National Guard personnel disaster response duty

Chapter 3 of title 32, United States Code, is amended— (1) by redesignating section 329 as section 330; and (2) by inserting after section 328 the following new section: 329. Active Guard and Reserve duty: disaster response duty (a) Disaster response authority When a Governor has declared an emergency due to a disaster, the Secretary of Defense may authorize the Governor to direct National Guard personnel serving under section 328 of this title to perform duties in response to, or in preparation for, such disaster. (b) Requirements The disaster response duty described in subsection (a)— (1) may be performed to the extent that the performance of the duty does not interfere with the performance of the member’s primary Active Guard and Reserve duties of organizing, administering, recruiting, instructing, and training the reserve components; and (2) shall not exceed 14 days per person per calendar year unless the President has declared a disaster under title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170 et seq.). (c) Liability A member described in subsection (a) is not an instrumentality of the United States with respect to any act or omission in carrying out a disaster response duty pursuant to this section. The United States shall not be responsible for any claim or judgment arising from the use of National Guard personnel under this section. (d) Definitions In this section: (1) The term disaster response duty means duty performed by a member of the National Guard at the direction of the Governor of the State and pursuant to an emergency declaration by such Governor in response to a disaster or in preparation for an imminent disaster. (2) The term State means each of the several States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the United States Virgin Islands..