I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4358 

To direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 

to submit to Congress a report on preliminary damage assessment and 

to establish damage assessment teams in the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 

Mr. KATKO (for himself and Mr. CUNNINGHAM) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to submit to Congress a report on preliminary damage assessment and to establish damage 

assessment teams in the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 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 ‘‘Preliminary Damage 

5 Assessment Improvement Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Preliminary damage assessments play a 

2 critical role in assessing and validating the impact 

3 and magnitude of a disaster. 

4 (2) Through the preliminary damage assess5 ment process, representatives from the Federal 

6 Emergency Management Agency work with State 

7 and local officials to gather information that serves 

8 as the basis for disaster assistance requests. 

9 (3) Various factors can impact the duration of 

10 a preliminary damage assessment and the cor11 responding submission of a major disaster request, 

12 however, the average time between when a disaster 

13 occurs, and the submission of a corresponding dis14 aster request has been found to be approximately 

15 twenty days longer for flooding disasters. 

16 (4) With communities across the country facing 

17 increased instances of catastrophic flooding and 

18 other extreme weather events, accurate and efficient 

19 preliminary damage assessments have become criti20 cally important to the relief process for impacted 

21 states and municipalities. 

22 SEC. 3. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

24 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

25 Federal Emergency Management Agency shall submit to 


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1 Congress a report describing the preliminary damage as2 sessment process, as carried out by the Federal Emer3 gency Management Agency in the 5 years before the date 

4 of enactment of this Act. 

5 (b) CONTENTS.—The report described in subsection 

6 (a) shall contain the following: 

7 (1) The process of the Federal Emergency 

8 Management Agency for deploying disaster assess9 ment teams to conduct preliminary damage assess10 ments. 

11 (2) The number of Agency staff participating 

12 on disaster assessment teams. 

13 (3) The training and experience of such staff 

14 described in paragraph (2). 

15 (4) A calculation of the average amount of time 

16 disaster assessment teams described in paragraph 

17 (1) are deployed to a disaster area. 

18 (5) The efforts of the Agency to maintain a 

19 consistent liaison between the Agency and commu20 nities within a disaster area. 

21 SEC. 4. PRELIMINARY DAMAGE ASSESSMENT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

23 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

24 Federal Emergency Management Agency shall establish 

25 damage assessment teams under section 206.33(b) of title 


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1 44, Code of Federal Regulations, within the Federal 

2 Emergency Management Agency to conduct preliminary 

3 damage assessments with State and local governments and 

4 appropriate relief or disaster assistance organizations. 

5 (b) DAMAGE ASSESSMENT TEAMS.—Damage assess6 ment teams described under subsection (a) shall consist 

7 of full-time employees of the Agency with expertise in 

8 working with State and local governments and appropriate 

9 relief or disaster assistance organizations. 

10 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

12 shall submit to Congress a report— 

13 (1) describing the establishment of disaster as14 sessment teams described under subsection (a); 

15 (2) assessing whether the duration of the de16 ployment of a disaster assessment team to conduct 

17 a preliminary damage assessment is longer based on 

18 specific disaster conditions; 

19 (3) assessing the practicality of forming specific 

20 disaster assessment teams for each specific disaster 

21 condition; and 

22 (4) legislative recommendations to improve the 

23 operation, deployment, and staffing of disaster as24 sessment teams. 


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1 (d) DEFINITION OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERN2 MENT.—For purposes of this Act, the terms ‘‘State’’ and 

3 ‘‘local government’’ have the meanings given such terms 

4 in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

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

Æ 


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