Individual Assistance Improvement Act of 2015

Summary: Individual Assistance Improvement Act of 2015 This bill requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to submit to Congress an annual report on recommendations for improving federal assistance for small states and rural areas under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act and additional resources required for such improvements. In measuring the severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster and evaluating the need for assistance to individuals under that Act, FEMA shall not apply, with respect to a rural area, the factor relating to concentration of damages.  FEMA shall provide the governor or the chief executive of an Indian tribal government with documentation related to a major disaster declaration decision within 25 days after such individual requests that documentation, including: (1) an analysis of the factors that it considered in making the decision, and (2) its rationale.  The Government Accountability Office shall conduct a comprehensive review of: (1) FEMA's damage assessment processes for major disaster declarations, and (2) the teams that carry out such processes. FEMA shall conduct a study, biennially, to: (1) compare the average amount of individual assistance provided per person for each major disaster declared during the five most recently completed fiscal years, the average damages realized per individual for each disaster, and the average damages realized per individual for each event where a request for a major disaster declaration was denied during the five most recently completed fiscal years; and (2) collect the data needed to update a table relating to the average amount of individual assistance by state.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Individual Assistance Improvement 
Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS TO FEDERAL DISASTER RELIEF AND EMERGENCY 
              ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Report on Small State and Rural Area Assistance.--Not later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 
thereafter, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency shall submit to Congress a report with recommendations for 
improving Federal assistance, with respect to small States and rural 
areas, under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). The report shall include an 
identification of additional resources required for recommended 
improvements.
    (b) Factors for Individual Assistance Program.--In measuring the 
severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster and evaluating the need 
for assistance to individuals under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, the Administrator shall not apply, 
with respect to a rural area, the factor set out in section 
206.48(b)(1) of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to the 
concentration of damages).
    (c) Release of Documentation Related to Disaster Declaration 
Decisions.--Not later than 25 days after a Governor, or Chief Executive 
of an Indian tribal government, requests documentation related to a 
major disaster declaration decision under section 401 of the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170), 
the Administrator shall provide the Governor, or Chief Executive, with 
all such documentation, including--
            (1) an analysis of the factors that the Federal Emergency 
        Management Agency considered in making the decision, including 
        any threshold, limit, or average that the Agency applied; and
            (2) a rationale explaining the decision.
    (d) Study on Damage Assessment.--
            (1) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States 
        shall conduct a comprehensive review of--
                    (A) the damage assessment processes of the Agency 
                with respect to major disaster declarations; and
                    (B) the teams that carry out such processes.
            (2) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to 
        Congress a report on the results of the review conducted under 
        paragraph (1), including recommendations for improving such 
        processes.
    (e) Biennial Study of Average Amount of Individual Assistance.--
            (1) Study.--Not later than the end of the first quarter of 
        the first full fiscal year beginning after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the 
        Administrator shall conduct a study--
                    (A) to compare--
                            (i) the average amount of individual 
                        assistance provided per person for each major 
                        disaster declared during the 5 most recently 
                        completed fiscal years;
                            (ii) the average damages realized per 
                        individual for each such disaster; and
                            (iii) for each event where a request for a 
                        major disaster declaration was denied during 
                        the 5 most recently completed fiscal years, the 
                        average damages realized per individual for 
                        each such event; and
                    (B) to collect the data needed to update the table 
                included after section 206.48(b)(6) of title 44, Code 
                of Federal Regulations (relating to the average amount 
                of individual assistance by State).
            (2) Report and update.--Not later than 180 days after the 
        completion of each study under paragraph (1), the Administrator 
        shall submit to Congress a report on the results of the study 
        and update the table described in paragraph (1)(B).
    (f) Definitions.--In this Act, the following definitions shall 
apply:
            (1) Governor.--The term ``Governor'' has the meaning given 
        such term in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
        Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122).
            (2) Rural.--The term ``rural'' means an area that is 
        located--
                    (A) outside a metropolitan statistical area, as 
                defined by the Office of Management and Budget; or
                    (B) in a census tract in a metropolitan statistical 
                area with a Department of Agriculture rural-urban 
                commuting area code of 4 or higher.
            (3) Small state.--The term ``small State'' has the same 
        meaning as such term is used in the table included after 
        section 206.48(b)(6) of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations.