§981 Pilot Integrated Scanning System

Summary

Within 90 days after October 13, 2006, the Secretary must pick three foreign seaports — each different and with different trade volumes — to try out a pilot scanning system that pairs nonintrusive imaging with radiation detectors. The Secretary must get the radiation gear either by working with the Department of Energy through its Second Line of Defense and Megaports programs or by working with private companies or host countries to obtain equipment that meets both agencies’ technical standards. Within 1 year after October 13, 2006, the pilot at those ports must be fully running. The system must scan every container loaded there for the United States, send images and data electronically to U.S. officials in that country or in the United States, resolve every radiation alarm under Department rules, use the data to improve the Automated Targeting System or similar programs, store the information for later use, and may send automatic alerts for suspicious or high‑risk cargo to prompt inspections. Within 180 days after full operation, the Secretary, working with the Secretary of State and, when needed, the Secretary of Energy, must send a report to Congress. The report must describe lessons learned; analyze how well the Automated Targeting System or other programs use the images to find high‑risk containers; evaluate detection of shielded and unshielded nuclear or radiological material; review software and tech that can automatically spot anomalies; and study the need and practicality of expanding the system to other Container Security Initiative ports. That expansion study must address infrastructure needs, effects on average processing speed, scalability for current and future trade, ability to keep and catalog data during disruptions, installation and maintenance costs, staff ability to manage the data, protection of commercial data, and the reliability of available technology.