Disaster Recovery Reform Act

Summary: Disaster Recovery Reform Act This bill amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act) to modify the Predisaster Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to:  permit the use of technical and financial assistance to establish and carry out enforcement activities to implement codes, specifications, and standards that incorporate the latest hazard-resistant designs; direct the President to establish a National Public Infrastructure Predisaster Mitigation Fund; authorize the President's contribution to the cost of hazard mitigation measures to be used to increase resilience in any area affected by a major disaster; and  direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to issue a final rulemaking that defines the terms &quot;resilient&quot; and &quot;resiliency.&quot;  The bill authorizes the President to: (1) provide hazard mitigation assistance in any area affected by a wildfire for which assistance was provided; (2) provide incentives to invest in measures that increase readiness for, and resilience from, a future major disaster; and (3) waive Stafford Act provisions regarding duplication of benefits. The bill amends the Stafford Act to: (1) authorize states to use federal disaster assistance to directly administer temporary and permanent housing for disaster victims, (2) increase assistance to individuals with disabilities, and (3) establish fixed rates for reimbursing states and localities for costs incurred to implement disaster recovery projects.  FEMA shall: (1) provide annual guidance and training for the prioritization of assistance to hospitals and nursing homes during a disaster; (2) issue guidance for the identification of evacuation routes; and (3) review the Unified Federal Environmental and Historic Preservation review process, improve closeout practices, and publish on its website specified information for grant awards and contracts in excess of $1 million. FEMA may establish one or more national veterinary emergency teams at accredited veterinary schools. 

PILOT PROGRAM.

    Section 1105(c) of the Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013 (42 
U.S.C. 5189a note) is amended by striking ``2015'' and inserting 
``2022''.

SEC. 217. EMERGENCY RELIEF.

    Notwithstanding section 125(d)(4) of title 23, United States Code, 
no limitation on the total obligations for projects under section 125 
of such title shall apply to the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, 
and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands with respect to 
fiscal years 2018 and 2019.

      TITLE III--AGENCY MANAGEMENT, OVERSIGHT, AND ACCOUNTABILITY

SEC. 301. UNIFIED FEDERAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION 
              REVIEW.

    (a) Review and Analysis.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency shall review the Unified Federal Environmental and 
Historic Preservation review process established pursuant to section 
429 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act (42 U.S.C. 5189g), and submit a report to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
Senate that includes the following:
            (1) An analysis of whether and how the unified process has 
        expedited the interagency review process to ensure compliance 
        with the environmental and historic requirements under Federal 
        law relating to disaster recovery projects.
            (2) A survey and analysis of categorical exclusions used by 
        other Federal agencies that may be applicable to any activity 
        related to a Presidentially declared major disaster or 
        emergency under such Act.
            (3) Recommendations on any further actions, including any 
        legislative proposals, needed to expedite and streamline the 
        review process.
    (b) Regulations.--After completing the review, survey, and analyses 
under subsection (a), but not later than 2 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, and after providing notice and opportunity for 
public comment, the Administrator shall issue regulations to implement 
any regulatory recommendations, including any categorical exclusions 
identified under subsection (a), to the extent that the categorical 
exclusions meet the criteria for a categorical exclusion under section 
1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, and section II of DHS 
Instruction Manual 023-01-001--01.

SEC. 302. CLOSEOUT INCENTIVES.

    (a) Facilitating Closeout.--Section 705 of the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5205) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Facilitating Closeout.--
            ``(1) Incentives.--The Administrator may develop incentives 
        and penalties that encourage State, Tribal, or local 
        governments to close out expenditures and activities on a 
        timely basis related to disaster or emergency assistance.
            ``(2) Agency requirements.--The Agency shall, consistent 
        with applicable regulations and required procedures, meet its 
        responsibilities to improve closeout practices and reduce the 
        time to close disaster program awards.''.
    (b) Regulations.--The Administrator shall issue regulations to 
implement this section.

SEC. 303. PERFORMANCE OF SERVICES.

    Section 306 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5149) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(c) The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
is authorized to appoint temporary personnel, after serving 
continuously for 1 year, to positions in the Agency in the same manner 
that competitive service employees are considered for transfer, 
reassignment, or promotion to such positions. An individual appointed 
under this subsection shall become a career-conditional employee, 
unless the employee has already completed the service requirements for 
career tenure.''.

SEC. 304. STUDY TO STREAMLINE AND CONSOLIDATE INFORMATION COLLECTION.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall--
            (1) in coordination with the Small Business Administration, 
        the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other 
        appropriate agencies, conduct a study and develop a plan, 
        consistent with law, under which the collection of information 
        from disaster assistance applicants and grantees will be 
        modified, streamlined, expedited, efficient, flexible, 
        consolidated, and simplified to be less burdensome, 
        duplicative, and time consuming for applicants and grantees;
            (2) in coordination with the Small Business Administration, 
        the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other 
        appropriate agencies, develop a plan for the regular collection 
        and reporting of information on provided Federal disaster 
        assistance, including the establishment and maintenance of a 
        website for presenting the information to the public; and
            (3) submit the plans to the Committee on Transportation and 
        Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
        Senate.

SEC. 305. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY.

    Title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 430. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY.

    ``(a) Public Assistance.--Not later than 5 days after an award of a 
public assistance grant is made under section 406 that is in excess of 
$1,000,000, the Administrator shall publish on the Agency's website the 
specifics of each such grant award, including--
            ``(1) identifying the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
        Region;
            ``(2) the disaster or emergency declaration number;
            ``(3) the State, county, and applicant name;
            ``(4) if the applicant is a private nonprofit;
            ``(5) the damage category code;
            ``(6) the amount of the Federal share obligated; and
            ``(7) the date of the award.
    ``(b) Mission Assignments.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 5 days after the issuance 
        of a mission assignment or mission assignment task order, the 
        Administrator shall publish on the Agency's website any mission 
        assignment or mission assignment task order to another Federal 
        department or agency regarding a major disaster in excess of 
        $1,000,000, including--
                    ``(A) the name of the impacted State or Tribe;
                    ``(B) the disaster declaration for such State or 
                Tribe;
                    ``(C) the assigned agency;
                    ``(D) the assistance requested;
                    ``(E) a description of the disaster;
                    ``(F) the total cost estimate;
                    ``(G) the amount obligated;
                    ``(H) the State or Tribal cost share, if 
                applicable;
                    ``(I) the authority under which the mission 
                assignment or mission assignment task order was 
                directed; and
                    ``(J) if applicable, the date a State or Tribe 
                requested the mission assignment.
            ``(2) Recording changes.--Not later than 10 days after the 
        last day of each month until a mission assignment or mission 
        assignment task order described in paragraph (1) is completed 
        and closed out, the Administrator shall update any changes to 
        the total cost estimate and the amount obligated.
    ``(c) Disaster Relief Monthly Report.--Not later than 10 days after 
the first day of each month, the Administrator shall publish on the 
Agency's website reports, including a specific description of the 
methodology and the source data used in developing such reports, 
including--
            ``(1) an estimate of the amounts for the fiscal year 
        covered by the President's most recent budget pursuant to 
        section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, including--
                    ``(A) the unobligated balance of funds to be 
                carried over from the prior fiscal year to the budget 
                year;
                    ``(B) the unobligated balance of funds to be 
                carried over from the budget year to the budget year 
                plus 1;
                    ``(C) the amount of obligations for non-
                catastrophic events for the budget year;
                    ``(D) the amount of obligations for the budget year 
                for catastrophic events delineated by event and by 
                State;
                    ``(E) the total amount that has been previously 
                obligated or will be required for catastrophic events 
                delineated by event and by State for all prior years, 
                the current fiscal year, the budget year, and each 
                fiscal year thereafter;
                    ``(F) the amount of previously obligated funds that 
                will be recovered for the budget year;
                    ``(G) the amount that will be required for 
                obligations for emergencies, as described in section 
                102(1), major disasters, as described in section 
                102(2), fire management assistance grants, as described 
                in section 420, surge activities, and disaster 
                readiness and support activities; and
                    ``(H) the amount required for activities not 
                covered under section 251(b)(2)(D)(iii) of the Balanced 
                Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 
                U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(D)(iii)); and
            ``(2) an estimate or actual amounts, if available, of the 
        following for the current fiscal year shall be submitted not 
        later than the fifth day of each month, published by the 
        Administrator on the Agency's website not later than the fifth 
        day of each month:
                    ``(A) A summary of the amount of appropriations 
                made available by source, the transfers executed, the 
                previously allocated funds recovered, and the 
                commitments, allocations, and obligations made.
                    ``(B) A table of disaster relief activity 
                delineated by month, including--
                            ``(i) the beginning and ending balances;
                            ``(ii) the total obligations to include 
                        amounts obligated for fire assistance, 
                        emergencies, surge, and disaster support 
                        activities;
                            ``(iii) the obligations for catastrophic 
                        events delineated by event and by State; and
                            ``(iv) the amount of previously obligated 
                        funds that are recovered.
                    ``(C) A summary of allocations, obligations, and 
                expenditures for catastrophic events delineated by 
                event.
                    ``(D) The cost of the following categories of 
                spending:
                            ``(i) Public assistance.
                            ``(ii) Individual assistance.
                            ``(iii) Mitigation.
                            ``(iv) Administrative.
                            ``(v) Operations.
                            ``(vi) Any other relevant category 
                        (including emergency measures and disaster 
                        resources) delineated by disaster.
                    ``(E) The date on which funds appropriated will be 
                exhausted.
    ``(d) Contracts.--
            ``(1) Information.--Not later than 10 days after the first 
        day of each month, the Administrator shall publish on the 
        Agency's website the specifics of each contract in excess of 
        $1,000,000 that the Agency enters into, including--
                    ``(A) the name of the party;
                    ``(B) the date the contract was awarded;
                    ``(C) the amount of the contract, the scope of the 
                contract;
                    ``(D) if the contract was awarded through 
                competitive bidding process;
                    ``(E) if no competitive bidding process was used, 
                the reason why competitive bidding was not used; and
                    ``(F) the authority used to bypass the competitive 
                bidding process.
        The information shall be delineated by disaster, if applicable, 
        and specify the damage category code, if applicable.
            ``(2) Report.--Not later than 10 days after the last day of 
        the fiscal year, the Administrator shall provide a report to 
        the appropriate committees of Congress summarizing the 
        following information for the preceding fiscal year:
                    ``(A) The number of contracts awarded without 
                competitive bidding.
                    ``(B) The reasons why a competitive bidding process 
                was not used.
                    ``(C) The total amount of contracts awarded with no 
                competitive bidding.
                    ``(D) The damage category codes, if applicable, for 
                contracts awarded without competitive bidding.''.

SEC. 306. AUDIT OF CONTRACTS.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Administrator of 
the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall not reimburse a State, 
Tribe, or local government or the owner or operator of a private 
nonprofit facility for any activities made pursuant to a contract 
entered into after August 1, 2017, that prohibits the Administrator or 
the Comptroller General of the United States from auditing or otherwise 
reviewing all aspects relating to the contract.

SEC. 307. INSPECTOR GENERAL AUDIT OF FEMA CONTRACTS FOR TARPS AND 
              PLASTIC SHEETING.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the inspector general of the Department of Homeland 
Security shall initiate an audit of the contracts awarded by the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency (in this section referred to as 
``FEMA'') for tarps and plastic sheeting for the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico and the Virgin Islands of the United States in response to 
Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria.
    (b) Considerations.--In carrying out the audit under subsection 
(a), the inspector general shall review--
            (1) the contracting process used by FEMA to evaluate 
        offerors and award the relevant contracts to contractors;
            (2) FEMA's assessment of the past performance of the 
        contractors, including any historical information showing that 
        the contractors had supported large-scale delivery quantities 
        in the past;
            (3) FEMA's assessment of the capacity of the contractors to 
        carry out the relevant contracts, including with respect to 
        inventory, production, and financial capabilities;
            (4) how FEMA ensured that the contractors met the terms of 
        the relevant contracts; and
            (5) whether the failure of the contractors to meet the 
        terms of the relevant contracts and FEMA's subsequent 
        cancellation of the relevant contracts affected the provision 
        of tarps and plastic sheeting to the Commonwealth of Puerto 
        Rico and the Virgin Islands of the United States.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of initiation 
of the audit under subsection (a), the inspector general shall submit 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs of the Senate a report on the results of the audit, including 
findings and recommendations.

SEC. 308. RELIEF ORGANIZATIONS.

    Section 309 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5152) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``and other relief or'' 
        and inserting ``long-term recovery groups, and other relief, 
        domestic hunger relief, or''; and
            (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``and other relief or'' 
        and inserting ``long-term recovery groups, and other relief, 
        domestic hunger relief, or''.

SEC. 309. GUIDANCE ON INUNDATED AND SUBMERGED ROADS.

    The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in 
coordination with the Administrator of the Federal Highway 
Administration, shall develop and issue guidance for State, local, and 
Tribal governments regarding repair, restoration, and replacement of 
inundated and submerged roads damaged or destroyed by a major disaster, 
and for associated expenses incurred by the Government, with respect to 
roads eligible for assistance under section 406 of the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5172).