Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013

113TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION

H. R. 219
AN ACT

To improve and streamline disaster assistance for Hurricane
Sandy, and for other purposes.
1

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-

2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

2
1

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

2

(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

3 ‘‘Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013’’.
4

(b) TABLE

OF

CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

5 this Act is as follows:
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.

1. Short title; table of contents.
2. Public assistance program alternative procedures.
3. Federal assistance to individuals and households.
4. Hazard mitigation.
5. Dispute resolution pilot program.
6. Unified Federal review.
7. Simplified procedures.
8. Essential assistance.
9. Individual assistance factors.
10. Tribal requests for a major disaster or emergency declaration under
the Stafford Act.
Sec. 11. Recommendations for reducing costs of future disasters.

6

SEC. 2. PUBLIC ASSISTANCE PROGRAM ALTERNATIVE PRO-

7
8

CEDURES.

Title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and

9 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) is
10 amended—
11

(1) by redesignating the second section 425 (re-

12

lating to essential service providers) as section 427;

13

and

14

(2) by adding at the end the following:

15

‘‘SEC. 428. PUBLIC ASSISTANCE PROGRAM ALTERNATIVE

16
17

PROCEDURES.

‘‘(a) APPROVAL

OF

PROJECTS.—The President, act-

18 ing through the Administrator of the Federal Emergency
19 Management Agency, may approve projects under the al20 ternative procedures adopted under this section for any
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1 major disaster or emergency declared on or after the date
2 of enactment of this section. The Administrator may also
3 apply the alternate procedures adopted under this section
4 to a major disaster or emergency declared before enact5 ment of this Act for which construction has not begun as
6 of the date of enactment of this Act.
7

‘‘(b) ADOPTION.—The Administrator, in coordination

8 with States, tribal and local governments, and owners or
9 operators of private nonprofit facilities, may adopt alter10 native procedures to administer assistance provided under
11 sections 403(a)(3)(A), 406, 407, and 502(a)(5).
12

‘‘(c) GOALS

OF

PROCEDURES.—The alternative pro-

13 cedures adopted under subsection (a) shall further the
14 goals of—
15
16
17
18

‘‘(1) reducing the costs to the Federal Government of providing such assistance;
‘‘(2) increasing flexibility in the administration
of such assistance;

19

‘‘(3) expediting the provision of such assistance

20

to a State, tribal or local government, or owner or

21

operator of a private nonprofit facility; and

22

‘‘(4) providing financial incentives and disincen-

23

tives for a State, tribal or local government, or

24

owner or operator of a private nonprofit facility for

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1

the timely and cost-effective completion of projects

2

with such assistance.

3

‘‘(d) PARTICIPATION.—Participation in the alter-

4 native procedures adopted under this section shall be at
5 the election of a State, tribal or local government, or
6 owner or operator of a private nonprofit facility consistent
7 with procedures determined by the Administrator.
8

‘‘(e) MINIMUM PROCEDURES.—The alternative pro-

9 cedures adopted under this section shall include the fol10 lowing:
11
12

‘‘(1) For repair, restoration, and replacement of
damaged facilities under section 406—

13

‘‘(A) making grants on the basis of fixed

14

estimates, if the State, tribal or local govern-

15

ment, or owner or operator of the private non-

16

profit facility agrees to be responsible for any

17

actual costs that exceed the estimate;

18

‘‘(B) providing an option for a State, tribal

19

or local government, or owner or operator of a

20

private nonprofit facility to elect to receive an

21

in-lieu contribution, without reduction, on the

22

basis of estimates of—

23

‘‘(i) the cost of repair, restoration, re-

24

construction, or replacement of a public fa-

25

cility owned or controlled by the State,

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1

tribal or local government or owner or op-

2

erator of a private nonprofit facility; and

3

‘‘(ii) management expenses;

4

‘‘(C) consolidating, to the extent deter-

5

mined appropriate by the Administrator, the fa-

6

cilities of a State, tribal or local government, or

7

owner or operator of a private nonprofit facility

8

as a single project based upon the estimates

9

adopted under the procedures;

10

‘‘(D) if the actual costs of a project com-

11

pleted under the procedures are less than the

12

estimated costs thereof, the Administrator may

13

permit a grantee or subgrantee to use all or

14

part of the excess funds for—

15

‘‘(i) cost-effective activities that re-

16

duce the risk of future damage, hardship,

17

or suffering from a major disaster; and

18

‘‘(ii) other activities to improve future

19

Public Assistance operations or planning;

20

‘‘(E) in determining eligible costs under

21

section 406, the Administrator shall make avail-

22

able, at an applicant’s request and where the

23

Administrator or the certified cost estimate pre-

24

pared by the applicant’s professionally licensed

25

engineers has estimated an eligible Federal

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1

share for a project of at least $5,000,000, an

2

independent expert panel to validate the esti-

3

mated eligible cost consistent with applicable

4

regulations and policies implementing this sec-

5

tion; and

6

‘‘(F) in determining eligible costs under

7

section 406, the Administrator shall, at the ap-

8

plicant’s request, consider properly conducted

9

and certified cost estimates prepared by profes-

10

sionally licensed engineers (mutually agreed

11

upon by the Administrator and the applicant),

12

to the extent that such estimates comply with

13

applicable regulations, policy, and guidance.

14

‘‘(2)

15

For

debris

removal

under

sections

403(a)(3)(A), 407, and 502(a)(5)—

16

‘‘(A) making grants on the basis of fixed

17

estimates to provide financial incentives and

18

disincentives for the timely or cost-effective

19

completion if the State, tribal or local govern-

20

ment, or owner or operator of the private non-

21

profit facility agrees to be responsible to pay for

22

any actual costs that exceed the estimate;

23

‘‘(B) using a sliding scale for determining

24

the Federal share for removal of debris and

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1

wreckage based on the time it takes to complete

2

debris and wreckage removal;

3

‘‘(C) allowing use of program income from

4

recycled debris without offset to the grant

5

amount;

6

‘‘(D) reimbursing base and overtime wages

7

for employees and extra hires of a State, tribal

8

or local government, or owner or operator of a

9

private nonprofit facility performing or admin-

10

istering debris and wreckage removal;

11

‘‘(E) providing incentives to a State or

12

tribal or local government to have a debris

13

management plan approved by the Adminis-

14

trator and have pre-qualified 1 or more debris

15

and wreckage removal contractors before the

16

date of declaration of the major disaster; and

17

‘‘(F) if the actual costs of projects under

18

subparagraph (A) are less than the estimated

19

costs of the project, the Administrator may per-

20

mit a grantee or subgrantee to use all or part

21

of the excess funds for—

22

‘‘(i) debris management planning;

23

‘‘(ii) acquisition of debris management

24

equipment for current or future use; and

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1

‘‘(iii) other activities to improve future

2

debris removal operations, as determined

3

by the Administrator.

4

‘‘(f) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—Until such time as the

5 Administrator promulgates regulations to implement this
6 section, the Administrator may—
7

‘‘(1) waive notice and comment rulemaking, if

8

the Administrator determines the waiver is necessary

9

to expeditiously implement this section; and

10

‘‘(2) carry out the alternative procedures under

11

this section as a pilot program.

12

‘‘(g) OVERTIME PAYMENTS.—The guidelines for re-

13 imbursement for costs under subsection (e)(2)(D) shall
14 ensure that no State or local government is denied reim15 bursement for overtime payments that are required pursu16 ant to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.
17 201 et seq.).
18

‘‘(h) REPORT.—

19

‘‘(1) IN

GENERAL.—Not

earlier than 3 years,

20

and not later than 5 years, after the date of enact-

21

ment of this section, the Inspector General of the

22

Department of Homeland Security shall submit to

23

the Committee on Homeland Security and Govern-

24

mental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on

25

Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of

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1

Representatives a report on the alternative proce-

2

dures for the repair, restoration, and replacement of

3

damaged facilities under section 406 authorized

4

under this section.

5

‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The report shall contain an

6

assessment of the effectiveness of the alternative

7

procedures, including—

8

‘‘(A) whether the alternative procedures

9

helped to improve the general speed of disaster

10

recovery;

11
12

‘‘(B) the accuracy of the estimates relied
upon;

13
14

‘‘(C) whether the financial incentives and
disincentives were effective;

15
16

‘‘(D) whether the alternative procedures
were cost effective;

17

‘‘(E) whether the independent expert panel

18

described in subsection (e)(1)(E) was effective;

19

and

20

‘‘(F) recommendations for whether the al-

21

ternative procedures should be continued and

22

any recommendations for changes to the alter-

23

native procedures.’’.

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1

SEC.

3.

FEDERAL

2
3

ASSISTANCE

TO

INDIVIDUALS

AND

HOUSEHOLDS.

Section 408(c)(1)(B) of the Robert T. Stafford Dis-

4 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
5 5174(c)(1)(B)) is amended—
6
7
8

(1) by redesignating clauses (ii) and (iii) as
clauses (iii) and (iv), respectively;
(2) by inserting after clause (i) the following:

9

‘‘(ii) LEASE

10

AND REPAIR OF RENTAL

UNITS FOR TEMPORARY HOUSING.—

11

‘‘(I) IN

GENERAL.—The

Presi-

12

dent, to the extent the President de-

13

termines it would be a cost-effective

14

alternative to other temporary housing

15

options, may—

16

‘‘(aa) enter into lease agree-

17

ments with owners of multifamily

18

rental property located in areas

19

covered by a major disaster dec-

20

laration to house individuals and

21

households eligible for assistance

22

under this section; and

23

‘‘(bb) make repairs or im-

24

provements to properties under

25

such lease agreements, to the ex-

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1

tent necessary to serve as safe

2

and adequate temporary housing.

3

‘‘(II) IMPROVEMENTS

OR

RE-

4

PAIRS.—Under

5

agreement for property entered into

6

under this subsection, the value of the

7

improvements or repairs—

the terms of any lease

8

‘‘(aa) shall be deducted from

9

the value of the lease agreement;

10

and

11

‘‘(bb) may not exceed the

12

value of the lease agreement.’’;

13

and

14
15
16
17
18

(3) in clause (iv) (as so redesignated) by striking ‘‘clause (ii)’’ and inserting ‘‘clause (iii)’’.
SEC. 4. HAZARD MITIGATION.

(a) STREAMLINED PROCEDURES; ADVANCE ASSISTANCE.—Section

404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster

19 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170c)
20 is amended by adding at the end the following:
21
22

‘‘(d) STREAMLINED PROCEDURES.—
‘‘(1) IN

GENERAL.—For

the purpose of pro-

23

viding assistance under this section, the President

24

shall ensure that—

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1

‘‘(A) adequate resources are devoted to en-

2

sure that applicable environmental reviews

3

under the National Environmental Policy Act of

4

1969 and historic preservation reviews under

5

the National Historic Preservation Act are com-

6

pleted on an expeditious basis; and

7

‘‘(B) the shortest existing applicable proc-

8

ess under the National Environmental Policy

9

Act of 1969 and the National Historic Preser-

10

vation Act is utilized.

11

‘‘(2) AUTHORITY

FOR OTHER EXPEDITED PRO-

12

CEDURES.—The

13

cedures in addition to those required under para-

14

graph (1) for the purpose of providing assistance

15

under this section, such as procedures under the

16

Prototype Programmatic Agreement of the Federal

17

Emergency Management Agency, for the consider-

18

ation of multiple structures as a group and for an

19

analysis of the cost-effectiveness and fulfillment of

20

cost-share requirements for proposed hazard mitiga-

21

tion measures.

22

‘‘(e) ADVANCE ASSISTANCE.—The President may

President may utilize expedited pro-

23 provide not more than 25 percent of the amount of the
24 estimated cost of hazard mitigation measures to a State

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1 grantee eligible for a grant under this section before eligi2 ble costs are incurred.’’.
3
4

(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF CRITERIA RELATING TO ADMINISTRATION OF

HAZARD MITIGATION ASSISTANCE

BY

5 STATES.—Section 404(c)(2) of the Robert T. Stafford
6 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
7 5170c(c)(2)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘applications
8 submitted under paragraph (1).’’ the following: ‘‘Until
9 such time as the Administrator promulgates regulations
10 to implement this paragraph, the Administrator may
11 waive notice and comment rulemaking, if the Adminis12 trator determines doing so is necessary to expeditiously
13 implement this section, and may carry out this section as
14 a pilot program.’’.
15

(c)

APPLICABILITY.—The

authority

under

the

16 amendments made by this section shall apply to—
17

(1) any major disaster or emergency declared

18

under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and

19

Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.)

20

on or after the date of enactment of this Act; and

21

(2) a major disaster or emergency declared

22

under that Act before the date of enactment of this

23

Act for which the period for processing requests for

24

assistance has not ended as of the date of enactment

25

of this Act.

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1
2

SEC. 5. DISPUTE RESOLUTION PILOT PROGRAM.

(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi-

3 nitions apply:
4

(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-

5

trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal

6

emergency Management Agency.

7
8

(2) ELIGIBLE

ASSISTANCE.—The

term ‘‘eligible

assistance’’ means assistance—

9

(A) under section 403, 406, or 407 of the

10

Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-

11

gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170b, 5172,

12

5173);

13

(B) for which the legitimate amount in dis-

14

pute is not less than $1,000,000, which sum the

15

Administrator shall adjust annually to reflect

16

changes in the Consumer Price Index for all

17

Urban Consumers published by the Department

18

of Labor;

19
20

(C) for which the applicant has a non-Federal share; and

21
22
23
24

(D) for which the applicant has received a
decision on a first appeal.
(b) PROCEDURES.—
(1) IN

GENERAL.—Not

later than 180 days

25

after the date of enactment of this section, and in

26

order to facilitate an efficient recovery from major
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1

disasters, the Administrator shall establish proce-

2

dures under which an applicant may request the use

3

of alternative dispute resolution, including arbitra-

4

tion by an independent review panel, to resolve dis-

5

putes relating to eligible assistance.

6

(2) BINDING

EFFECT.—A

decision by an inde-

7

pendent review panel under this section shall be

8

binding upon the parties to the dispute.

9
10

(3) CONSIDERATIONS.—The procedures established under this section shall—

11

(A) allow a party of a dispute relating to

12

eligible assistance to request an independent re-

13

view panel for the review;

14

(B) require a party requesting an inde-

15

pendent review panel as described in subpara-

16

graph (A) to agree to forgo rights to any fur-

17

ther appeal of the dispute relating to any eligi-

18

ble assistance;

19

(C) require that the sponsor of an inde-

20

pendent review panel for any alternative dispute

21

resolution under this section be—

22

(i) an individual or entity unaffiliated

23

with the dispute (which may include a

24

Federal agency, an administrative law

25

judge, or a reemployed annuitant who was

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1

an employee of the Federal Government)

2

selected by the Administrator; and

3

(ii) responsible for identifying and

4

maintaining an adequate number of inde-

5

pendent experts qualified to review and re-

6

solve disputes under this section;

7

(D) require an independent review panel

8

to—

9

(i) resolve any remaining disputed

10

issue in accordance with all applicable

11

laws, regulations, and Agency interpreta-

12

tions of those laws through its published

13

policies and guidance;

14

(ii) consider only evidence contained

15

in the administrative record, as it existed

16

at the time at which the Agency made its

17

initial decision;

18

(iii) only set aside a decision of the

19

Agency found to be arbitrary, capricious,

20

an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in

21

accordance with law; and

22

(iv) in the case of a finding of mate-

23

rial fact adverse to the claimant made on

24

first appeal, only set aside or reverse such

25

finding if the finding is clearly erroneous;

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1

(E) require an independent review panel to

2

expeditiously issue a written decision for any al-

3

ternative dispute resolution under this section;

4

and

5

(F) direct that if an independent review

6

panel for any alternative dispute resolution

7

under this section determines that the basis

8

upon which a party submits a request for alter-

9

native dispute resolution is frivolous, the inde-

10

pendent review panel shall direct the party to

11

pay the reasonable costs to the Federal Emer-

12

gency Management Agency relating to the re-

13

view by the independent review panel. Any

14

funds received by the Federal Emergency Man-

15

agement Agency under the authority of this sec-

16

tion shall be deposited to the credit of the ap-

17

propriation or appropriations available for the

18

eligible assistance in dispute on the date on

19

which the funds are received.

20

(c) SUNSET.—A request for review by an independent

21 review panel under this section may not be made after De22 cember 31, 2015.
23
24
25

(d) REPORT.—
(1) IN

GENERAL.—Not

later than 270 days

after the termination of authority under this section

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1

under subsection (c), the Comptroller General of the

2

United States shall submit to the Committee on

3

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the

4

Senate and the Committee on Transportation and

5

Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a re-

6

port analyzing the effectiveness of the program

7

under this section.

8
9

(2) CONTENTS.—The report submitted under
paragraph (1) shall include—

10
11

(A) a determination of the availability of
data required to complete the report;

12

(B) an assessment of the effectiveness of

13

the program under this section, including an as-

14

sessment of whether the program expedited or

15

delayed the disaster recovery process;

16

(C) an assessment of whether the program

17

increased or decreased costs to administer sec-

18

tion 403, 406, or 407 of the Robert T. Stafford

19

Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act;

20

(D) an assessment of the procedures and

21

safeguards that the independent review panels

22

established to ensure objectivity and accuracy,

23

and the extent to which they followed those pro-

24

cedures and safeguards;

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1

(E) a recommendation as to whether any

2

aspect of the program under this section should

3

be made a permanent authority; and

4

(F) recommendations for any modifications

5

to the authority or the administration of the

6

authority under this section in order to improve

7

the disaster recovery process.

8
9

SEC. 6. UNIFIED FEDERAL REVIEW.

Title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and

10 Emergency Assistance Act (as amended by this Act) is
11 further amended by adding at the end the following:
12
13

‘‘SEC. 429. UNIFIED FEDERAL REVIEW.

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after

14 the date of enactment of this section, and in consultation
15 with the Council on Environmental Quality and the Advi16 sory Council on Historic Preservation, the President shall
17 establish an expedited and unified interagency review
18 process to ensure compliance with environmental and his19 toric requirements under Federal law relating to disaster
20 recovery projects, in order to expedite the recovery proc21 ess, consistent with applicable law.
22

‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—The review process established

23 under this section shall include mechanisms to expedi24 tiously address delays that may occur during the recovery

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1 from a major disaster and be updated, as appropriate,
2 consistent with applicable law.’’.
3
4

SEC. 7. SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURES.

Section 422 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

5 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5189) is
6 amended—
7

(1) by striking ‘‘If the Federal estimate’’ and

8

inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If the Federal esti-

9

mate’’;

10

(2) by inserting ‘‘(or, if the Administrator has

11

established a threshold under subsection (b), the

12

amount established under subsection (b))’’ after

13

‘‘$35,000’’ the first place it appears;

14

(3) by inserting ‘‘or, if applicable, the amount

15

established under subsection (b),’’ after ‘‘$35,000

16

amount’’ the second place it appears; and

17
18

(4) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(b) THRESHOLD.—

19

‘‘(1) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the

20

date of enactment of this subsection, the President,

21

acting through the Administrator of the Federal

22

Emergency Management Agency (in this section re-

23

ferred to as the ‘Administrator’), shall—

24

‘‘(A) complete an analysis to determine

25

whether an increase in the threshold for eligi-

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1

bility under subsection (a) is appropriate, which

2

shall include consideration of cost-effectiveness,

3

speed of recovery, capacity of grantees, past

4

performance, and accountability measures; and

5

‘‘(B) submit to the Committee on Trans-

6

portation and Infrastructure of the House of

7

Representatives and the Committee on Home-

8

land Security and Governmental Affairs of the

9

Senate a report regarding the analysis con-

10

ducted under subparagraph (A).

11

‘‘(2) AMOUNT.—After the Administrator sub-

12

mits the report required under paragraph (1), the

13

President shall direct the Administrator to—

14

‘‘(A) immediately establish a threshold for

15

eligibility under this section in an appropriate

16

amount, without regard to chapter 5 of title 5,

17

United States Code; and

18

‘‘(B) adjust the threshold annually to re-

19

flect changes in the Consumer Price Index for

20

all Urban Consumers published by the Depart-

21

ment of Labor.

22

‘‘(3) REVIEW.—Not later than 3 years after the

23

date on which the Administrator establishes a

24

threshold under paragraph (2), and every 3 years

25

thereafter, the President, acting through the Admin-

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1

istrator, shall review the threshold for eligibility

2

under this section.’’.

3
4

SEC. 8. ESSENTIAL ASSISTANCE.

(a) OTHER NEEDS ASSISTANCE.—Section 408(e)(1)

5 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
6 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174(e)(1)) is amended—
7
8
9
10

(1) in the paragraph heading by inserting
‘‘CHILD

CARE,’’

after ‘‘DENTAL,’’; and

(2) by inserting ‘‘child care,’’ after ‘‘dental,’’.
(b) SALARIES

AND

BENEFITS.—Section 403 of the

11 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist12 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170b) is amended by adding at the
13 end the following:
14
15

‘‘(d) SALARIES AND BENEFITS.—
‘‘(1) IN

GENERAL.—If

the President declares a

16

major disaster or emergency for an area within the

17

jurisdiction of a State, tribal, or local government,

18

the President may reimburse the State, tribal, or

19

local government for costs relating to—

20

‘‘(A) basic pay and benefits for permanent

21

employees of the State, tribal, or local govern-

22

ment conducting emergency protective measures

23

under this section, if—

24

‘‘(i) the work is not typically per-

25

formed by the employees; and

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1

‘‘(ii) the type of work may otherwise

2

be carried out by contract or agreement

3

with private organizations, firms, or indi-

4

viduals.; or

5

‘‘(B) overtime and hazardous duty com-

6

pensation for permanent employees of the

7

State, tribal, or local government conducting

8

emergency protective measures under this sec-

9

tion.

10

‘‘(2) OVERTIME.—The guidelines for reimburse-

11

ment for costs under paragraph (1) shall ensure that

12

no State, tribal, or local government is denied reim-

13

bursement for overtime payments that are required

14

pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938

15

(29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.).

16

‘‘(3) NO

EFFECT ON MUTUAL AID PACTS.—

17

Nothing in this subsection shall affect the ability of

18

the President to reimburse labor force expenses pro-

19

vided pursuant to an authorized mutual aid pact.’’.

20
21

SEC. 9. INDIVIDUAL ASSISTANCE FACTORS.

In order to provide more objective criteria for evalu-

22 ating the need for assistance to individuals, to clarify the
23 threshold for eligibility and to speed a declaration of a
24 major disaster or emergency under the Robert T. Stafford
25 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

•HR 219 EH

24
1 5121 et seq.), not later than 1 year after the date of enact2 ment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emer3 gency Management Agency, in cooperation with represent4 atives of State, tribal, and local emergency management
5 agencies, shall review, update, and revise through rule6 making the factors considered under section 206.48 of
7 title 44, Code of Federal Regulations (including section
8 206.48(b)(2) of such title relating to trauma and the spe9 cific conditions or losses that contribute to trauma), to
10 measure the severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster.
11

SEC. 10. TRIBAL REQUESTS FOR A MAJOR DISASTER OR

12

EMERGENCY

13

STAFFORD ACT.

14

DECLARATION

UNDER

THE

(a) MAJOR DISASTER REQUESTS.—Section 401 of

15 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As16 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) is amended—
17

(1) by striking ‘‘All requests for a declaration’’

18

and inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—All requests for a

19

declaration’’; and

20

(2) by adding at the end the following:

21

‘‘(b) INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT REQUESTS.—

22

‘‘(1) IN

GENERAL.—The

Chief Executive of an

23

affected Indian tribal government may submit a re-

24

quest for a declaration by the President that a

•HR 219 EH

25
1

major disaster exists consistent with the require-

2

ments of subsection (a).

3

‘‘(2) REFERENCES.—In implementing assist-

4

ance authorized by the President under this Act in

5

response to a request of the Chief Executive of an

6

affected Indian tribal government for a major dis-

7

aster declaration, any reference in this title or title

8

III (except sections 310 and 326) to a State or the

9

Governor of a State is deemed to refer to an affected

10

Indian tribal government or the Chief Executive of

11

an affected Indian tribal government, as appro-

12

priate.

13

‘‘(3) SAVINGS

PROVISION.—Nothing

in this sub-

14

section shall prohibit an Indian tribal government

15

from receiving assistance under this title through a

16

declaration made by the President at the request of

17

a State under subsection (a) if the President does

18

not make a declaration under this subsection for the

19

same incident.

20

‘‘(c) COST SHARE ADJUSTMENTS

21
22

AL

FOR INDIAN

TRIB-

GOVERNMENTS.—
‘‘(1) IN

GENERAL.—In

providing assistance to

23

an Indian tribal government under this title, the

24

President may waive or adjust any payment of a

•HR 219 EH

26
1

non-Federal contribution with respect to the assist-

2

ance if—

3

‘‘(A) the President has the authority to

4

waive or adjust the payment under another pro-

5

vision of this title; and

6

‘‘(B) the President determines that the

7

waiver or adjustment is necessary and appro-

8

priate.

9

‘‘(2)

CRITERIA

FOR

MAKING

DETERMINA-

10

TIONS.—The

11

making determinations under paragraph (1)(B).’’.

12

(b) EMERGENCY REQUESTS.—Section 501 of the

President shall establish criteria for

13 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist14 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5191) is amended by adding at the
15 end the following:
16
17

‘‘(c) INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT REQUESTS.—
‘‘(1) IN

GENERAL.—The

Chief Executive of an

18

affected Indian tribal government may submit a re-

19

quest for a declaration by the President that an

20

emergency exists consistent with the requirements of

21

subsection (a).

22

‘‘(2) REFERENCES.—In implementing assist-

23

ance authorized by the President under this title in

24

response to a request of the Chief Executive of an

25

affected Indian tribal government for an emergency

•HR 219 EH

27
1

declaration, any reference in this title or title III

2

(except sections 310 and 326) to a State or the Gov-

3

ernor of a State is deemed to refer to an affected

4

Indian tribal government or the Chief Executive of

5

an affected Indian tribal government, as appro-

6

priate.

7

‘‘(3) SAVINGS

PROVISION.—Nothing

in this sub-

8

section shall prohibit an Indian tribal government

9

from receiving assistance under this title through a

10

declaration made by the President at the request of

11

a State under subsection (a) if the President does

12

not make a declaration under this subsection for the

13

same incident.’’.

14

(c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 102 of the Robert T.

15 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act
16 (42 U.S.C. 5122) is amended—
17

(1) in paragraph (7)(B) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and

18

inserting ‘‘, that is not an Indian tribal government

19

as defined in paragraph (6); and’’;

20
21
22
23
24
25

(2) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through
(10) as paragraphs (7) through (11), respectively;
(3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
‘‘(6) INDIAN

TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The

term

‘Indian tribal government’ means the governing body

•HR 219 EH

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1

of any Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation,

2

pueblo, village, or community that the Secretary of

3

the Interior acknowledges to exist as an Indian tribe

4

under the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List

5

Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a et seq.).’’; and

6

(4) by adding at the end the following:

7

‘‘(12) CHIEF

EXECUTIVE.—The

term ‘Chief Ex-

8

ecutive’ means the person who is the Chief, Chair-

9

man, Governor, President, or similar executive offi-

10

cial of an Indian tribal government.’’.

11

(d) REFERENCES.—Title I of the Robert T. Stafford

12 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
13 5121 et seq.) is amended by adding after section 102 the
14 following:
15
16

‘‘SEC. 103. REFERENCES.

‘‘Except as otherwise specifically provided, any ref-

17 erence in this Act to ‘State and local’, ‘State or local’,
18 ‘State, and local’, ‘State, or local’, or ‘State, local’ (includ19 ing plurals) with respect to governments or officials and
20 any reference to a ‘local government’ in sections 406(d)(3)
21 and 417 is deemed to refer also to Indian tribal govern22 ments and officials, as appropriate.’’.
23

(e) REGULATIONS.—

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1

(1) ISSUANCE.—The President shall issue regu-

2

lations to carry out the amendments made by this

3

section.

4

(2) FACTORS.—In issuing the regulations, the

5

President shall consider the unique conditions that

6

affect the general welfare of Indian tribal govern-

7

ments.

8

SEC. 11. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR REDUCING COSTS OF

9
10

FUTURE DISASTERS.

(a) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 180 days

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator
12 of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall sub13 mit to Congress recommendations for the development of
14 a national strategy for reducing future costs, loss of life,
15 and injuries associated with extreme disaster events in vul16 nerable areas of the United States.
17

(b) NATIONAL STRATEGY.—The national strategy

18 should—
19

(1) respect the constitutional role and respon-

20

sibilities of Federal, State, and local governments

21

and the private sector;

22

(2) consider the vulnerability of the United

23

States to damage from flooding, severe weather

24

events, and other hazards;

•HR 219 EH

30
1

(3) analyze gaps and duplication of emergency

2

preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation

3

measures provided by Federal, State, and local enti-

4

ties; and

5

(4) include recommendations on how to improve

6

the resiliency of local communities and States for

7

the purpose of lowering future costs of disaster re-

8

sponse and recovery.
Passed the House of Representatives January 14,
2013.
Attest:

Clerk.

•HR 219 EH

113TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION

H. R. 219

AN ACT
To improve and streamline disaster assistance for
Hurricane Sandy, and for other purposes.