subpoenas issued
under this subsection may be issued under the signature of
the chair or any member designated by a majority of the
Commission, and may be served by any person designated by the
chair or by a member designated by a majority of the
Commission.
(B) Enforcement.--
(i) In general.--In the case of contumacy or failure to
obey a subpoena issued under this subsection, the United
States district court for the judicial district in which the
subpoenaed person resides, is served, or may be found, or
where the subpoena is returnable, may issue an order
requiring such person to appear at any designated place to
testify or to produce documentary or other evidence. Any
failure to obey the order of the court may be punished by the
court as a contempt of that court.
(ii) Additional enforcement.--In the case of any failure of
any witness to comply with any subpoena or to testify when
summoned under authority of this section, the Commission may,
by majority vote, certify a statement of fact constituting
such failure to the appropriate United States attorney, who
may bring the matter before the grand jury for its action,
under the same statutory authority and procedures as if the
United States attorney had received a certification under
sections 102 through 104 of the Revised Statutes of the
United States (2 U.S.C. 192 through 194).
(b) Contracting.--The Commission may, to such extent and in
such amounts as are provided in appropriation Acts, enter
into contracts to enable the Commission to discharge its
duties under this title.
(c) Information From Federal Agencies.--
(1) In general.--The Commission is authorized to secure
directly from any executive department, bureau, agency,
board, commission, office, independent establishment, or
instrumentality of the Government, information, suggestions,
estimates, and statistics for the purposes of this title.
Notwithstanding any other law or any assertion of privilege,
each department, bureau, agency, board, commission, office,
independent establishment, or instrumentality shall furnish,
without redaction, such records, information, suggestions,
estimates, and statistics directly to the Commission, upon
request made by the chair, the chair of any subcommittee
created by a majority of the Commission, or any member
designated by a majority of the Commission.

[[Page S7810]]

(2) Receipt, handling, storage, and dissemination.--
Information shall only be received, handled, stored, and
disseminated by members of the Commission and its staff
consistent with all applicable statutes, regulations, and
Executive orders.
(d) Assistance From Federal Agencies.--
(1) General services administration.--The Administrator of
General Services shall provide to the Commission on a
reimbursable basis administrative support and other services
for the performance of the Commission's functions.
(2) Other departments and agencies.--In addition to the
assistance prescribed in paragraph (1), departments and
agencies of the United States may provide to the Commission
such services, funds, facilities, staff, and other support
services as the departments and agencies may determine
advisable and as may be authorized by law.
(e) Gifts.--The Commission may accept, use, and dispose of
gifts or donations of services or property.
(f) Postal Services.--The Commission may use the United
States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions
as departments and agencies of the United States.

SEC. _08. NONAPPLICABILITY OF THE FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMISSION
ACT.

(a) In General.--The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5
U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Commission.
(b) Public Meetings and Release of Public Versions of
Reports.--The Commission shall--
(1) hold public hearings and meetings to the extent
appropriate; and
(2) release public versions of the reports required under
subsections (a) and (b) of section 13.
(c) Public Hearings.--Any public hearings of the Commission
shall be conducted in a manner consistent with the protection
of information provided to or developed for or by the
Commission as required by any applicable statute, regulation,
or Executive order.

SEC. _09. RECORD RETENTION.

(a) Commission Records.--The Commission shall--
(1) preserve the records and documents of the Commission;
and
(2) make such records and documents available to the
National Archives not later than 120 days following the
submission of the Commission's final report.
(b) Future Access.--Following the termination of the
Commission, the Secretary of the Senate shall be responsible
for facilitating access to the publicly available records and
documents of the Commission, as if they were Senate records,
for researchers, interested parties, and the general public.
(c) Official Electronic Accounts for Commission Business.--
When conducting any Commission business on electronic
accounts, members and staff of the Commission shall use
official Commission electronic accounts.

SEC. _10. STAFF OF THE COMMISSION.

(a) In General.--
(1) Appointment and compensation.--The chair, in
consultation with the vice chair and in accordance with rules
agreed upon by the Commission, may appoint and fix the
compensation of a staff director and such other personnel as
may be necessary to enable the Commission to carry out its
functions, without regard to the provisions of title 5,
United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive
service, and without regard to the provisions of chapter 51
and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to
classification and General Schedule pay rates, except that no
rate of pay fixed under this subsection may exceed the
equivalent of that payable for a position at level V of the
Executive Schedule under section 5316 of such title.
(2) Nonpartisan staff.--The staff director shall be
responsible for the day-to-day authority over the activities
of the personnel of the Commission, and the staff director
and any other personnel of the Commission shall be hired
without regard to political affiliation.
(3) Personnel as federal employees.--
(A) In general.--The staff director and any personnel of
the Commission who are employees shall be employees under
section 2105 of title 5, United States Code, for purposes of
chapters 63, 81, 83, 84, 85, 87, 89, and 90 of that title.
(B) Members of commission.--Subparagraph (A) shall not be
construed to apply to members of the Commission.
(b) Detailees.--Any Federal Government employee may be
detailed to the Commission without reimbursement from the
Commission, and such detailee shall retain the rights,
status, and privileges of his or her regular employment
without interruption.
(c) Consultant Services.--The Commission is authorized to
procure the services of experts and consultants in accordance
with section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, but at
rates not to exceed the daily rate paid a person occupying a
position at level IV of the Executive Schedule under section
5315 of title 5, United States Code.

SEC. _11. COMPENSATION AND TRAVEL EXPENSES.

(a) Compensation.--Each member of the Commission may be
compensated at not to exceed the daily equivalent of the
annual rate of basic pay in effect for a position at level IV
of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5,
United States Code, for each day during which that member is
engaged in the actual performance of the duties of the
Commission.
(b) Travel Expenses.--While away from their homes or
regular places of business in the performance of services for
the Commission, members of the Commission shall be allowed
travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,
in the same manner as persons employed intermittently in the
Government service are allowed expenses under section 5703 of
title 5, United States Code.

SEC. _12. SECURITY CLEARANCES FOR COMMISSION MEMBERS AND
STAFF.

The appropriate Federal agencies or departments shall
cooperate with the Commission in expeditiously providing to
the Commission members and staff appropriate security
clearances to the extent possible pursuant to existing
procedures and requirements, except that no person shall be
provided with access to classified information under this
title without the appropriate security clearances.

SEC. _13. REPORTS OF THE COMMISSION; TERMINATION.

(a) Interim Reports.--The Commission may submit to the
President and Congress interim reports containing such
findings, conclusions, and recommendations for corrective
measures as have been agreed to by a majority of Commission
members.
(b) Final Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of
appointment of all members of the Commission, the Commission
shall submit to the President and the relevant committees of
Congress a final report containing such findings,
conclusions, and recommendations for corrective measures and
reforms as have been agreed to by a majority of the members
of the Commission.
(2) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the members of the Commission should make the utmost effort
to produce a comprehensive, fact-based, evidentiary,
nonpartisan, and actionable final report.
(c) Accessibility.--The final report shall--
(1) simultaneously be made publicly available on an
internet website;
(2) be written in plain language, to the extent deemed
practicable by the Commission; and
(3) be made available in accessible formats and multiple
languages, to the extent determined practicable by the
Commission.
(d) Alternative Mediums.--The Commission may use
alternative mediums to communicate key findings from the
final report to as many people of the United States as
possible.
(e) Extensions.--The submission and publication of the
final report, as described in subsection (b), may be delayed
by 90 days upon the agreement of a majority of the members of
the Commission. The Commission may make not more than 3 90-
day extensions. The Commission shall notify the President,
Congress, and the public of each such extension.
(f) Termination.--
(1) In general.--The Commission, and all the authorities of
this title, shall terminate 120 days after the date on which
the final report is submitted under subsection (b).
(2) Administrative activities before termination.--The
Commission may use the 120-day period referred to in
paragraph (1) for the purpose of concluding its activities,
including providing testimony to committees of Congress
concerning its reports and disseminating the final report.
(g) Government Accountability Office Report.--
(1) Monitoring.--The Comptroller General of the United
States shall monitor the implementation of any Commission
recommendations included in the final report.
(2) Reports.--
(A) In general.--One year after the final Commission report
is submitted under subsection (b), and each year thereafter
for the following 3 years, the Comptroller General shall
submit to Congress a report regarding the status of the
Commission recommendations that--
(i) identifies each recommendation as open or closed; and
(ii) provides a description of actions taken in response to
each recommendation.
(B) Scope of reports.--Each report required under
subparagraph (A) shall not provide a critical assessment of
the merit or value of any Commission recommendation included
in the final Commission report.

SEC. _14. FUNDING.

(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this title $50,000,000.
(b) Duration of Availability.--Amounts made available to
the Commission under subsection (a) shall remain available
until the termination of the Commission.
______