In the Senate of the United States,

October 5 (legislative day, September 22), 2000.

Resolved, That the Senate agree to the amendment of

the House of Representatives to the amendment of the Senate to the bill (H.R. 707) entitled ‘‘An Act to amend the

Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance

Act to authorize a program for predisaster mitigation, to

streamline the administration of disaster relief, to control the

Federal costs of disaster assistance, and for other purposes.’’,

with the following

SENATE AMENDMENT TO HOUSE AMENDMENT TO

SENATE AMENDMENT:

In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the

House amendment, insert:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Dis3 aster Mitigation Act of 2000’’.

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of this

5 Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
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TITLE I—PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION

Sec. 101. Findings and purpose.

Sec. 102. Predisaster hazard mitigation.

Sec. 103. Interagency task force.

Sec. 104. Mitigation planning; minimum standards for public and private structures.

TITLE II—STREAMLINING AND COST REDUCTION

Sec. 201. Technical amendments.

Sec. 202. Management costs.

Sec. 203. Public notice, comment, and consultation requirements.

Sec. 204. State administration of hazard mitigation grant program.

Sec. 205. Assistance to repair, restore, reconstruct, or replace damaged facilities.

Sec. 206. Federal assistance to individuals and households.

Sec. 207. Community disaster loans.

Sec. 208. Report on State management of small disasters initiative.

Sec. 209. Study regarding cost reduction.

TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 301. Technical correction of short title.

Sec. 302. Definitions.

Sec. 303. Fire management assistance.

Sec. 304. Disaster grant closeout procedures.

Sec. 305. Public safety officer benefits for certain Federal and State employees.

Sec. 306. Buy American.

Sec. 307. Treatment of certain real property.

Sec. 308. Study of participation by Indian tribes in emergency management.

1 TITLE I—PREDISASTER HAZARD

2 MITIGATION

3 SEC. 101. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

5 (1) natural disasters, including earthquakes,

6 tsunamis, tornadoes, hurricanes, flooding, and

7 wildfires, pose great danger to human life and to

8 property throughout the United States;

9 (2) greater emphasis needs to be placed on—

10 (A) identifying and assessing the risks to

11 States and local governments (including Indian

12 tribes) from natural disasters;
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1 (B) implementing adequate measures to re2 duce losses from natural disasters; and

3 (C) ensuring that the critical services and

4 facilities of communities will continue to func5 tion after a natural disaster;

6 (3) expenditures for postdisaster assistance are

7 increasing without commensurate reductions in the

8 likelihood of future losses from natural disasters;

9 (4) in the expenditure of Federal funds under the

10 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As11 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), high priority

12 should be given to mitigation of hazards at the local

13 level; and

14 (5) with a unified effort of economic incentives,

15 awareness and education, technical assistance, and

16 demonstrated Federal support, States and local gov17 ernments (including Indian tribes) will be able to—

18 (A) form effective community-based partner19 ships for hazard mitigation purposes;

20 (B) implement effective hazard mitigation

21 measures that reduce the potential damage from

22 natural disasters;

23 (C) ensure continued functionality of crit24 ical services;
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1 (D) leverage additional non-Federal re2 sources in meeting natural disaster resistance

3 goals; and

4 (E) make commitments to long-term hazard

5 mitigation efforts to be applied to new and exist6 ing structures.

7 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to establish

8 a national disaster hazard mitigation program—

9 (1) to reduce the loss of life and property, human

10 suffering, economic disruption, and disaster assist11 ance costs resulting from natural disasters; and

12 (2) to provide a source of predisaster hazard

13 mitigation funding that will assist States and local

14 governments (including Indian tribes) in imple15 menting effective hazard mitigation measures that are

16 designed to ensure the continued functionality of crit17 ical services and facilities after a natural disaster.

18 SEC. 102. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Robert T. Stafford

20 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

21 5131 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘SEC. 203. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF SMALL IMPOVERISHED COMMU24 NITY.—In this section, the term ‘small impoverished com25 munity’ means a community of 3,000 or fewer individuals
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1 that is economically disadvantaged, as determined by the

2 State in which the community is located and based on cri3 teria established by the President.

4 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—The President

5 may establish a program to provide technical and financial

6 assistance to States and local governments to assist in the

7 implementation of predisaster hazard mitigation measures

8 that are cost-effective and are designed to reduce injuries,

9 loss of life, and damage and destruction of property, includ10 ing damage to critical services and facilities under the ju11 risdiction of the States or local governments.

12 ‘‘(c) APPROVAL BY PRESIDENT.—If the President de13 termines that a State or local government has identified

14 natural disaster hazards in areas under its jurisdiction and

15 has demonstrated the ability to form effective public-private

16 natural disaster hazard mitigation partnerships, the Presi17 dent, using amounts in the National Predisaster Mitigation

18 Fund established under subsection (i) (referred to in this

19 section as the ‘Fund’), may provide technical and financial

20 assistance to the State or local government to be used in

21 accordance with subsection (e).

22 ‘‘(d) STATE RECOMMENDATIONS.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—

24 ‘‘(A) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Governor of

25 each State may recommend to the President not
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1 fewer than 5 local governments to receive assist2 ance under this section.

3 ‘‘(B) DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION.—The rec4 ommendations under subparagraph (A) shall be

5 submitted to the President not later than October

6 1, 2001, and each October 1st thereafter or such

7 later date in the year as the President may es8 tablish.

9 ‘‘(C) CRITERIA.—In making recommenda10 tions under subparagraph (A), a Governor shall

11 consider the criteria specified in subsection (g).

12 ‘‘(2) USE.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

14 subparagraph (B), in providing assistance to

15 local governments under this section, the Presi16 dent shall select from local governments rec17 ommended by the Governors under this sub18 section.

19 ‘‘(B) EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES.—In

20 providing assistance to local governments under

21 this section, the President may select a local gov22 ernment that has not been recommended by a

23 Governor under this subsection if the President

24 determines that extraordinary circumstances jus-
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1 tify the selection and that making the selection

2 will further the purpose of this section.

3 ‘‘(3) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO NOMINATE.—If a

4 Governor of a State fails to submit recommendations

5 under this subsection in a timely manner, the Presi6 dent may select, subject to the criteria specified in

7 subsection (g), any local governments of the State to

8 receive assistance under this section.

9 ‘‘(e) USES OF TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSIST10 ANCE.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Technical and financial as12 sistance provided under this section—

13 ‘‘(A) shall be used by States and local gov14 ernments principally to implement predisaster

15 hazard mitigation measures that are cost-effec16 tive and are described in proposals approved by

17 the President under this section; and

18 ‘‘(B) may be used—

19 ‘‘(i) to support effective public-private

20 natural disaster hazard mitigation partner21 ships;

22 ‘‘(ii) to improve the assessment of a

23 community’s vulnerability to natural haz24 ards; or
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1 ‘‘(iii) to establish hazard mitigation

2 priorities, and an appropriate hazard miti3 gation plan, for a community.

4 ‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION.—A State or local govern5 ment may use not more than 10 percent of the finan6 cial assistance received by the State or local govern7 ment under this section for a fiscal year to fund ac8 tivities to disseminate information regarding cost-ef9 fective mitigation technologies.

10 ‘‘(f) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—The amount of finan11 cial assistance made available to a State (including

12 amounts made available to local governments of the State)

13 under this section for a fiscal year—

14 ‘‘(1) shall be not less than the lesser of—

15 ‘‘(A) $500,000; or

16 ‘‘(B) the amount that is equal to 1.0 percent

17 of the total funds appropriated to carry out this

18 section for the fiscal year;

19 ‘‘(2) shall not exceed 15 percent of the total funds

20 described in paragraph (1)(B); and

21 ‘‘(3) shall be subject to the criteria specified in

22 subsection (g).

23 ‘‘(g) CRITERIA FOR ASSISTANCE AWARDS.—In deter24 mining whether to provide technical and financial assist-
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1 ance to a State or local government under this section, the

2 President shall take into account—

3 ‘‘(1) the extent and nature of the hazards to be

4 mitigated;

5 ‘‘(2) the degree of commitment of the State or

6 local government to reduce damages from future nat7 ural disasters;

8 ‘‘(3) the degree of commitment by the State or

9 local government to support ongoing non-Federal sup10 port for the hazard mitigation measures to be carried

11 out using the technical and financial assistance;

12 ‘‘(4) the extent to which the hazard mitigation

13 measures to be carried out using the technical and fi14 nancial assistance contribute to the mitigation goals

15 and priorities established by the State;

16 ‘‘(5) the extent to which the technical and finan17 cial assistance is consistent with other assistance pro18 vided under this Act;

19 ‘‘(6) the extent to which prioritized, cost-effective

20 mitigation activities that produce meaningful and de21 finable outcomes are clearly identified;

22 ‘‘(7) if the State or local government has sub23 mitted a mitigation plan under section 322, the ex24 tent to which the activities identified under para25 graph (6) are consistent with the mitigation plan;
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1 ‘‘(8) the opportunity to fund activities that

2 maximize net benefits to society;

3 ‘‘(9) the extent to which assistance will fund

4 mitigation activities in small impoverished commu5 nities; and

6 ‘‘(10) such other criteria as the President estab7 lishes in consultation with State and local govern8 ments.

9 ‘‘(h) FEDERAL SHARE.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Financial assistance pro11 vided under this section may contribute up to 75 per12 cent of the total cost of mitigation activities approved

13 by the President.

14 ‘‘(2) SMALL IMPOVERISHED COMMUNITIES.—Not15 withstanding paragraph (1), the President may con16 tribute up to 90 percent of the total cost of a mitiga17 tion activity carried out in a small impoverished

18 community.

19 ‘‘(i) NATIONAL PREDISASTER MITIGATION FUND.—

20 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President may es21 tablish in the Treasury of the United States a fund

22 to be known as the ‘National Predisaster Mitigation

23 Fund’, to be used in carrying out this section.

24 ‘‘(2) TRANSFERS TO FUND.—There shall be de25 posited in the Fund—
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1 ‘‘(A) amounts appropriated to carry out

2 this section, which shall remain available until

3 expended; and

4 ‘‘(B) sums available from gifts, bequests, or

5 donations of services or property received by the

6 President for the purpose of predisaster hazard

7 mitigation.

8 ‘‘(3) EXPENDITURES FROM FUND.—Upon request

9 by the President, the Secretary of the Treasury shall

10 transfer from the Fund to the President such amounts

11 as the President determines are necessary to provide

12 technical and financial assistance under this section.

13 ‘‘(4) INVESTMENT OF AMOUNTS.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the

15 Treasury shall invest such portion of the Fund

16 as is not, in the judgment of the Secretary of the

17 Treasury, required to meet current withdrawals.

18 Investments may be made only in interest-bear19 ing obligations of the United States.

20 ‘‘(B) ACQUISITION OF OBLIGATIONS.—For

21 the purpose of investments under subparagraph

22 (A), obligations may be acquired—

23 ‘‘(i) on original issue at the issue

24 price; or
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1 ‘‘(ii) by purchase of outstanding obli2 gations at the market price.

3 ‘‘(C) SALE OF OBLIGATIONS.—Any obliga4 tion acquired by the Fund may be sold by the

5 Secretary of the Treasury at the market price.

6 ‘‘(D) CREDITS TO FUND.—The interest on,

7 and the proceeds from the sale or redemption of,

8 any obligations held in the Fund shall be cred9 ited to and form a part of the Fund.

10 ‘‘(E) TRANSFERS OF AMOUNTS.—

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The amounts re12 quired to be transferred to the Fund under

13 this subsection shall be transferred at least

14 monthly from the general fund of the Treas15 ury to the Fund on the basis of estimates

16 made by the Secretary of the Treasury.

17 ‘‘(ii) ADJUSTMENTS.—Proper adjust18 ment shall be made in amounts subse19 quently transferred to the extent prior esti20 mates were in excess of or less than the

21 amounts required to be transferred.

22 ‘‘(j) LIMITATION ON TOTAL AMOUNT OF FINANCIAL AS23 SISTANCE.—The President shall not provide financial as24 sistance under this section in an amount greater than the

25 amount available in the Fund.
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1 ‘‘(k) MULTIHAZARD ADVISORY MAPS.—

2 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF MULTIHAZARD ADVISORY

3 MAP.—In this subsection, the term ‘multihazard advi4 sory map’ means a map on which hazard data con5 cerning each type of natural disaster is identified si6 multaneously for the purpose of showing areas of haz7 ard overlap.

8 ‘‘(2) DEVELOPMENT OF MAPS.—In consultation

9 with States, local governments, and appropriate Fed10 eral agencies, the President shall develop multihazard

11 advisory maps for areas, in not fewer than 5 States,

12 that are subject to commonly recurring natural haz13 ards (including flooding, hurricanes and severe

14 winds, and seismic events).

15 ‘‘(3) USE OF TECHNOLOGY.—In developing

16 multihazard advisory maps under this subsection, the

17 President shall use, to the maximum extent prac18 ticable, the most cost-effective and efficient technology

19 available.

20 ‘‘(4) USE OF MAPS.—

21 ‘‘(A) ADVISORY NATURE.—The multihazard

22 advisory maps shall be considered to be advisory

23 and shall not require the development of any new

24 policy by, or impose any new policy on, any

25 government or private entity.
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1 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY OF MAPS.—The multi2 hazard advisory maps shall be made available to

3 the appropriate State and local governments for

4 the purposes of—

5 ‘‘(i) informing the general public about

6 the risks of natural hazards in the areas de7 scribed in paragraph (2);

8 ‘‘(ii) supporting the activities described

9 in subsection (e); and

10 ‘‘(iii) other public uses.

11 ‘‘(l) REPORT ON FEDERAL AND STATE ADMINISTRA12 TION.—Not later than 18 months after the date of enact13 ment of this section, the President, in consultation with

14 State and local governments, shall submit to Congress a re15 port evaluating efforts to implement this section and recom16 mending a process for transferring greater authority and

17 responsibility for administering the assistance program es18 tablished under this section to capable States.

19 ‘‘(m) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority

20 provided by this section terminates December 31, 2003.’’.

21 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Title II of the Robert

22 T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act

23 (42 U.S.C. 5131 et seq.) is amended by striking the title

24 heading and inserting the following:
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1 ‘‘TITLE II—DISASTER PREPARED2 NESS AND MITIGATION AS3 SISTANCE’’.

4 SEC. 103. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE.

5 Title II of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and

6 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5131 et seq.) (as

7 amended by section 102(a)) is amended by adding at the

8 end the following:

9 ‘‘SEC. 204. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE.

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President shall establish a

11 Federal interagency task force for the purpose of coordi12 nating the implementation of predisaster hazard mitigation

13 programs administered by the Federal Government.

14 ‘‘(b) CHAIRPERSON.—The Director of the Federal

15 Emergency Management Agency shall serve as the chair16 person of the task force.

17 ‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP.—The membership of the task force

18 shall include representatives of—

19 ‘‘(1) relevant Federal agencies;

20 ‘‘(2) State and local government organizations

21 (including Indian tribes); and

22 ‘‘(3) the American Red Cross.’’.
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1 SEC. 104. MITIGATION PLANNING; MINIMUM STANDARDS

2 FOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE STRUCTURES.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Robert T. Stafford

4 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

5 5141 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

6 ‘‘SEC. 322. MITIGATION PLANNING.

7 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT OF MITIGATION PLAN.—As a con8 dition of receipt of an increased Federal share for hazard

9 mitigation measures under subsection (e), a State, local, or

10 tribal government shall develop and submit for approval to

11 the President a mitigation plan that outlines processes for

12 identifying the natural hazards, risks, and vulnerabilities

13 of the area under the jurisdiction of the government.

14 ‘‘(b) LOCAL AND TRIBAL PLANS.—Each mitigation

15 plan developed by a local or tribal government shall—

16 ‘‘(1) describe actions to mitigate hazards, risks,

17 and vulnerabilities identified under the plan; and

18 ‘‘(2) establish a strategy to implement those ac19 tions.

20 ‘‘(c) STATE PLANS.—The State process of development

21 of a mitigation plan under this section shall—

22 ‘‘(1) identify the natural hazards, risks, and

23 vulnerabilities of areas in the State;

24 ‘‘(2) support development of local mitigation

25 plans;
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1 ‘‘(3) provide for technical assistance to local and

2 tribal governments for mitigation planning; and

3 ‘‘(4) identify and prioritize mitigation actions

4 that the State will support, as resources become avail5 able.

6 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.—

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Federal contributions under

8 section 404 may be used to fund the development and

9 updating of mitigation plans under this section.

10 ‘‘(2) MAXIMUM FEDERAL CONTRIBUTION.—With

11 respect to any mitigation plan, a State, local, or trib12 al government may use an amount of Federal con13 tributions under section 404 not to exceed 7 percent

14 of the amount of such contributions available to the

15 government as of a date determined by the govern16 ment.

17 ‘‘(e) INCREASED FEDERAL SHARE FOR HAZARD MITI18 GATION MEASURES.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If, at the time of the declara20 tion of a major disaster, a State has in effect an ap21 proved mitigation plan under this section, the Presi22 dent may increase to 20 percent, with respect to the

23 major disaster, the maximum percentage specified in

24 the last sentence of section 404(a).
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1 ‘‘(2) FACTORS FOR CONSIDERATION.—In deter2 mining whether to increase the maximum percentage

3 under paragraph (1), the President shall consider

4 whether the State has established—

5 ‘‘(A) eligibility criteria for property acqui6 sition and other types of mitigation measures;

7 ‘‘(B) requirements for cost effectiveness that

8 are related to the eligibility criteria;

9 ‘‘(C) a system of priorities that is related to

10 the eligibility criteria; and

11 ‘‘(D) a process by which an assessment of

12 the effectiveness of a mitigation action may be

13 carried out after the mitigation action is com14 plete.

15 ‘‘SEC. 323. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE

16 STRUCTURES.

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of receipt of a dis18 aster loan or grant under this Act—

19 ‘‘(1) the recipient shall carry out any repair or

20 construction to be financed with the loan or grant in

21 accordance with applicable standards of safety, de22 cency, and sanitation and in conformity with appli23 cable codes, specifications, and standards; and
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1 ‘‘(2) the President may require safe land use and

2 construction practices, after adequate consultation

3 with appropriate State and local government officials.

4 ‘‘(b) EVIDENCE OF COMPLIANCE.—A recipient of a dis5 aster loan or grant under this Act shall provide such evi6 dence of compliance with this section as the President may

7 require by regulation.’’.

8 (b) LOSSES FROM STRAIGHT LINE WINDS.—The

9 President shall increase the maximum percentage specified

10 in the last sentence of section 404(a) of the Robert T. Staf11 ford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42

12 U.S.C. 5170c(a)) from 15 percent to 20 percent with respect

13 to any major disaster that is in the State of Minnesota and

14 for which assistance is being provided as of the date of en15 actment of this Act, except that additional assistance pro16 vided under this subsection shall not exceed $6,000,000. The

17 mitigation measures assisted under this subsection shall be

18 related to losses in the State of Minnesota from straight line

19 winds.

20 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

21 (1) Section 404(a) of the Robert T. Stafford Dis22 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

23 5170c(a)) is amended—

24 (A) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘sec25 tion 409’’ and inserting ‘‘section 322’’; and
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1 (B) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘The

2 total’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to section 322, the

3 total’’.

4 (2) Section 409 of the Robert T. Stafford Dis5 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

6 5176) is repealed.

7 TITLE II—STREAMLINING AND

8 COST REDUCTION

9 SEC. 201. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

10 Section 311 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

11 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5154) is amend12 ed in subsections (a)(1), (b), and (c) by striking ‘‘section

13 803 of the Public Works and Economic Development Act

14 of 1965’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘section

15 209(c)(2) of the Public Works and Economic Development

16 Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3149(c)(2))’’.

17 SEC. 202. MANAGEMENT COSTS.

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Robert T. Stafford

19 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

20 5141 et seq.) (as amended by section 104(a)) is amended

21 by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘SEC. 324. MANAGEMENT COSTS.

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF MANAGEMENT COST.—In this sec24 tion, the term ‘management cost’ includes any indirect cost,

25 any administrative expense, and any other expense not di-
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1 rectly chargeable to a specific project under a major dis2 aster, emergency, or disaster preparedness or mitigation ac3 tivity or measure.

4 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF MANAGEMENT COST

5 RATES.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law (in6 cluding any administrative rule or guidance), the President

7 shall by regulation establish management cost rates, for

8 grantees and subgrantees, that shall be used to determine

9 contributions under this Act for management costs.

10 ‘‘(c) REVIEW.—The President shall review the manage11 ment cost rates established under subsection (b) not later

12 than 3 years after the date of establishment of the rates and

13 periodically thereafter.’’.

14 (b) APPLICABILITY.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), sub16 sections (a) and (b) of section 324 of the Robert T.

17 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance

18 Act (as added by subsection (a)) shall apply to major

19 disasters declared under that Act on or after the date

20 of enactment of this Act.

21 (2) INTERIM AUTHORITY.—Until the date on

22 which the President establishes the management cost

23 rates under section 324 of the Robert T. Stafford Dis24 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (as added

25 by subsection (a)), section 406(f) of the Robert T.
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1 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance

2 Act (42 U.S.C. 5172(f)) (as in effect on the day before

3 the date of enactment of this Act) shall be used to es4 tablish management cost rates.

5 SEC. 203. PUBLIC NOTICE, COMMENT, AND CONSULTATION

6 REQUIREMENTS.

7 Title III of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and

8 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5141 et seq.) (as

9 amended by section 202(a)) is amended by adding at the

10 end the following:

11 ‘‘SEC. 325. PUBLIC NOTICE, COMMENT, AND CONSULTATION

12 REQUIREMENTS.

13 ‘‘(a) PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT CONCERNING

14 NEW OR MODIFIED POLICIES.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall provide

16 for public notice and opportunity for comment before

17 adopting any new or modified policy that—

18 ‘‘(A) governs implementation of the public

19 assistance program administered by the Federal

20 Emergency Management Agency under this Act;

21 and

22 ‘‘(B) could result in a significant reduction

23 of assistance under the program.

24 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—Any policy adopted under

25 paragraph (1) shall apply only to a major disaster or
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1 emergency declared on or after the date on which the

2 policy is adopted.

3 ‘‘(b) CONSULTATION CONCERNING INTERIM POLI4 CIES.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Before adopting any interim

6 policy under the public assistance program to address

7 specific conditions that relate to a major disaster or

8 emergency that has been declared under this Act, the

9 President, to the maximum extent practicable, shall

10 solicit the views and recommendations of grantees

11 and subgrantees with respect to the major disaster or

12 emergency concerning the potential interim policy, if

13 the interim policy is likely—

14 ‘‘(A) to result in a significant reduction of

15 assistance to applicants for the assistance with

16 respect to the major disaster or emergency; or

17 ‘‘(B) to change the terms of a written agree18 ment to which the Federal Government is a

19 party concerning the declaration of the major

20 disaster or emergency.

21 ‘‘(2) NO LEGAL RIGHT OF ACTION.—Nothing in

22 this subsection confers a legal right of action on any

23 party.
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1 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC ACCESS.—The President shall promote

2 public access to policies governing the implementation of

3 the public assistance program.’’.

4 SEC. 204. STATE ADMINISTRATION OF HAZARD MITIGATION

5 GRANT PROGRAM.

6 Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

7 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170c) is amend8 ed by adding at the end the following:

9 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION BY STATES.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State desiring to admin11 ister the hazard mitigation grant program established

12 by this section with respect to hazard mitigation as13 sistance in the State may submit to the President an

14 application for the delegation of the authority to ad15 minister the program.

16 ‘‘(2) CRITERIA.—The President, in consultation

17 and coordination with States and local governments,

18 shall establish criteria for the approval of applica19 tions submitted under paragraph (1). The criteria

20 shall include, at a minimum—

21 ‘‘(A) the demonstrated ability of the State to

22 manage the grant program under this section;

23 ‘‘(B) there being in effect an approved miti24 gation plan under section 322; and
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1 ‘‘(C) a demonstrated commitment to mitiga2 tion activities.

3 ‘‘(3) APPROVAL.—The President shall approve

4 an application submitted under paragraph (1) that

5 meets the criteria established under paragraph (2).

6 ‘‘(4) WITHDRAWAL OF APPROVAL.—If, after ap7 proving an application of a State submitted under

8 paragraph (1), the President determines that the

9 State is not administering the hazard mitigation

10 grant program established by this section in a man11 ner satisfactory to the President, the President shall

12 withdraw the approval.

13 ‘‘(5) AUDITS.—The President shall provide for

14 periodic audits of the hazard mitigation grant pro15 grams administered by States under this subsection.’’.

16 SEC. 205. ASSISTANCE TO REPAIR, RESTORE, RECON17 STRUCT, OR REPLACE DAMAGED FACILITIES.

18 (a) CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 406 of the Robert T.

19 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42

20 U.S.C. 5172) is amended by striking subsection (a) and in21 serting the following:

22 ‘‘(a) CONTRIBUTIONS.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President may make

24 contributions—
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1 ‘‘(A) to a State or local government for the

2 repair, restoration, reconstruction, or replace3 ment of a public facility damaged or destroyed

4 by a major disaster and for associated expenses

5 incurred by the government; and

6 ‘‘(B) subject to paragraph (3), to a person

7 that owns or operates a private nonprofit facility

8 damaged or destroyed by a major disaster for the

9 repair, restoration, reconstruction, or replace10 ment of the facility and for associated expenses

11 incurred by the person.

12 ‘‘(2) ASSOCIATED EXPENSES.—For the purposes

13 of this section, associated expenses shall include—

14 ‘‘(A) the costs of mobilizing and employing

15 the National Guard for performance of eligible

16 work;

17 ‘‘(B) the costs of using prison labor to per18 form eligible work, including wages actually

19 paid, transportation to a worksite, and extraor20 dinary costs of guards, food, and lodging; and

21 ‘‘(C) base and overtime wages for the em22 ployees and extra hires of a State, local govern23 ment, or person described in paragraph (1) that

24 perform eligible work, plus fringe benefits on
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1 such wages to the extent that such benefits were

2 being paid before the major disaster.

3 ‘‘(3) CONDITIONS FOR ASSISTANCE TO PRIVATE

4 NONPROFIT FACILITIES.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President may

6 make contributions to a private nonprofit facil7 ity under paragraph (1)(B) only if—

8 ‘‘(i) the facility provides critical serv9 ices (as defined by the President) in the

10 event of a major disaster; or

11 ‘‘(ii) the owner or operator of the

12 facility—

13 ‘‘(I) has applied for a disaster

14 loan under section 7(b) of the Small

15 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)); and

16 ‘‘(II)(aa) has been determined to

17 be ineligible for such a loan; or

18 ‘‘(bb) has obtained such a loan in

19 the maximum amount for which the

20 Small Business Administration deter21 mines the facility is eligible.

22 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF CRITICAL SERVICES.—

23 In this paragraph, the term ‘critical services’ in24 cludes power, water (including water provided

25 by an irrigation organization or facility), sewer,
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1 wastewater treatment, communications, and

2 emergency medical care.

3 ‘‘(4) NOTIFICATION TO CONGRESS.—Before mak4 ing any contribution under this section in an amount

5 greater than $20,000,000, the President shall notify—

6 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Environment and

7 Public Works of the Senate;

8 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Transportation and

9 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives;

10 ‘‘(C) the Committee on Appropriations of

11 the Senate; and

12 ‘‘(D) the Committee on Appropriations of

13 the House of Representatives.’’.

14 (b) FEDERAL SHARE.—Section 406 of the Robert T.

15 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42

16 U.S.C. 5172) is amended by striking subsection (b) and in17 serting the following:

18 ‘‘(b) FEDERAL SHARE.—

19 ‘‘(1) MINIMUM FEDERAL SHARE.—Except as pro20 vided in paragraph (2), the Federal share of assist21 ance under this section shall be not less than 75 per22 cent of the eligible cost of repair, restoration, recon23 struction, or replacement carried out under this sec24 tion.
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1 ‘‘(2) REDUCED FEDERAL SHARE.—The President

2 shall promulgate regulations to reduce the Federal

3 share of assistance under this section to not less than

4 25 percent in the case of the repair, restoration, re5 construction, or replacement of any eligible public fa6 cility or private nonprofit facility following an event

7 associated with a major disaster—

8 ‘‘(A) that has been damaged, on more than

9 1 occasion within the preceding 10-year period,

10 by the same type of event; and

11 ‘‘(B) the owner of which has failed to imple12 ment appropriate mitigation measures to ad13 dress the hazard that caused the damage to the

14 facility.’’.

15 (c) LARGE IN-LIEU CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 406 of

16 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As17 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5172) is amended by striking sub18 section (c) and inserting the following:

19 ‘‘(c) LARGE IN-LIEU CONTRIBUTIONS.—

20 ‘‘(1) FOR PUBLIC FACILITIES.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which a

22 State or local government determines that the

23 public welfare would not best be served by re24 pairing, restoring, reconstructing, or replacing

25 any public facility owned or controlled by the
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1 State or local government, the State or local gov2 ernment may elect to receive, in lieu of a con3 tribution under subsection (a)(1)(A), a contribu4 tion in an amount equal to 75 percent of the

5 Federal share of the Federal estimate of the cost

6 of repairing, restoring, reconstructing, or replac7 ing the facility and of management expenses.

8 ‘‘(B) AREAS WITH UNSTABLE SOIL.—In any

9 case in which a State or local government deter10 mines that the public welfare would not best be

11 served by repairing, restoring, reconstructing, or

12 replacing any public facility owned or controlled

13 by the State or local government because soil in14 stability in the disaster area makes repair, res15 toration, reconstruction, or replacement infeasi16 ble, the State or local government may elect to

17 receive, in lieu of a contribution under sub18 section (a)(1)(A), a contribution in an amount

19 equal to 90 percent of the Federal share of the

20 Federal estimate of the cost of repairing, restor21 ing, reconstructing, or replacing the facility and

22 of management expenses.

23 ‘‘(C) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds contributed to

24 a State or local government under this para25 graph may be used—
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1 ‘‘(i) to repair, restore, or expand other

2 selected public facilities;

3 ‘‘(ii) to construct new facilities; or

4 ‘‘(iii) to fund hazard mitigation meas5 ures that the State or local government de6 termines to be necessary to meet a need for

7 governmental services and functions in the

8 area affected by the major disaster.

9 ‘‘(D) LIMITATIONS.—Funds made available

10 to a State or local government under this para11 graph may not be used for—

12 ‘‘(i) any public facility located in a

13 regulatory floodway (as defined in section

14 59.1 of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations

15 (or a successor regulation)); or

16 ‘‘(ii) any uninsured public facility lo17 cated in a special flood hazard area identi18 fied by the Director of the Federal Emer19 gency Management Agency under the Na20 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42

21 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.).

22 ‘‘(2) FOR PRIVATE NONPROFIT FACILITIES.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which a

24 person that owns or operates a private nonprofit

25 facility determines that the public welfare would
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1 not best be served by repairing, restoring, recon2 structing, or replacing the facility, the person

3 may elect to receive, in lieu of a contribution

4 under subsection (a)(1)(B), a contribution in an

5 amount equal to 75 percent of the Federal share

6 of the Federal estimate of the cost of repairing,

7 restoring, reconstructing, or replacing the facil8 ity and of management expenses.

9 ‘‘(B) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds contributed to

10 a person under this paragraph may be used—

11 ‘‘(i) to repair, restore, or expand other

12 selected private nonprofit facilities owned or

13 operated by the person;

14 ‘‘(ii) to construct new private non15 profit facilities to be owned or operated by

16 the person; or

17 ‘‘(iii) to fund hazard mitigation meas18 ures that the person determines to be nec19 essary to meet a need for the person’s serv20 ices and functions in the area affected by

21 the major disaster.

22 ‘‘(C) LIMITATIONS.—Funds made available

23 to a person under this paragraph may not be

24 used for—
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1 ‘‘(i) any private nonprofit facility lo2 cated in a regulatory floodway (as defined

3 in section 59.1 of title 44, Code of Federal

4 Regulations (or a successor regulation)); or

5 ‘‘(ii) any uninsured private nonprofit

6 facility located in a special flood hazard

7 area identified by the Director of the Fed8 eral Emergency Management Agency under

9 the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968

10 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.).’’.

11 (d) ELIGIBLE COST.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 406 of the Robert T.

13 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance

14 Act (42 U.S.C. 5172) is amended by striking sub15 section (e) and inserting the following:

16 ‘‘(e) ELIGIBLE COST.—

17 ‘‘(1) DETERMINATION.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of this

19 section, the President shall estimate the eligible

20 cost of repairing, restoring, reconstructing, or re21 placing a public facility or private nonprofit

22 facility—

23 ‘‘(i) on the basis of the design of the fa24 cility as the facility existed immediately be25 fore the major disaster; and
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1 ‘‘(ii) in conformity with codes, speci2 fications, and standards (including flood3 plain management and hazard mitigation

4 criteria required by the President or under

5 the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (16

6 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.)) applicable at the time

7 at which the disaster occurred.

8 ‘‘(B) COST ESTIMATION PROCEDURES.—

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to para10 graph (2), the President shall use the cost

11 estimation procedures established under

12 paragraph (3) to determine the eligible cost

13 under this subsection.

14 ‘‘(ii) APPLICABILITY.—The procedures

15 specified in this paragraph and paragraph

16 (2) shall apply only to projects the eligible

17 cost of which is equal to or greater than the

18 amount specified in section 422.

19 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATION OF ELIGIBLE COST.—

20 ‘‘(A) ACTUAL COST GREATER THAN CEILING

21 PERCENTAGE OF ESTIMATED COST.—In any case

22 in which the actual cost of repairing, restoring,

23 reconstructing, or replacing a facility under this

24 section is greater than the ceiling percentage es25 tablished under paragraph (3) of the cost esti-
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1 mated under paragraph (1), the President may

2 determine that the eligible cost includes a por3 tion of the actual cost of the repair, restoration,

4 reconstruction, or replacement that exceeds the

5 cost estimated under paragraph (1).

6 ‘‘(B) ACTUAL COST LESS THAN ESTIMATED

7 COST.—

8 ‘‘(i) GREATER THAN OR EQUAL TO

9 FLOOR PERCENTAGE OF ESTIMATED

10 COST.—In any case in which the actual cost

11 of repairing, restoring, reconstructing, or

12 replacing a facility under this section is less

13 than 100 percent of the cost estimated under

14 paragraph (1), but is greater than or equal

15 to the floor percentage established under

16 paragraph (3) of the cost estimated under

17 paragraph (1), the State or local govern18 ment or person receiving funds under this

19 section shall use the excess funds to carry

20 out cost-effective activities that reduce the

21 risk of future damage, hardship, or suf22 fering from a major disaster.

23 ‘‘(ii) LESS THAN FLOOR PERCENTAGE

24 OF ESTIMATED COST.—In any case in

25 which the actual cost of repairing, restoring,
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1 reconstructing, or replacing a facility under

2 this section is less than the floor percentage

3 established under paragraph (3) of the cost

4 estimated under paragraph (1), the State or

5 local government or person receiving assist6 ance under this section shall reimburse the

7 President in the amount of the difference.

8 ‘‘(C) NO EFFECT ON APPEALS PROCESS.—

9 Nothing in this paragraph affects any right of

10 appeal under section 423.

11 ‘‘(3) EXPERT PANEL.—

12 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 18

13 months after the date of enactment of this para14 graph, the President, acting through the Director

15 of the Federal Emergency Management Agency,

16 shall establish an expert panel, which shall in17 clude representatives from the construction in18 dustry and State and local government.

19 ‘‘(B) DUTIES.—The expert panel shall de20 velop recommendations concerning—

21 ‘‘(i) procedures for estimating the cost

22 of repairing, restoring, reconstructing, or

23 replacing a facility consistent with industry

24 practices; and
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1 ‘‘(ii) the ceiling and floor percentages

2 referred to in paragraph (2).

3 ‘‘(C) REGULATIONS.—Taking into account

4 the recommendations of the expert panel under

5 subparagraph (B), the President shall promul6 gate regulations that establish—

7 ‘‘(i) cost estimation procedures de8 scribed in subparagraph (B)(i); and

9 ‘‘(ii) the ceiling and floor percentages

10 referred to in paragraph (2).

11 ‘‘(D) REVIEW BY PRESIDENT.—Not later

12 than 2 years after the date of promulgation of

13 regulations under subparagraph (C) and periodi14 cally thereafter, the President shall review the

15 cost estimation procedures and the ceiling and

16 floor percentages established under this para17 graph.

18 ‘‘(E) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later

19 than 1 year after the date of promulgation of

20 regulations under subparagraph (C), 3 years

21 after that date, and at the end of each 2-year pe22 riod thereafter, the expert panel shall submit to

23 Congress a report on the appropriateness of the

24 cost estimation procedures.
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1 ‘‘(4) SPECIAL RULE.—In any case in which the

2 facility being repaired, restored, reconstructed, or re3 placed under this section was under construction on

4 the date of the major disaster, the cost of repairing,

5 restoring, reconstructing, or replacing the facility

6 shall include, for the purposes of this section, only

7 those costs that, under the contract for the construc8 tion, are the owner’s responsibility and not the con9 tractor’s responsibility.’’.

10 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

11 paragraph (1) takes effect on the date of enactment of

12 this Act and applies to funds appropriated after the

13 date of enactment of this Act, except that paragraph

14 (1) of section 406(e) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster

15 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (as amended by

16 paragraph (1)) takes effect on the date on which the

17 cost estimation procedures established under para18 graph (3) of that section take effect.

19 (e) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 406 of the

20 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist21 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5172) is amended by striking sub22 section (f).
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1 SEC. 206. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND

2 HOUSEHOLDS.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 408 of the Robert T. Staf4 ford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42

5 U.S.C. 5174) is amended to read as follows:

6 ‘‘SEC. 408. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND

7 HOUSEHOLDS.

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

9 ‘‘(1) PROVISION OF ASSISTANCE.—In accordance

10 with this section, the President, in consultation with

11 the Governor of a State, may provide financial assist12 ance, and, if necessary, direct services, to individuals

13 and households in the State who, as a direct result of

14 a major disaster, have necessary expenses and serious

15 needs in cases in which the individuals and house16 holds are unable to meet such expenses or needs

17 through other means.

18 ‘‘(2) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER ASSISTANCE.—

19 Under paragraph (1), an individual or household

20 shall not be denied assistance under paragraph (1),

21 (3), or (4) of subsection (c) solely on the basis that

22 the individual or household has not applied for or re23 ceived any loan or other financial assistance from the

24 Small Business Administration or any other Federal

25 agency.

26 ‘‘(b) HOUSING ASSISTANCE.—
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1 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBILITY.—The President may provide

2 financial or other assistance under this section to in3 dividuals and households to respond to the disaster4 related housing needs of individuals and households

5 who are displaced from their predisaster primary

6 residences or whose predisaster primary residences

7 are rendered uninhabitable as a result of damage

8 caused by a major disaster.

9 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF APPROPRIATE TYPES

10 OF ASSISTANCE.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President shall de12 termine appropriate types of housing assistance

13 to be provided under this section to individuals

14 and households described in subsection (a)(1)

15 based on considerations of cost effectiveness, con16 venience to the individuals and households, and

17 such other factors as the President may consider

18 appropriate.

19 ‘‘(B) MULTIPLE TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.—

20 One or more types of housing assistance may be

21 made available under this section, based on the

22 suitability and availability of the types of assist23 ance, to meet the needs of individuals and house24 holds in the particular disaster situation.

25 ‘‘(c) TYPES OF HOUSING ASSISTANCE.—
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1 ‘‘(1) TEMPORARY HOUSING.—

2 ‘‘(A) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The President may

4 provide financial assistance to individuals

5 or households to rent alternate housing ac6 commodations, existing rental units, manu7 factured housing, recreational vehicles, or

8 other readily fabricated dwellings.

9 ‘‘(ii) AMOUNT.—The amount of assist10 ance under clause (i) shall be based on the

11 fair market rent for the accommodation

12 provided plus the cost of any transpor13 tation, utility hookups, or unit installation

14 not provided directly by the President.

15 ‘‘(B) DIRECT ASSISTANCE.—

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The President may

17 provide temporary housing units, acquired

18 by purchase or lease, directly to individuals

19 or households who, because of a lack of

20 available housing resources, would be unable

21 to make use of the assistance provided under

22 subparagraph (A).

23 ‘‘(ii) PERIOD OF ASSISTANCE.—The

24 President may not provide direct assistance

25 under clause (i) with respect to a major dis-
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1 aster after the end of the 18-month period

2 beginning on the date of the declaration of

3 the major disaster by the President, except

4 that the President may extend that period if

5 the President determines that due to ex6 traordinary circumstances an extension

7 would be in the public interest.

8 ‘‘(iii) COLLECTION OF RENTAL

9 CHARGES.—After the end of the 18-month

10 period referred to in clause (ii), the Presi11 dent may charge fair market rent for each

12 temporary housing unit provided.

13 ‘‘(2) REPAIRS.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President may pro15 vide financial assistance for—

16 ‘‘(i) the repair of owner-occupied pri17 vate residences, utilities, and residential in18 frastructure (such as a private access route)

19 damaged by a major disaster to a safe and

20 sanitary living or functioning condition;

21 and

22 ‘‘(ii) eligible hazard mitigation meas23 ures that reduce the likelihood of future

24 damage to such residences, utilities, or in25 frastructure.
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1 ‘‘(B) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER ASSIST2 ANCE.—A recipient of assistance provided under

3 this paragraph shall not be required to show that

4 the assistance can be met through other means,

5 except insurance proceeds.

6 ‘‘(C) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—

7 The amount of assistance provided to a house8 hold under this paragraph shall not exceed

9 $5,000, as adjusted annually to reflect changes

10 in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Con11 sumers published by the Department of Labor.

12 ‘‘(3) REPLACEMENT.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President may pro14 vide financial assistance for the replacement of

15 owner-occupied private residences damaged by a

16 major disaster.

17 ‘‘(B) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—

18 The amount of assistance provided to a house19 hold under this paragraph shall not exceed

20 $10,000, as adjusted annually to reflect changes

21 in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Con22 sumers published by the Department of Labor.

23 ‘‘(C) APPLICABILITY OF FLOOD INSURANCE

24 REQUIREMENT.—With respect to assistance pro25 vided under this paragraph, the President may
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1 not waive any provision of Federal law requir2 ing the purchase of flood insurance as a condi3 tion of the receipt of Federal disaster assistance.

4 ‘‘(4) PERMANENT HOUSING CONSTRUCTION.—The

5 President may provide financial assistance or direct

6 assistance to individuals or households to construct

7 permanent housing in insular areas outside the conti8 nental United States and in other remote locations in

9 cases in which—

10 ‘‘(A) no alternative housing resources are

11 available; and

12 ‘‘(B) the types of temporary housing assist13 ance described in paragraph (1) are unavailable,

14 infeasible, or not cost-effective.

15 ‘‘(d) TERMS AND CONDITIONS RELATING TO HOUSING

16 ASSISTANCE.—

17 ‘‘(1) SITES.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any readily fabricated

19 dwelling provided under this section shall, when20 ever practicable, be located on a site that—

21 ‘‘(i) is complete with utilities; and

22 ‘‘(ii) is provided by the State or local

23 government, by the owner of the site, or by

24 the occupant who was displaced by the

25 major disaster.
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1 ‘‘(B) SITES PROVIDED BY THE PRESI2 DENT.—A readily fabricated dwelling may be lo3 cated on a site provided by the President if the

4 President determines that such a site would be

5 more economical or accessible.

6 ‘‘(2) DISPOSAL OF UNITS.—

7 ‘‘(A) SALE TO OCCUPANTS.—

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding

9 any other provision of law, a temporary

10 housing unit purchased under this section

11 by the President for the purpose of housing

12 disaster victims may be sold directly to the

13 individual or household who is occupying

14 the unit if the individual or household lacks

15 permanent housing.

16 ‘‘(ii) SALE PRICE.—A sale of a tem17 porary housing unit under clause (i) shall

18 be at a price that is fair and equitable.

19 ‘‘(iii) DEPOSIT OF PROCEEDS.—Not20 withstanding any other provision of law,

21 the proceeds of a sale under clause (i) shall

22 be deposited in the appropriate Disaster Re23 lief Fund account.

24 ‘‘(iv) HAZARD AND FLOOD INSUR25 ANCE.—A sale of a temporary housing unit
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1 under clause (i) shall be made on the condi2 tion that the individual or household pur3 chasing the housing unit agrees to obtain

4 and maintain hazard and flood insurance

5 on the housing unit.

6 ‘‘(v) USE OF GSA SERVICES.—The

7 President may use the services of the Gen8 eral Services Administration to accomplish

9 a sale under clause (i).

10 ‘‘(B) OTHER METHODS OF DISPOSAL.—If

11 not disposed of under subparagraph (A), a tem12 porary housing unit purchased under this sec13 tion by the President for the purpose of housing

14 disaster victims—

15 ‘‘(i) may be sold to any person; or

16 ‘‘(ii) may be sold, transferred, donated,

17 or otherwise made available directly to a

18 State or other governmental entity or to a

19 voluntary organization for the sole purpose

20 of providing temporary housing to disaster

21 victims in major disasters and emergencies

22 if, as a condition of the sale, transfer, or do23 nation, the State, other governmental agen24 cy, or voluntary organization agrees—
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1 ‘‘(I) to comply with the non2 discrimination provisions of section

3 308; and

4 ‘‘(II) to obtain and maintain haz5 ard and flood insurance on the housing

6 unit.

7 ‘‘(e) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO ADDRESS OTHER

8 NEEDS.—

9 ‘‘(1) MEDICAL, DENTAL, AND FUNERAL EX10 PENSES.—The President, in consultation with the

11 Governor of a State, may provide financial assistance

12 under this section to an individual or household in

13 the State who is adversely affected by a major dis14 aster to meet disaster-related medical, dental, and fu15 neral expenses.

16 ‘‘(2) PERSONAL PROPERTY, TRANSPORTATION,

17 AND OTHER EXPENSES.—The President, in consulta18 tion with the Governor of a State, may provide finan19 cial assistance under this section to an individual or

20 household described in paragraph (1) to address per21 sonal property, transportation, and other necessary

22 expenses or serious needs resulting from the major

23 disaster.

24 ‘‘(f) STATE ROLE.—
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1 ‘‘(1) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO ADDRESS OTHER

2 NEEDS.—

3 ‘‘(A) GRANT TO STATE.—Subject to sub4 section (g), a Governor may request a grant from

5 the President to provide financial assistance to

6 individuals and households in the State under

7 subsection (e).

8 ‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—A State

9 that receives a grant under subparagraph (A)

10 may expend not more than 5 percent of the

11 amount of the grant for the administrative costs

12 of providing financial assistance to individuals

13 and households in the State under subsection (e).

14 ‘‘(2) ACCESS TO RECORDS.—In providing assist15 ance to individuals and households under this section,

16 the President shall provide for the substantial and on17 going involvement of the States in which the individ18 uals and households are located, including by pro19 viding to the States access to the electronic records of

20 individuals and households receiving assistance under

21 this section in order for the States to make available

22 any additional State and local assistance to the indi23 viduals and households.

24 ‘‘(g) COST SHARING.—
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1 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—Except as provided in

2 paragraph (2), the Federal share of the costs eligible

3 to be paid using assistance provided under this sec4 tion shall be 100 percent.

5 ‘‘(2) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO ADDRESS OTHER

6 NEEDS.—In the case of financial assistance provided

7 under subsection (e)—

8 ‘‘(A) the Federal share shall be 75 percent;

9 and

10 ‘‘(B) the non-Federal share shall be paid

11 from funds made available by the State.

12 ‘‘(h) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No individual or household

14 shall receive financial assistance greater than $25,000

15 under this section with respect to a single major dis16 aster.

17 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT OF LIMIT.—The limit estab18 lished under paragraph (1) shall be adjusted annually

19 to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index for All

20 Urban Consumers published by the Department of

21 Labor.

22 ‘‘(i) RULES AND REGULATIONS.—The President shall

23 prescribe rules and regulations to carry out this section, in24 cluding criteria, standards, and procedures for determining

25 eligibility for assistance.’’.
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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 502(a)(6) of

2 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As3 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5192(a)(6)) is amended by striking

4 ‘‘temporary housing’’.

5 (c) ELIMINATION OF INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY GRANT

6 PROGRAMS.—Section 411 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster

7 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5178) is

8 repealed.

9 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this

10 section take effect 18 months after the date of enactment

11 of this Act.

12 SEC. 207. COMMUNITY DISASTER LOANS.

13 Section 417 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

14 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5184) is

15 amended—

16 (1) by striking ‘‘(a) The President’’ and insert17 ing the following:

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President’’;

19 (2) by striking ‘‘The amount’’ and inserting the

20 following:

21 ‘‘(b) AMOUNT.—The amount’’;

22 (3) by striking ‘‘Repayment’’ and inserting the

23 following:

24 ‘‘(c) REPAYMENT.—

25 ‘‘(1) CANCELLATION.—Repayment’’;
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1 (4) by striking ‘‘(b) Any loans’’ and inserting

2 the following:

3 ‘‘(d) EFFECT ON OTHER ASSISTANCE.—Any loans’’;

4 (5) in subsection (b) (as designated by para5 graph (2))—

6 (A) by striking ‘‘and shall’’ and inserting

7 ‘‘shall’’; and

8 (B) by inserting before the period at the end

9 the following: ‘‘, and shall not exceed

10 $5,000,000’’; and

11 (6) in subsection (c) (as designated by para12 graph (3)), by adding at the end the following:

13 ‘‘(2) CONDITION ON CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY.—

14 A local government shall not be eligible for further as15 sistance under this section during any period in

16 which the local government is in arrears with respect

17 to a required repayment of a loan under this sec18 tion.’’.

19 SEC. 208. REPORT ON STATE MANAGEMENT OF SMALL DIS20 ASTERS INITIATIVE.

21 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of

22 this Act, the President shall submit to Congress a report

23 describing the results of the State Management of Small

24 Disasters Initiative, including—
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1 (1) identification of any administrative or fi2 nancial benefits of the initiative; and

3 (2) recommendations concerning the conditions,

4 if any, under which States should be allowed the op5 tion to administer parts of the assistance program

6 under section 406 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster

7 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

8 5172).

9 SEC. 209. STUDY REGARDING COST REDUCTION.

10 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of

11 this Act, the Director of the Congressional Budget Office

12 shall complete a study estimating the reduction in Federal

13 disaster assistance that has resulted and is likely to result

14 from the enactment of this Act.

15 TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS

16 SEC. 301. TECHNICAL CORRECTION OF SHORT TITLE.

17 The first section of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Re18 lief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 note)

19 is amended to read as follows:

20 ‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

21 ‘‘This Act may be cited as the ‘Robert T. Stafford Dis22 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act’.’’.
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1 SEC. 302. DEFINITIONS.

2 Section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

3 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122) is

4 amended—

5 (1) in each of paragraphs (3) and (4), by strik6 ing ‘‘the Northern’’ and all that follows through ‘‘Pa7 cific Islands’’ and inserting ‘‘and the Commonwealth

8 of the Northern Mariana Islands’’;

9 (2) by striking paragraph (6) and inserting the

10 following:

11 ‘‘(6) LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘local gov12 ernment’ means—

13 ‘‘(A) a county, municipality, city, town,

14 township, local public authority, school district,

15 special district, intrastate district, council of

16 governments (regardless of whether the council of

17 governments is incorporated as a nonprofit cor18 poration under State law), regional or interstate

19 government entity, or agency or instrumentality

20 of a local government;

21 ‘‘(B) an Indian tribe or authorized tribal

22 organization, or Alaska Native village or organi23 zation; and

24 ‘‘(C) a rural community, unincorporated

25 town or village, or other public entity, for which
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1 an application for assistance is made by a State

2 or political subdivision of a State.’’; and

3 (3) in paragraph (9), by inserting ‘‘irrigation,’’

4 after ‘‘utility,’’.

5 SEC. 303. FIRE MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 420 of the Robert T. Staf7 ford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42

8 U.S.C. 5187) is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘SEC. 420. FIRE MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE.

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President is authorized to

11 provide assistance, including grants, equipment, supplies,

12 and personnel, to any State or local government for the

13 mitigation, management, and control of any fire on public

14 or private forest land or grassland that threatens such de15 struction as would constitute a major disaster.

16 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION WITH STATE AND TRIBAL DE17 PARTMENTS OF FORESTRY.—In providing assistance under

18 this section, the President shall coordinate with State and

19 tribal departments of forestry.

20 ‘‘(c) ESSENTIAL ASSISTANCE.—In providing assist21 ance under this section, the President may use the authority

22 provided under section 403.

23 ‘‘(d) RULES AND REGULATIONS.—The President shall

24 prescribe such rules and regulations as are necessary to

25 carry out this section.’’.
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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub2 section (a) takes effect 1 year after the date of enactment

3 of this Act.

4 SEC. 304. DISASTER GRANT CLOSEOUT PROCEDURES.

5 Title VII of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and

6 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.) is

7 amended by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘SEC. 705. DISASTER GRANT CLOSEOUT PROCEDURES.

9 ‘‘(a) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graph (2), no administrative action to recover any

12 payment made to a State or local government for dis13 aster or emergency assistance under this Act shall be

14 initiated in any forum after the date that is 3 years

15 after the date of transmission of the final expenditure

16 report for the disaster or emergency.

17 ‘‘(2) FRAUD EXCEPTION.—The limitation under

18 paragraph (1) shall apply unless there is evidence of

19 civil or criminal fraud.

20 ‘‘(b) REBUTTAL OF PRESUMPTION OF RECORD MAIN21 TENANCE.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In any dispute arising

23 under this section after the date that is 3 years after

24 the date of transmission of the final expenditure re25 port for the disaster or emergency, there shall be a
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1 presumption that accounting records were maintained

2 that adequately identify the source and application of

3 funds provided for financially assisted activities.

4 ‘‘(2) AFFIRMATIVE EVIDENCE.—The presumption

5 described in paragraph (1) may be rebutted only on

6 production of affirmative evidence that the State or

7 local government did not maintain documentation de8 scribed in that paragraph.

9 ‘‘(3) INABILITY TO PRODUCE DOCUMENTATION.—

10 The inability of the Federal, State, or local govern11 ment to produce source documentation supporting ex12 penditure reports later than 3 years after the date of

13 transmission of the final expenditure report shall not

14 constitute evidence to rebut the presumption described

15 in paragraph (1).

16 ‘‘(4) RIGHT OF ACCESS.—The period during

17 which the Federal, State, or local government has the

18 right to access source documentation shall not be lim19 ited to the required 3-year retention period referred to

20 in paragraph (3), but shall last as long as the records

21 are maintained.

22 ‘‘(c) BINDING NATURE OF GRANT REQUIREMENTS.—

23 A State or local government shall not be liable for reim24 bursement or any other penalty for any payment made

25 under this Act if—
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1 ‘‘(1) the payment was authorized by an ap2 proved agreement specifying the costs;

3 ‘‘(2) the costs were reasonable; and

4 ‘‘(3) the purpose of the grant was accom5 plished.’’.

6 SEC. 305. PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN

7 FEDERAL AND STATE EMPLOYEES.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1204 of the Omnibus Crime

9 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b)

10 is amended by striking paragraph (7) and inserting the fol11 lowing:

12 ‘‘(7) ‘public safety officer’ means—

13 ‘‘(A) an individual serving a public agency

14 in an official capacity, with or without com15 pensation, as a law enforcement officer, as a fire16 fighter, or as a member of a rescue squad or am17 bulance crew;

18 ‘‘(B) an employee of the Federal Emergency

19 Management Agency who is performing official

20 duties of the Agency in an area, if those official

21 duties—

22 ‘‘(i) are related to a major disaster or

23 emergency that has been, or is later, de24 clared to exist with respect to the area

25 under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
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1 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

2 5121 et seq.); and

3 ‘‘(ii) are determined by the Director of

4 the Federal Emergency Management Agency

5 to be hazardous duties; or

6 ‘‘(C) an employee of a State, local, or tribal

7 emergency management or civil defense agency

8 who is performing official duties in cooperation

9 with the Federal Emergency Management Agen10 cy in an area, if those official duties—

11 ‘‘(i) are related to a major disaster or

12 emergency that has been, or is later, de13 clared to exist with respect to the area

14 under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

15 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

16 5121 et seq.); and

17 ‘‘(ii) are determined by the head of the

18 agency to be hazardous duties.’’.

19 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub20 section (a) applies only to employees described in subpara21 graphs (B) and (C) of section 1204(7) of the Omnibus

22 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (as amended

23 by subsection (a)) who are injured or who die in the line

24 of duty on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 306. BUY AMERICAN.

2 (a) COMPLIANCE WITH BUY AMERICAN ACT.—No

3 funds authorized to be appropriated under this Act or any

4 amendment made by this Act may be expended by an entity

5 unless the entity, in expending the funds, complies with the

6 Buy American Act (41 U.S.C. 10a et seq.).

7 (b) DEBARMENT OF PERSONS CONVICTED OF FRAUDU8 LENT USE OF ‘‘MADE IN AMERICA’’ LABELS.—

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Director of the Federal

10 Emergency Management Agency determines that a

11 person has been convicted of intentionally affixing a

12 label bearing a ‘‘Made in America’’ inscription to

13 any product sold in or shipped to the United States

14 that is not made in America, the Director shall deter15 mine, not later than 90 days after determining that

16 the person has been so convicted, whether the person

17 should be debarred from contracting under the Robert

18 T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance

19 Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.).

20 (2) DEFINITION OF DEBAR.—In this subsection,

21 the term ‘‘debar’’ has the meaning given the term in

22 section 2393(c) of title 10, United States Code.

23 SEC. 307. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the National

25 Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), the

26 Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4002 et
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1 seq.), or any other provision of law, or any flood risk zone

2 identified, delineated, or established under any such law (by

3 flood insurance rate map or otherwise), the real property

4 described in subsection (b) shall not be considered to be, or

5 to have been, located in any area having special flood haz6 ards (including any floodway or floodplain).

7 (b) REAL PROPERTY.—The real property described in

8 this subsection is all land and improvements on the land

9 located in the Maple Terrace Subdivisions in the city of

10 Sycamore, DeKalb County, Illinois, including—

11 (1) Maple Terrace Phase I;

12 (2) Maple Terrace Phase II;

13 (3) Maple Terrace Phase III Unit 1;

14 (4) Maple Terrace Phase III Unit 2;

15 (5) Maple Terrace Phase III Unit 3;

16 (6) Maple Terrace Phase IV Unit 1;

17 (7) Maple Terrace Phase IV Unit 2; and

18 (8) Maple Terrace Phase IV Unit 3.

19 (c) REVISION OF FLOOD INSURANCE RATE LOT

20 MAPS.—As soon as practicable after the date of enactment

21 of this Act, the Director of the Federal Emergency Manage22 ment Agency shall revise the appropriate flood insurance

23 rate lot maps of the agency to reflect the treatment under

24 subsection (a) of the real property described in subsection

25 (b).
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1 SEC. 308. STUDY OF PARTICIPATION BY INDIAN TRIBES IN

2 EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.

3 (a) DEFINITION OF INDIAN TRIBE.—In this section,

4 the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ has the meaning given the term

5 in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu6 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).

7 (b) STUDY.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Federal

9 Emergency Management Agency shall conduct a

10 study of participation by Indian tribes in emergency

11 management.

12 (2) REQUIRED ELEMENTS.—The study shall—

13 (A) survey participation by Indian tribes

14 in training, predisaster and postdisaster mitiga15 tion, disaster preparedness, and disaster recovery

16 programs at the Federal and State levels; and

17 (B) review and assess the capacity of In18 dian tribes to participate in cost-shared emer19 gency management programs and to participate

20 in the management of the programs.

21 (3) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study,

22 the Director shall consult with Indian tribes.

23 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date of

24 enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit a report

25 on the study under subsection (b) to—
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1 (1) the Committee on Environment and Public

2 Works of the Senate;

3 (2) the Committee on Transportation and Infra4 structure of the House of Representatives;

5 (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the Sen6 ate; and

7 (4) the Committee on Appropriations of the

8 House of Representatives.

Attest:

Secretary.
106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 707

HOUSE AMENDMENT TO

SENATE AMENDMENT TO

SENATE AMENDMENT
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