I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1130 

To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 

Act to modify the terms of the community disaster loan program, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 23, 2009 

Mrs. MALONEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to modify the terms of the community disaster loan program, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Whatever It Takes 

5 To Rebuild Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Major disasters, including natural disasters 

9 and disasters caused by terrorist acts, often result in 


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1 a decline in economic activity in areas affected by 

2 the disaster and a reduction in tax collections by 

3 State and local governments serving those areas. 

4 (2) A report of the Government Accountability 

5 Office entitled ‘‘September 11: Recent Estimates of 

6 Fiscal Impact of 2001 Terrorist Attack on New 

7 York’’, dated March 2005, confirmed prior estimates 

8 that— 

9 (A) New York City lost between 

10 $2,500,000,000 and $2,900,000,000 in tax rev11 enues for fiscal years 2002 and 2003; and 

12 (B) the State of New York lost 

13 $2,900,000,000 for fiscal years 2002 and 2003. 

14 (3) Under the community disaster loan program 

15 (in this section referred to as the ‘‘CDL program’’), 

16 as authorized by the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 

17 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, the President 

18 may make loans to a local government suffering a 

19 substantial loss of tax and other revenues as a result 

20 of a major disaster, if the local government dem21 onstrates a need for financial assistance in order to 

22 preform its governmental function. 

23 (4) The President may cancel the repayment of 

24 all or any part of a loan made to a local government 

25 under the CDL program if revenues following the 


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1 disaster are insufficient to meet the operating budg2 et of that local government as a result of disaster3 related revenue losses and additional unreimbursed 

4 disaster-related municipal operating expenses. 

5 (5) Assistance made available under the CDL 

6 program is often instrumental in aiding the full re7 covery of a local government following a major dis8 aster. 

9 (6) The Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 estab10 lished a $5,000,000 limitation on loans made to a 

11 local government under the CDL program in connec12 tion with a major disaster. Before the date of enact13 ment of such Act, there was not any limitation on 

14 the amount of such loans. 

15 (7) The $5,000,000 limitation is inequitable 

16 when applied to a local government serving a largely 

17 populated area, such as New York City, and is in18 consistent with the objective of the CDL program to 

19 provide meaningful assistance to a local government 

20 recovering from a major disaster. 

21 SEC. 3. COMMUNITY DISASTER LOANS. 

22 (a) ELIGIBILITY OF STATES.—Section 417 of the 

23 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist24 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5184) is amended by striking ‘‘local 


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1 government’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘State 

2 or local government’’. 

3 (b) AMOUNT.—Section 417(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

4 5184(b)) is amended— 

5 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by 

6 striking ‘‘based on need, shall’’ and inserting ‘‘based 

7 on need and shall’’; and 

8 (2) in paragraphs (1) and (2) by striking ‘‘, 

9 and shall not exceed $5,000,000’’. 

10 (c) CATASTROPHIC EVENTS.—Section 417 of such 

11 Act (42 U.S.C. 5184) is amended by adding at the end 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(e) CATASTROPHIC EVENTS.—In the case a loan 

14 made under this section to a State or local government 

15 which may suffer a substantial loss of tax and other reve16 nues as a result of a major disaster that the President 

17 determines to be a catastrophic event— 

18 ‘‘(1) the amount of the loan shall not be subject 

19 to the percentage limitations in subsection (b); and 

20 ‘‘(2) the President shall not require the pay21 ment of any interest or principal on a loan.’’. 

Æ 


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