II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1755 

To ensure that older adults and individuals with disabilities are prepared 

for disasters, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 10, 2019 

Mr. CASEY (for himself, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. JONES, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. 

DUCKWORTH, Ms. HARRIS, Ms. HASSAN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. 

VAN HOLLEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To ensure that older adults and individuals with disabilities 

are prepared for disasters, 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 ‘‘Real Emergency Ac5 cess for Aging and Disability Inclusion for Disasters Act’’ 

6 or the ‘‘REAADI for Disasters Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

8 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find9 ings: 


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1 (1) In the United States, according to the Cen2 ters for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 

3 more than 61,000,000 adults who are individuals 

4 with disabilities and, according to the Bureau of the 

5 Census, there are more than 47,800,000 adults age 

6 65 or older. 

7 (2) There have been more than 80 hurricanes, 

8 resulting in thousands of deaths, in the United 

9 States since 2005. 

10 (3) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad11 ministration estimates that— 

12 (A) the cumulative damage from weather13 and climate-related disasters in 2017 cost the 

14 United States over $300,000,000,000; and 

15 (B) 17 of the disasters in 2017 cost over 

16 $1,000,000,000 each. 

17 (4) Individuals with disabilities and older adults 

18 have been found to die at higher rates, compared to 

19 the general population, during disasters. 

20 (5) According to the Federal Emergency Man21 agement Administration— 

22 (A) more than 48,000,000 people were af23 fected by hurricanes and wildfires between Au24 gust and December of 2017; and 


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1 (B) more than 12,000,000, or one quarter, 

2 of those peoples were adults who were individ3 uals with disabilities. 

4 (6) An estimated 70 percent of the deaths at5 tributed to Hurricane Maria in 2017 were to people 

6 age 70 or older. 

7 (7) Failure to provide accessibility for, or plan 

8 for accommodating, individuals with physical or sen9 sory disabilities, chronic illness, or mental disabilities 

10 decreases the ability of those individuals to evacuate 

11 prior to or during a disaster. 

12 (8) Households of individuals with disabilities 

13 are more likely to need assistance and are less likely 

14 to be able to evacuate in advance of disasters. 

15 (9) Less than a third of individuals with intel16 lectual disabilities and individuals needing personal 

17 care attendants have planned with their personal 

18 care providers what to do in a disaster. 

19 (10) Evacuation information, including orders, 

20 is not uniformly communicated in ways and via 

21 media that are accessible to individuals with disabil22 ities, including being communicated in ways that 

23 lack use of American Sign Language, captions, and 

24 plain language on websites, instructional materials, 

25 and television and radio announcements. 


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1 (11) Displaced individuals with disabilities 

2 served in general population shelters have better ac3 cess to information and material resources than indi4 viduals with disabilities in specially designed shel5 ters. 

6 (12) Despite better access to information and 

7 resources, personnel in general population shelters 

8 often do not have the resources or training to ad9 dress the needs of individuals with disabilities and 

10 older adults. 

11 (13) Public shelters often do not have dis12 ability-related accommodations, often forcing individ13 uals with disabilities and older adults to be seg14 regated, sometimes apart from their families and 

15 natural supports during disasters. 

16 (14) Households with individuals with disabil17 ities sustain more costly property damage from dis18 asters than households without individuals with dis19 abilities. 

20 (15) Historically, disaster-related recommenda21 tions for individuals with disabilities and older 

22 adults have been typically aimed at caregivers and 

23 service providers, not individuals with disabilities 

24 and older adults. 


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1 (16) Thousands of individuals with disabilities 

2 have been denied their civil rights because they do 

3 not receive accessible notice during disasters— 

4 (A) of spoken instructions via phone or 

5 video; or 

6 (B) of instructions regarding evacuations, 

7 sheltering, and other procedures during disas8 ters. 

9 (17) Disaster shelters and services do not rou10 tinely have American Sign Language interpreters 

11 nor procedures written or presented in plain lan12 guage. 

13 (18) Individuals with disabilities and older 

14 adults are more at risk for loss of life, loss of inde15 pendence, and violation of civil rights than the gen16 eral population during times of disasters, response, 

17 and recovery. 

18 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con19 gress that— 

20 (1) individuals with disabilities and older adults 

21 should be supported during times of disasters, and 

22 during disaster preparedness, response, recovery, 

23 and mitigation in order to— 

24 (A) ensure maintenance of and access to 

25 services and supports; and 


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1 (B) enable those individuals and adults to 

2 return to their communities in a timely manner 

3 as compared with the general population; 

4 (2) during the recovery and mitigation phases 

5 of disaster response, all buildings and services 

6 should be designed, and constructed or recon7 structed, according to principles of universal design 

8 and to the standards established by the Architec9 tural and Transportation Barriers Compliance 

10 Board in order to ensure access for individuals with 

11 disabilities, older adults, and all individuals; 

12 (3) individuals with disabilities and older adults 

13 should have access to shelters and other services 

14 during disasters in the same locations and settings 

15 as the general population; 

16 (4) individuals with disabilities and older adults 

17 should receive information about preparation for, re18 sponse to, recovery from, and mitigation of disasters 

19 in formats accessible to them, including in American 

20 Sign Language, Braille, and plain language, as well 

21 as captioned video messages; 

22 (5) individuals with disabilities and older adults 

23 must be included as key speakers, essential stake24 holders, and decisionmakers in the preparation (inVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:35 Jun 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1755.IS S1755

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1 cluding planning), response, recovery, and mitigation 

2 phases of disasters; 

3 (6) local, State (including territorial), tribal, 

4 and Federal disaster planning must include robust 

5 representation of individuals with disabilities and 

6 older adults; and 

7 (7) individuals with disabilities and older adults 

8 must be included in the evaluation of governmental, 

9 VOAD, and other nongovernmental preparation (in10 cluding planning), response, recovery, and mitigation 

11 of disasters. 

12 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

13 The purposes of this Act are to— 

14 (1) improve the inclusion of individuals with 

15 disabilities and older adults in the preparation for, 

16 response to, recovery from, and mitigation of disas17 ters; 

18 (2) ensure the rights of individuals with disabil19 ities and older adults, to be free from discrimination 

20 on the basis of disability or age in programs and ac21 tivities, are protected during all phases of disaster 

22 preparation, response, recovery, and mitigation; 

23 (3) ensure compliance with the Americans with 

24 Disabilities Act of 1990, the Rehabilitation Act of 

25 1973, and other disability laws during preparation 


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1 for, response to, recovery from, and mitigation of 

2 disasters; 

3 (4) improve coordination, among the commu4 nities of individuals with disabilities and older 

5 adults, government agencies, VOADs, and other 

6 nongovernmental entities, in preparing (including 

7 planning) for, responding to, recovery from, and 

8 mitigation of disasters; and 

9 (5) improve outcomes for all individuals, includ10 ing individuals with disabilities and older adults, who 

11 are affected by disasters, and increase community 

12 resilience in responding to disasters. 

13 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

14 In this Act: 

15 (1) ACCESS AND FUNCTIONAL NEEDS.—The 

16 term ‘‘access and functional needs’’, used with re17 spect to an individual, means an individual with 

18 needs such as— 

19 (A) an individual with a disability; 

20 (B) an older adult; 

21 (C) an individual with limited English pro22 ficiency; 

23 (D) an individual with limited access to 

24 transportation that would enable the individual 


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1 to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and 

2 mitigate a disaster; or 

3 (E) an individual with limited access to the 

4 financial resources that would enable the indi5 vidual to prepare for, respond to, recover from, 

6 and mitigate a disaster. 

7 (2) ALL HAZARDS APPROACH.—The term ‘‘all 

8 hazards approach’’ means planning for natural, 

9 technological, or human-caused incidents that war10 rant action to— 

11 (A) protect life, property, the environment, 

12 or the public health or safety; and 

13 (B) minimize disruptions of school activi14 ties. 

15 (3) CIVIL RIGHTS.—The term ‘‘civil rights’’, 

16 used with respect to an individual, means the rights 

17 of the individual to be free from discrimination on 

18 the basis of disability or age in programs and activi19 ties. 

20 (4) COVERED INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘covered 

21 individual’’ means an individual with a disability, an 

22 older adult, and an individual with access and func23 tional needs. 

24 (5) DISABILITY INCLUSIVE EMERGENCY MAN25 AGEMENT EXPERIENCE.—The term ‘‘disability incluVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:35 Jun 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1755.IS S1755

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1 sive emergency management experience’’, used with 

2 respect to an individual or entity— 

3 (A) means an individual or entity that 

4 has— 

5 (i) demonstrated disability leadership 

6 experience, including working with non7 governmental entities; and 

8 (ii) subject matter expertise in leading 

9 disability inclusive preparedness, response, 

10 recovery, and mitigation initiatives that 

11 focus on meeting the rights of covered in12 dividuals who are affected by disasters, to 

13 be free from discrimination on the basis of 

14 disability or age in programs and activities; 

15 and 

16 (B) includes an individual or entity that 

17 has demonstrated favorable outcomes that 

18 measure the effective communication access, 

19 physical access, program access, health, safety, 

20 and independence of individuals affected by dis21 asters and their communities. 

22 (6) DISASTER.—The term ‘‘disaster’’ means 

23 any natural catastrophe (including a hurricane, tor24 nado, or storm, high water, winddriven water, and a 

25 tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, 


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1 landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, wildfire, or 

2 drought), technological accident, or human-caused 

3 event, that results in severe property damage, 

4 deaths, or multiple injuries. 

5 (7) DISASTER SERVICES.—The term ‘‘disaster 

6 services’’ means the process of responding to a dis7 aster and providing humanitarian aid to individuals 

8 and communities who are affected by a disaster. 

9 (8) DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTED.—The 

10 term ‘‘disproportionately affected’’, used with re11 spect to a group, means a group of individuals with 

12 protected status, such as individuals with disabilities 

13 or older adults, who are excessively adversely af14 fected by disaster-related harms. 

15 (9) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.— 

16 (A) SINGLE.—The term ‘‘individual with a 

17 disability’’ means an individual with a dis18 ability, as defined in section 3 of the Americans 

19 with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

20 12102). 

21 (B) PLURAL.—The term ‘‘individuals with 

22 disabilities’’ means more than one individual 

23 with a disability, as defined in subparagraph 

24 (A). 


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1 (10) OLDER ADULT.—The term ‘‘older adult’’ 

2 means a resident who is age 50 or older. 

3 (11) RESIDENT.—The term ‘‘resident’’ means a 

4 resident of a State. 

5 (12) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

6 means the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

7 (13) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 

8 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Com9 monwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin 

10 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Common11 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

12 (14) VISITABILITY STANDARDS.—The term 

13 ‘‘visitability standards’’ means standards for Type C 

14 (Visitable) Units under the Standards for Accessible 

15 and Usable Buildings and Facilities (ICC A117.1– 

16 2009), or any successor standards, of the American 

17 National Standards Institute. 

18 (15) VOAD.—The term ‘‘VOAD’’ means a non19 governmental organization assisting in disaster prep20 aration, recovery, response, or mitigation. 

21 SEC. 5. USE OF DISASTER RESPONSE FUNDS. 

22 Section 615 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

23 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5196d) is 

24 amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘Funds made available’’ and in2 serting the following: 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

4 ‘‘(1) the terms ‘access and functional needs’, 

5 ‘individuals with disabilities’, ‘older adult’, and 

6 ‘visitability standards’ have the meanings given the 

7 terms under section 4 of the REAADI for Disasters 

8 Act; 

9 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered recipient’ means a direct 

10 or indirect recipient of funds made available under 

11 this title for a covered use of funds; and 

12 ‘‘(3) the term ‘covered use of funds’ means the 

13 use of funds for the preparation for, response to, re14 covery from, or mitigation of hazards. 

15 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS GENERALLY.—Funds made 

16 available’’; and 

17 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(c) ADVISORY COMMITTEES.—A covered recipient 

19 shall ensure that an advisory committee that includes indi20 viduals with disabilities, older adults, and other individuals 

21 with access and functional needs oversees the use of funds 

22 made available under this title by the covered recipient. 

23 ‘‘(d) COMPLIANCE WITH DISABILITY LAWS.—A cov24 ered recipient shall use funds made available under this 

25 title in accordance with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 


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1 U.S.C. 701 et seq.) and the Americans with Disabilities 

2 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 

3 ‘‘(e) CENTERS FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING.—A cov4 ered recipient may contract with 1 or more centers for 

5 independent living (as defined in section 702 of the Reha6 bilitation Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 796a)) to— 

7 ‘‘(1) prepare for hazards; 

8 ‘‘(2) provide personal assistance services during 

9 response and recovery periods; 

10 ‘‘(3) identify accessible emergency shelters and 

11 adapt emergency shelters to be accessible; 

12 ‘‘(4) develop accessible media, including media 

13 using American Sign Language; and 

14 ‘‘(5) meet other needs for individuals with dis15 abilities, older adults, and individuals with access 

16 and functional needs. 

17 ‘‘(f) CONTRACTORS.—A nongovernmental organiza18 tion that enters into a contract with a covered recipient 

19 relating to a covered use of funds shall comply with the 

20 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.) and 

21 the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

22 12101 et seq.) in providing property or services under the 

23 contract. 

24 ‘‘(g) COMMUNICATIONS.—Communications relating 

25 to a covered use of funds by a covered recipient shall be 


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1 made available in languages, including American Sign 

2 Language and other sign languages, used in the commu3 nities receiving the communications. 

4 ‘‘(h) ACCESSABILITY.—A covered recipient shall en5 sure each facility or service made available in connection 

6 with a covered use of funds is accessible to individuals with 

7 disabilities, older adults, and other individuals with access 

8 and functional needs, including— 

9 ‘‘(1) notifications relating to a hazard; 

10 ‘‘(2) evacuation notifications; 

11 ‘‘(3) notifications relating to disaster services; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(4) emergency shelters. 

14 ‘‘(i) VISITABILITY.—A covered recipient that, as part 

15 of a covered use of funds, constructs or prepares dwelling 

16 units (including sleeping units) shall ensure that the dwell17 ing units meet visitability standards.’’. 

18 SEC. 6. TRAINING, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, AND RE19 SEARCH DISABILITY AND DISASTER CEN20 TERS. 

21 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to pro22 vide financial support to eligible entities to create centers 

23 through which the eligible entities will— 

24 (1) provide training and technical assistance to 

25 State, tribal, and local disaster relief, public health, 


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1 and social service agencies in the implementation 

2 and enhancement of systemic and effective engage3 ment policies, programs, and activities that ensure— 

4 (A) that the needs and rights of covered 

5 individuals are addressed and implemented 

6 throughout all phases of disaster preparation, 

7 response, recovery, and mitigation; and 

8 (B) the inclusion of covered individuals in 

9 the development of all State, tribal, and local 

10 disaster preparation plans; 

11 (2) assist Federal, State, tribal, and local dis12 aster relief agencies in the coordination and integra13 tion of Federal, State (including territorial), tribal, 

14 and local services and programs to serve covered in15 dividuals in the least restrictive environment appro16 priate to their needs during a disaster; 

17 (3) conduct research and expand knowledge 

18 about covered individuals and their experiences dur19 ing the preparation, response, recovery, and mitiga20 tion phases of disasters; and 

21 (4) discover, through research, and disseminate 

22 knowledge about, the most effective methods for— 

23 (A) protecting the civil rights of covered 

24 individuals during times of disasters; 


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1 (B) including covered individuals in all 

2 phases of disaster preparation, response, recov3 ery, and mitigation; 

4 (C) reducing their deaths, injuries and 

5 losses from disasters; 

6 (D) reducing the displacement and dis7 proportionate effects of relocation after a dis8 aster, including financial and social effects, on 

9 covered individuals; and 

10 (E) ensuring covered individuals are par11 ticipants in the research, development, and dis12 tribution of evidence-based information regard13 ing disasters. 

14 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti16 ty’’ means an entity or partnership of entities that— 

17 (A) submits an application to the Sec18 retary in accordance with subsection (e); 

19 (B) is or includes an institution (which 

20 may be an institution of higher education), or 

21 a nongovernmental organization, that focuses 

22 on— 

23 (i) serving the needs of individuals 

24 with disabilities; or 

25 (ii) serving the needs of older adults; 


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1 (C) in the case of an entity or partnership 

2 with a disability focus, has a cross-disability 

3 service focus; 

4 (D) has experience in conducting training, 

5 technical assistance, and research pertaining to 

6 consumer-directed community support services 

7 for covered individuals; 

8 (E) includes covered individuals in posi9 tions of leadership in the planning, manage10 ment, and operation of the programs of train11 ing, technical assistance, and research; 

12 (F) has knowledge and experience per13 taining to the implementation and enhancement 

14 of systemic and effective engagement policies, 

15 programs, and activities that promote the inclu16 sion, needs, and rights of covered individuals in 

17 preparation for, response to, recovery from, and 

18 mitigation of disasters; and 

19 (G) has, or will establish, an advisory 

20 council or similar entity, of which at least 51 

21 percent of the members are covered individuals. 

22 (2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

23 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

24 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 

25 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 


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1 (3) STAKEHOLDER GROUP.—The term ‘‘stake2 holder group’’ means a group of individuals and or3 ganizations that— 

4 (A) is committed to disability inclusive and 

5 older adult inclusive disaster management; 

6 (B) includes covered individuals through7 out preparedness, response, recovery, and miti8 gation activities; 

9 (C) has leaders that include covered indi10 viduals; 

11 (D) has a governing or advisory board, of 

12 which at least half of the members are covered 

13 individuals; and 

14 (E) has a mission to inclusively serve cov15 ered individuals. 

16 (c) AUTHORITY FOR GRANTS.—The Secretary may 

17 award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities, 

18 to provide for— 

19 (1) activities that include covered individuals in 

20 the preparation (including planning) for, response 

21 to, recovery from, and mitigation of disasters; and 

22 (2) research related to disasters and covered in23 dividuals. 

24 (d) AMOUNT AND PERIOD OF GRANTS.— 


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1 (1) AMOUNT.—In awarding grants under this 

2 section, the Secretary shall, to the extent prac3 ticable, award a grant to an eligible entity in an 

4 amount that is not less than $500,000 and not more 

5 than $2,000,000. 

6 (2) DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall award 

7 not fewer than 2 of the grants in each of the 10 

8 Federal regions of the Department of Health and 

9 Human Services. 

10 (3) PERIODS.—The Secretary shall award the 

11 grants for periods of 5 years, through an open com12 petition held at the end of each 5-year period. Eligi13 ble entities that receive grants under this section 

14 may reapply for such grants at the end of the peri15 ods. 

16 (e) APPLICATIONS.— 

17 (1) SUBMISSIONS.—To be eligible to receive a 

18 grant under this section, an entity shall submit an 

19 application to the Secretary at such time and in 

20 such manner as the Secretary may require. 

21 (2) CONTENTS.—Each such application shall 

22 include, at a minimum, the following: 

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1 abilities in preparing for, responding to, recov2 ering from, and mitigating disasters. 

3 (B) A description of the applicant’s dem4 onstrated experience in providing training, in5 formation, and support to older adults in pre6 paring for, responding to, recovering from, and 

7 mitigating disasters. 

8 (C) A description of the applicant’s dem9 onstrated experience in working with Federal, 

10 State, tribal, and local government agencies in 

11 preparing for, responding to, recovering from, 

12 and mitigating disasters. 

13 (D) A description of the steps the appli14 cant, acting through the center, will take to tar15 get services to low-income individuals and indi16 viduals identified as disproportionately affected 

17 in disasters, including those individuals at 

18 greatest risk of institutionalization. 

19 (E) An assurance that the applicant, act20 ing through the center, will— 

21 (i) work with State, tribal, and local 

22 disaster relief, public health, and social 

23 service agencies to determine the best 

24 means for delivery of services to address 

25 the needs of covered individuals; 


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1 (ii) assist in establishing State, tribal, 

2 and local disaster plans to address the 

3 needs of both rural and urban populations; 

4 (iii) in carrying out activities under 

5 the grant, conduct sufficient outreach to 

6 VOADs and other nongovernmental orga7 nizations, including organizations that rep8 resent and are comprised of covered indi9 viduals; 

10 (iv) include covered individuals in a 

11 meaningful way in the development and 

12 execution of activities carried out under 

13 the grant; and 

14 (v) communicate information on the 

15 programs and systems developed under the 

16 grant, in the languages, including Amer17 ican Sign Language, of the communities 

18 being served. 

19 (f) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants for activities de20 scribed in this section, the Secretary shall give priority to 

21 eligible entities that— 

22 (1) demonstrate a minimum of 3 years of expe23 rience in actively conducting disability inclusive and 

24 older adult inclusive disaster management; 


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1 (2) propose activities to address the prepared2 ness, response, recovery, and mitigation needs of 

3 covered individuals; 

4 (3) propose activities to address leadership de5 velopment in State, tribal, and local agencies and 

6 covered individual advocacy organizations; 

7 (4) demonstrate ability to provide training that 

8 is about bias because of disability or age and that 

9 uses experiential approaches and not simulation; 

10 (5) demonstrate expertise concerning the obliga11 tion to keep individuals free from discrimination on 

12 the basis of disability and age in programs and ac13 tivities and specific plans for achieving and main14 taining physical access, program access, and effec15 tive communication for covered individuals through16 out all grant activities; 

17 (6) demonstrate that the eligible entity involved 

18 will use measurable collaboration and partnership 

19 strategies with State, tribal, and local agencies, 

20 VOADs, and other nongovernmental entities in car21 rying out grant activities; 

22 (7) demonstrate that the eligible entity will use 

23 measurable disaster outcomes strategies in carrying 

24 out grant activities; 


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1 (8) demonstrate the ability to quickly create 

2 products, such as videos, fact sheets, guidelines, and 

3 checklists, to be used in disaster management; 

4 (9) employ constituents of the entity in deci5 sionmaking positions; 

6 (10) provide disability inclusive and older adult 

7 inclusive disaster management leadership skills de8 velopment; 

9 (11) demonstrate awareness of available re10 sources in the community for meeting the prepared11 ness, response, recovery, and mitigation needs of 

12 covered individuals; and 

13 (12) demonstrate expertise in promoting the 

14 use of universal design (as defined in section 3 of 

15 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

16 1003)), the philosophy of independent living (within 

17 the meaning of that philosophy in title VII of the 

18 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796 et seq.)), 

19 intersectionality imperatives, and the social model of 

20 disability. 

21 (g) USE OF FUNDS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Grant funds made available 

23 under this section shall be used only for activities 

24 described in and approved by the Secretary as a part 


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1 of an application submitted under subsection (e), to 

2 carry out— 

3 (A) a strategy designed to ensure the in4 clusion of covered individuals in the preparation 

5 (including planning) for, response to, recovery 

6 from, and mitigation of disasters; and 

7 (B) research to enhance the activities de8 scribed in subparagraph (A), using not more 

9 than 25 percent of the grant funds to carry out 

10 that research. 

11 (2) ACTIVITIES.—Such activities may include 

12 initiatives that provide comprehensive training, tech13 nical assistance, development of funding sources, 

14 and support to State, tribal, and local disaster relief, 

15 public health, and social service agencies and stake16 holder groups, in order to ensure that, in carrying 

17 out disaster management planning and programs, 

18 the agencies and groups address the inclusion, 

19 rights, and needs of covered individuals by— 

20 (A) hiring personnel with direct knowledge 

21 of and experience with meeting the rights of 

22 covered individuals to be free from discrimina23 tion on the basis of disability or age in pro24 grams and activities; 


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1 (B) training staff of State, tribal, and local 

2 disaster relief, public health, and social service 

3 agencies on the needs and rights of covered in4 dividuals, preferably through training by ex5 perts who are individuals with disabilities and 

6 experts who are older adults; 

7 (C) creating partnerships between eligible 

8 entities, State, tribal, and local disaster relief, 

9 public health, and social service agencies, 

10 VOADs, other nongovernmental organizations, 

11 and organizations representing covered individ12 uals; 

13 (D) assisting in the development and im14 plementation, in partnership with State, tribal, 

15 and local disaster relief, public health, and so16 cial service agencies, of plans that will provide 

17 for a continuum of services to remove barriers 

18 to full engagement for covered individuals dur19 ing a disaster and in preparedness (including 

20 planning) for, response to, recovery from, and 

21 mitigation of a disaster; 

22 (E) assisting in the creation of standards 

23 and identification of funding sources for re24 building disaster-damaged housing and new 


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1 housing that is accessible, affordable, and dis2 aster-resilient; 

3 (F) assisting in the creation of standards 

4 for homeowner and flood insurance coverage for 

5 rebuilding disaster-damaged housing and new 

6 housing that is accessible, affordable, and dis7 aster-resilient; 

8 (G) establishing universal design and ac9 cessibility standards, and establishing specifica10 tions for visitability (based on the visitability 

11 standards), for achieving and maintaining equal 

12 access for covered individuals throughout all 

13 hazard mitigation and disaster resilience activi14 ties; 

15 (H) establishing initiatives to increase new 

16 and transferred technology and innovations to 

17 solve notification, evacuation, health mainte18 nance, and other barriers for covered individ19 uals before, during, and after disasters; and 

20 (I) conducting research, in partnership 

21 with covered individuals, that will contribute to 

22 knowledge and strategies to— 

23 (i) decrease injuries, deaths, and harm 

24 to covered individuals; 


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1 (ii) create inclusive disaster prepared2 ness, recovery, response, and mitigation 

3 strategies for States, Indian tribes, local4 ities, VOADs, and other nongovernmental 

5 organizations; 

6 (iii) preserve community living options 

7 and access to needed services and supports 

8 for covered individuals during post-disaster 

9 periods; and 

10 (iv) conduct longitudinal studies that 

11 create and maintain datasets to assist in 

12 the understanding of Federal, State, tribal, 

13 and local policies designed to reduce the 

14 negative impact of disasters on covered in15 dividuals and protect the rights of covered 

16 individuals to be free from discrimination 

17 on the basis of disability or age in pro18 grams and activities. 

19 (3) STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES.—The Sec20 retary shall establish standards and guidelines for 

21 activities supported by a grant under this section. 

22 Such standards and guidelines shall be developed 

23 with the input of stakeholder groups. In a situation 

24 in which a refinement or adaptation of the standards 

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1 cumstance, the Secretary shall enter into negotia2 tions with an eligible entity applying for such a 

3 grant for a project in the affected area, to refine or 

4 adapt the standards and guidelines for the project. 

5 (h) INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS.—Notwithstanding any 

6 other provision of this section, no entity, agency, or group 

7 assisted under this section shall take any action that in8 fringes in any manner on the rights of covered individuals 

9 to be free from discrimination on the basis of disability 

10 or age in programs and activities. 

11 (i) REPORTS.—Not later than January 31 of fiscal 

12 years 2023 and 2025, the Secretary shall submit to Con13 gress a report describing the activities carried out under 

14 this section during the preceding 2 fiscal years. 

15 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

16 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

17 $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025. 

18 SEC. 7. PROJECTS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE. 

19 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti21 ty’’ means an entity or partnership of entities that— 

22 (A) submits an application to the Sec23 retary at such time, in such manner, and con24 taining such information as the Secretary may 

25 reasonably require; 


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1 (B) is or includes an institution (which 

2 may be an institution of higher education), or 

3 a nongovernmental organization, that focuses 

4 on— 

5 (i) serving the needs of individuals 

6 with disabilities; or 

7 (ii) serving the needs of older adults; 

8 (C) in the case of an entity or partnership 

9 with a disability focus, has a cross-disability 

10 service focus; 

11 (D) has experience in conducting training, 

12 technical assistance, and research pertaining to 

13 consumer-directed community support services 

14 for covered individuals; 

15 (E) includes covered individuals in posi16 tions of leadership in the planning, manage17 ment, and operation of the programs of train18 ing, technical assistance, and research; 

19 (F) has knowledge and experience per20 taining to the implementation and enhancement 

21 of systemic and effective engagement policies, 

22 programs, and activities that promote the inclu23 sion, needs, and rights of covered individuals in 

24 preparation for, response to, recovery from, and 

25 mitigation of disasters; and 


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1 (G) has, or will establish, an advisory 

2 council or similar entity, of which at least half 

3 of the members are covered individuals. 

4 (2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

5 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

6 meaning given the term in section 6(b). 

7 (b) GRANTS, CONTRACTS, AND COOPERATIVE

8 AGREEMENTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

10 grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative 

11 agreements with, eligible entities on a competitive 

12 basis to carry out projects of national significance 

13 that— 

14 (A) create opportunities for individuals 

15 with disabilities and older adults to directly con16 tribute to improving preparation for, recovery 

17 from, response to, and mitigation of disasters; 

18 (B) support the development of Federal, 

19 State, tribal, and local policies that reinforce 

20 and promote the inclusion of individuals with 

21 disabilities and older adults in Federal, State, 

22 tribal, and local community preparation for dis23 asters; and 

24 (C) support research that— 


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1 (i) tracks, in the short-term and long2 term, the effects of disasters on individuals 

3 with disabilities and older adults; 

4 (ii) identifies evidence-based practices 

5 that enhance inclusion of individuals with 

6 disabilities and older adults to participate 

7 in and lead preparation for disasters at 

8 Federal, State, tribal, and local levels; 

9 (iii) leads to the creation of strategies 

10 and procedures to implement community 

11 level practices that decrease deaths, inju12 ries, and harm resulting from disasters to 

13 individuals with disabilities and older 

14 adults; 

15 (iv) contributes to the protection of 

16 the rights of individuals with disabilities 

17 and older adults to be free from discrimi18 nation on the basis of disability or age in 

19 programs and activities, and self-deter20 mination of those individuals and adults, 

21 while also promoting their safety and well22 being during and following disasters; 

23 (v) contributes to the development of 

24 Federal, State, tribal, and local policies 

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1 mental entities, VOADs, and other non2 governmental entities to improve the inclu3 sion of individuals with disabilities and 

4 older adults in preparation for, response 

5 to, recovery from, and mitigation of disas6 ters; and 

7 (vi) contributes to other efforts, as de8 termined by the Secretary, to advance the 

9 purposes of this section. 

10 (2) AMOUNT, QUANTITY, AND DURATION.—In 

11 awarding grants or entering into contracts or coop12 erative agreements under this section, the Secretary 

13 shall— 

14 (A) to the extent practicable, ensure that 

15 each such grant, contract, or cooperative agree16 ment is for an amount that is not less than 

17 $500,000 and not more than $2,000,000; 

18 (B) award or enter into not less than 4 

19 grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements; 

20 and 

21 (C) ensure that each such grant, contract, 

22 or cooperative agreement is for a period of not 

23 less than 3 years and not more than 5 years. 


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1 SEC. 8. NATIONAL COMMISSION ON DISABILITY AND AGING 

2 RIGHTS AND DISASTERS. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL COMMISSION ON

4 DISABILITY AND AGING RIGHTS AND DISASTERS.—There 

5 is established the National Commission on Disability and 

6 Aging Rights and Disasters (referred to in this section as 

7 the ‘‘Commission’’). 

8 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

9 (1) TOTAL NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—The Com10 mission shall include not more than 36 members. 

11 (2) APPOINTMENT.—The members described in 

12 subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (3) shall 

13 be appointed by the Secretary, after consultation 

14 with the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

15 (3) MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION.—The 

16 Commission members shall include— 

17 (A) 11 members, representing the dis18 ability community and reflecting the diverse 

19 characteristics of its members, who shall— 

20 (i) represent individuals with disabil21 ities with a wide variety of disabilities and 

22 disaster experiences; 

23 (ii) be geographically diverse; 

24 (iii) be ethnically and racially diverse; 

25 (iv) be of diverse ages, and include 

26 older adults; 


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1 (v) represent both genders, and in2 clude members that represent a variety of 

3 sexual orientations and gender identities; 

4 (vi) include veterans; and 

5 (vii) be linguistically diverse; 

6 (B) 1 representative from each of— 

7 (i) a coastal State emergency manage8 ment agency with an employee in a posi9 tion with established duties relating to in10 tegration of individuals with disabilities or 

11 to addressing access and functional needs; 

12 (ii) a noncoastal State emergency 

13 management agency with an employee in a 

14 position described in clause (i); 

15 (iii) a tribal emergency management 

16 agency with an employee in a position de17 scribed in clause (i); 

18 (iv) a territorial emergency manage19 ment agency with an employee in a posi20 tion described in clause (i); 

21 (v) a nongovernmental organization 

22 providing disaster preparedness and re23 sponse services; 

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1 ability inclusive emergency management 

2 experience; 

3 (vii) a local rural disaster manage4 ment entity, which representative has dis5 ability inclusive emergency management 

6 experience; 

7 (viii) a local disability organization 

8 with a cross-disability focus; 

9 (ix) a State disability organization 

10 with a cross-disability focus; 

11 (x) a national disability organization 

12 with a cross-disability focus; 

13 (xi) a national older adults organiza14 tion; 

15 (xii) the Council of the Inspectors 

16 General on Integrity and Efficiency; 

17 (xiii) a low-income housing organiza18 tion, who has expertise in the civil rights 

19 of disaster-affected covered individuals; 

20 and 

21 (xiv) a representative of a legal serv22 ices agency with expertise in the civil 

23 rights of disaster-affected covered individ24 uals; and 


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1 (C) executive branch representatives con2 sisting of— 

3 (i) the Secretary of Homeland Secu4 rity; 

5 (ii) the Secretary of Health and 

6 Human Services; 

7 (iii) the Secretary of Housing and 

8 Urban Development; 

9 (iv) the Administrator of the Federal 

10 Emergency Management Agency; 

11 (v) the Assistant Attorney General for 

12 Civil Rights of the Department of Justice; 

13 (vi) the Chief of the Disability Rights 

14 Section of the Civil Rights Division of the 

15 Department of Justice; 

16 (vii) the Officer for Civil Rights and 

17 Civil Liberties of the Department of 

18 Homeland Security; 

19 (viii) the Assistant Secretary for Pre20 paredness and Response of the Depart21 ment of Health and Human Services; 

22 (ix) the Chairperson of the National 

23 Council on Disability; 


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1 (x) the Chairperson of the Architec2 tural and Transportation Barriers Compli3 ance Board; and 

4 (xi) the Director of the Office of 

5 Emergency Management of the Veterans 

6 Health Administration of the Department 

7 of Veterans Affairs. 

8 (4) TIMING.—The Secretary shall appoint the 

9 members of the Commission described in subpara10 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (3) not later than 

11 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 (5) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT.—A member of 

13 the Commission shall be appointed for the life of the 

14 Commission. Any vacancy in the Commission shall 

15 not affect the powers of the Commission, and shall 

16 be filled in the same manner as the original appoint17 ment. 

18 (c) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

19 members of the Commission shall select a Chairperson and 

20 Vice Chairperson from among the members of the Com21 mission. Both the Chairperson and the Vice Chairperson 

22 shall have extensive disability inclusive disaster manage23 ment experience and at least one shall be an individual 

24 with a disability. 

25 (d) MEETINGS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall meet 

2 at the call of the Chairperson, but not fewer than 12 

3 times before submitting the final report described in 

4 subsection (e)(2). 

5 (2) FIRST MEETING.—Not later than 60 days 

6 after the date on which all members of the Commis7 sion described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of sub8 section (b)(3) have been appointed, the Commission 

9 shall hold the Commission’s first meeting. 

10 (e) DUTIES.— 

11 (1) STUDIES.—The Commission shall— 

12 (A) study— 

13 (i) by conducting a review of, funding 

14 used by Federal agencies for inclusion of 

15 covered individuals in preparation for, re16 sponse to, recovery from, and mitigation 

17 of, disasters; 

18 (ii) by conducting a review of, per19 formance of VOADs and other nongovern20 mental organizations funded to lead pre21 paredness for, response to, recovery from, 

22 and mitigation of, disasters; 

23 (iii) by conducting an analysis of, the 

24 displacement, injuries, and deaths of indi25 viduals with chronic health conditions and 


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1 covered individuals throughout the period 

2 of disaster response and recovery for disas3 ters— 

4 (I) for which 1 or more Federal 

5 agencies used or made available Fed6 eral funds to assist in preparing for, 

7 responding to, recovering from, or 

8 mitigating a disaster; and 

9 (II) that occurred not earlier 

10 than January 2012 and not later than 

11 the date of enactment of this Act; 

12 (iv) by conducting an analysis of, pro13 tections and violations of civil rights of 

14 covered individuals in national, State, trib15 al, territorial, and local disaster prepara16 tion, response, recovery, and mitigation for 

17 the disasters described in clause (iii); 

18 (v) the supports and resources avail19 able to localities from Federal, State, tribal 

20 and territorial disaster response agencies 

21 to ensure inclusion of covered individuals 

22 throughout disaster preparation, response, 

23 recovery, and mitigation; 

24 (vi) the supports and resources avail25 able to localities from Federal and State 


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1 disaster response agencies to ensure that 

2 the civil rights of covered individuals are 

3 protected throughout disaster preparation, 

4 response, recovery, and mitigation; and 

5 (vii) the effectiveness of coordination 

6 among Federal, State, tribal, territorial, 

7 local, and nongovernmental organizations 

8 regarding disaster preparation, response, 

9 recovery, and mitigation for covered indi10 viduals, utilizing an all-hazards approach; 

11 and 

12 (B) study— 

13 (i) the protection of the civil rights of 

14 covered individuals during the preparation 

15 for, recovery from, response to, and mitiga16 tion of disasters; 

17 (ii) the inclusion of covered individ18 uals during Federal, State, tribal, terri19 torial, and local disaster preparedness, re20 sponse, recovery, and mitigation, using an 

21 all-hazards approach; 

22 (iii) whether disaster preparedness, 

23 response, recovery, and mitigation initia24 tives and investments are carried out and 

25 made in compliance with the Americans 


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1 with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

2 12101 et seq.) and the Rehabilitation Act 

3 of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.); 

4 (iv) all community resilience and other 

5 initiatives for which Federal funds were 

6 used or made available by 1 or more Fed7 eral agencies to assist in preparing for, re8 sponding to, recovering from, or mitigating 

9 a disaster, and investments in such initia10 tives, are carried out and made in compli11 ance with the the Americans with Disabil12 ities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation 

13 Act of 1973; 

14 (v) development of standards for re15 building disaster-damaged housing, and 

16 new housing, that is accessible, affordable, 

17 and disaster-resilient; 

18 (vi) development of standards for 

19 homeowners and flood insurance coverage 

20 for rebuilding disaster-damaged housing, 

21 and new housing, that is accessible, afford22 able, and disaster resilient; 

23 (vii) development of standards for uni24 versal design and accessibility standards 

25 for achieving and maintaining equal access 


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1 throughout all disaster mitigation and dis2 aster resilience initiatives; and 

3 (viii) development of initiatives to in4 crease new and transferred technology and 

5 innovations to overcome notification, evac6 uation, health maintenance, and other bar7 riers to health, safety, and independence 

8 for covered individuals before, during, and 

9 after disasters. 

10 (2) REPORTS.— 

11 (A) INTERIM AND FINAL REPORTS.—The 

12 Commission shall prepare and submit to the 

13 Secretary and the committees referred to in 

14 subparagraph (C)— 

15 (i) 2 interim reports that summarize 

16 the progress of the Commission, along with 

17 any interim findings, conclusions, and rec18 ommendations for the Secretary resulting 

19 from the studies described in paragraph 

20 (1); and 

21 (ii) a final report that states final 

22 findings, conclusions, and recommenda23 tions for the Secretary resulting from the 

24 studies described in paragraph (1). 


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1 (B) PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION.—The 

2 reports shall be prepared and submitted— 

3 (i) in the case of the interim reports, 

4 not later than 1 and 2 years after the date 

5 on which the Secretary makes the appoint6 ments required in subsection (b)(4); and 

7 (ii) in the case of the final report, not 

8 later than 3 years after the date on which 

9 the Secretary makes the appointments re10 quired in subsection (b)(4). 

11 (C) COMMITTEES.—The committees re12 ferred to in this subparagraph are the Commit13 tees on Homeland Security and Governmental 

14 Affairs and on Health, Education, Labor, and 

15 Pensions of the Senate and the Committees on 

16 Energy and Commerce, on Transportation and 

17 Infrastructure, and on Education and Labor of 

18 the House of Representatives, and any other 

19 relevant committees of the House of Represent20 atives and Senate with jurisdiction over matters 

21 affecting disaster-affected covered individuals. 

22 (3) PLANS.— 

23 (A) PLAN FOR PREPARATION, RESPONSE, 

24 RECOVERY, AND MITIGATION EFFORTS.—Using 

25 the findings, conclusions, and recommendations 


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1 contained in the Commission reports described 

2 in paragraph (2), the Commission shall create 

3 a plan, with recommended goals, objectives, 

4 timelines, and criteria for each of the Federal 

5 agencies represented by representatives speci6 fied in subsection (b)(3)(C) to ensure individ7 uals with disabilities, older adults, and individ8 uals with access and functional needs are in9 cluded in preparation, response, recovery, and 

10 mitigation efforts by the agencies. 

11 (B) PLAN FOR ADVISORY ENTITY.—Using 

12 the information, findings, and conclusions con13 tained in the Commission reports, the Commis14 sion will create a plan with recommendations to 

15 either continue the Commission or to create an 

16 ongoing new entity— 

17 (i) to advise the Federal agencies rep18 resented by representatives specified in 

19 subsection (b)(3)(C) regarding regulations 

20 and activities to ensure the inclusion of in21 dividuals with disabilities, older adults, and 

22 individuals with access and functional 

23 needs in disaster preparedness, response, 

24 recovery, and mitigation; and 


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1 (ii) to recommend to Congress legisla2 tion to address the needs of individuals 

3 with disabilities, older adults, and individ4 uals with access and functional needs dur5 ing disaster preparedness, response, recov6 ery, and mitigation. 

7 (C) SUBMISSION.—The Commission shall 

8 submit the plans created under subparagraphs 

9 (A) and (B) to the Secretary not later than 3 

10 years after the date on which the Secretary 

11 makes the appointments referred to in sub12 section (b)(4). 

13 (f) POWERS OF COMMISSION.— 

14 (1) HEARINGS.—The Commission may hold 

15 such hearings, sit and act at such times and places, 

16 take such testimony, and receive such evidence as 

17 the Commission considers advisable to carry out this 

18 section. 

19 (2) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may 

21 secure directly from any Federal department or 

22 agency such information as the Commission 

23 considers necessary to carry out this section. 

24 (B) FURNISHING INFORMATION.—On re25 quest of the Chairperson of the Commission, 


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1 the head of the department or agency shall fur2 nish the information to the Commission. 

3 (3) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Commission may 

4 use the United States mails in the same manner and 

5 under the same conditions as other departments and 

6 agencies of the Federal Government. 

7 (g) COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

8 (1) COMPENSATION.— 

9 (A) NONGOVERNMENTAL MEMBERS.— 

10 Each member of the Commission who is not de11 scribed in subparagraph (B) shall receive a sti12 pend of $10,000 for the duration of the period 

13 in which the member is engaged in the perform14 ance of the duties of the Commission. 

15 (B) GOVERNMENTAL MEMBERS.—A mem16 ber of the Commission who is an officer or em17 ployee of the United States shall serve without 

18 compensation in addition to that received for 

19 service as an officer or employee of the United 

20 States. 

21 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

22 Commission shall be allowed travel expenses, includ23 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author24 ized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 

25 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 


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1 away from their home or regular places of business 

2 in the performance of services for the Commission. 

3 (3) STAFF.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

5 designate such personnel as may be necessary 

6 to enable the Commission to perform and con7 clude its duties as described in subsection (e), 

8 including the preparation and submission of re9 ports as described in subsection (e)(2). 

10 (B) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOY11 EES.—Any Federal Government employee may 

12 be detailed to the Commission without reim13 bursement, and such detail shall be without 

14 interruption of loss of civil service status or 

15 privilege. 

16 (4) FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, SUPPLIES, AND

17 SERVICES.—The Secretary shall make available to 

18 the Commission, under such arrangements as may 

19 be appropriate, necessary facilities, equipment, sup20 plies, and services. 

21 (h) TERMINATION.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall termi23 nate on the day after the date on which the Commis24 sion submits the final report. 


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1 (2) RECOMMENDATION.—Not later than 120 

2 days prior to the expected termination of the Com3 mission under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

4 submit to Congress a recommendation, using the in5 formation in the report created by the Commission 

6 under subsection (e)(3)(B), on whether the period in 

7 which Commission exists and carries out its duties 

8 should be extended. 

9 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

10 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

11 $100,000 for fiscal year 2021, and $100,000 for each of 

12 fiscal years 2022 through 2025. 

13 SEC. 9. REVIEW OF SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS RELATED 

14 TO DISASTERS AND INDIVIDUALS WITH DIS15 ABILITIES AND OLDER ADULTS. 

16 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

17 (1) CHIEF OF THE DISABILITY RIGHTS SEC18 TION.—The term ‘‘Chief of the Disability Rights 

19 Section’’ means the Chief of the Disability Rights 

20 Section of the Civil Rights Division of the Depart21 ment of Justice. 

22 (2) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Committee’’ 

23 means the advisory committee established under 

24 subsection (b). 


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1 (3) COVERED COMMITTEE OF CONGRESS.—The 

2 term ‘‘covered committee of Congress’’ means— 

3 (A) the Committee on Health, Education, 

4 Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on 

5 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

6 of the Senate; and 

7 (B) the Committee on Education and 

8 Labor, the Committee on Transportation and 

9 Infrastructure, and the Committee on Energy 

10 and Commerce of the House of Representatives. 

11 (4) COVERED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.—The 

12 term ‘‘covered settlement agreement’’ means a set13 tlement agreement— 

14 (A) entered into by the United States dur15 ing the period beginning on January 1, 2005, 

16 and ending on December 31, 2019; and 

17 (B) that relates to a potential violation of 

18 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 

19 et seq.) or the Americans with Disabilities Act 

20 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) in connec21 tion with the preparation for, response to, re22 covery from, or mitigation of a disaster. 

23 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMITTEE.—There is es24 tablished an advisory committee to review covered settle25 ment agreements. 


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1 (c) MEMBERSHIP.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

3 the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney Gen4 eral shall appoint the members of the Committee, 

5 which shall include— 

6 (A) employees of the Department of Jus7 tice; and 

8 (B) not less than 3 disability rights advo9 cates who— 

10 (i) are not employees of the Federal 

11 Government; 

12 (ii) are individuals with disabilities; 

13 and 

14 (iii) have disability inclusive emer15 gency management experience. 

16 (2) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—A member of the Com18 mittee shall be appointed for the life of the 

19 Commission. 

20 (B) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the 

21 Committee— 

22 (i) shall not affect the powers of the 

23 Committee; and 

24 (ii) shall be filled in the same manner 

25 as the original appointment. 


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1 (3) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.— 

2 The members of the Committee shall elect a Chair3 person and a Vice Chairperson from among the 

4 members, not less than 1 of whom shall be a mem5 ber appointed under paragraph (1)(B). 

6 (4) MEETINGS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall 

8 meet at the call of the Chairperson. 

9 (B) QUORUM.—A majority of the members 

10 of the Committee shall constitute a quorum, but 

11 a lesser number of members may hold hearings. 

12 (d) DUTIES.—The Committee shall— 

13 (1) conduct a review of each covered settlement 

14 agreement; 

15 (2) review annual reports and recommendations 

16 provided to each covered committee of Congress re17 lating to addressing the needs of covered individuals 

18 in the preparation for, response to, recovery from, or 

19 mitigation of a disaster; 

20 (3) not later than 1 year after the date of en21 actment of this Act, submit a report containing the 

22 findings and recommendations of the Committee 

23 to— 

24 (A) each covered committee of Congress; 


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1 (B) any other of Congress with jurisdiction 

2 over matters relating to addressing the needs of 

3 covered individuals in the preparation for, re4 sponse to, recovery from, or mitigation of a dis5 aster; 

6 (C) the Attorney General; 

7 (D) the Secretary of Education; 

8 (E) the Secretary of Homeland Security; 

9 (F) the Secretary of Health and Human 

10 Services; and 

11 (G) the President; and 

12 (4) provide the comments and recommendations 

13 described in section 10(b)(2). 

14 (e) POWERS OF COMMITTEE.— 

15 (1) HEARINGS.—The Committee may hold such 

16 hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take 

17 such testimony, and receive such evidence as the 

18 Committee considers advisable to carry out this sec19 tion. 

20 (2) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee may 

22 secure directly from any Federal department or 

23 agency such information as the Committee con24 siders necessary to carry out this section. 


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1 (B) FURNISHING INFORMATION.—On re2 quest of the Chairperson of the Committee, the 

3 head of the department or agency shall furnish 

4 the information to the Committee. 

5 (C) DISABILITY RIGHTS SECTION.—The 

6 Chief of the Disability Rights Section shall sub7 mit to the Committee a report on the oversight 

8 of covered settlement agreements a sufficient 

9 period of time before the date specified in sub10 section (d)(3) to allow the Committee to review 

11 the report and include the report of the Chief 

12 of the Disability Rights Section in the report of 

13 the Committee under subsection (d)(3). 

14 (3) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Committee may 

15 use the United States mails in the same manner and 

16 under the same conditions as other departments and 

17 agencies of the Federal Government. 

18 (f) COMMITTEE PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

19 (1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—A member of the Com21 mittee who is not an officer or employee of the 

22 Federal Government shall be compensated at a 

23 rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual 

24 rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV of the 

25 Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 


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1 5, United States Code, for each day (including 

2 travel time) during which the member is en3 gaged in the performance of the duties of the 

4 Committee. 

5 (B) FEDERAL MEMBERS.—A member of 

6 the Committee who is an officer or employee of 

7 the United States shall serve without compensa8 tion in addition to that received for service as 

9 an officer or employee of the United States. 

10 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

11 Committee shall be allowed travel expenses, includ12 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author13 ized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 

14 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 

15 away from their home or regular places of business 

16 in the performance of services for the Committee. 

17 (3) STAFF.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Chairperson of the 

19 Committee may, without regard to the civil 

20 service laws (including regulations), appoint 

21 and terminate an executive director and such 

22 other additional personnel as may be necessary 

23 to enable the Committee to perform the duties 

24 of the Committee, except that the employment 


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1 of an executive director shall be subject to con2 firmation by the Committee. 

3 (B) COMPENSATION.—The Chairperson of 

4 the Committee may fix the compensation of the 

5 executive director and other personnel without 

6 regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of 

7 chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, relat8 ing to classification of positions and General 

9 Schedule pay rates, except that the rate of pay 

10 for the executive director and other personnel 

11 may not exceed the rate payable for level V of 

12 the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of 

13 that title. 

14 (4) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.— 

15 Any Federal Government employee may be detailed 

16 to the Committee without reimbursement, and such 

17 detail shall be without interruption or loss of civil 

18 service status or privilege. 

19 (5) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTER20 MITTENT SERVICES.—The Chairperson of the Com21 mittee may procure temporary and intermittent serv22 ices under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States 

23 Code, at rates for individuals which do not exceed 

24 the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay 


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1 prescribed for level V of the Executive Schedule 

2 under section 5316 of that title. 

3 (g) TERMINATION OF COMMITTEE.—The Committee 

4 shall terminate 90 days after the date on which the Com5 mittee submits the report required under subsection 

6 (d)(3). 

7 (h) REPORTS BY DISABILITY RIGHTS SECTION.—On 

8 and after the date on which the Committee submits the 

9 report required under subsection (d)(3), the Chief of the 

10 Disability Rights Section shall publish an annual report 

11 on the oversight of settlement agreements relating to dis12 aster preparation, response, recovery, and mitigation ac13 tivities. 

14 SEC. 10. GAO REPORT ON PAST USE OF DISASTER FUNDS. 

15 (a) INVESTIGATION.—Not later than 60 days after 

16 the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

17 of the United States shall begin to conduct an investiga18 tion of whether, on or after January 1, 2005, Federal 

19 agencies have complied with the Americans with Disabil20 ities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), and the Reha21 bilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.), in expend22 ing Federal funds to prepare for, respond to, recover from, 

23 or mitigate disasters, including whether and, if so, how 

24 such funds were used to ensure accessibility to services 


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1 and supports for individuals with disabilities and older 

2 adults. 

3 (b) REPORT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

5 the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller 

6 General shall, in accordance with paragraph (2), 

7 issue a report on the investigation conducted under 

8 subsection (a). 

9 (2) REVIEW.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Prior to issuing the re11 port under paragraph (1), the Comptroller Gen12 eral shall obtain comments and recommenda13 tions on a draft version of the report, including 

14 the recommendations described in subparagraph 

15 (B), from the National Commission on Dis16 ability and Aging Rights and Disasters estab17 lished under section 8 (referred to in this para18 graph as the ‘‘Commission’’), and any other 

19 agency determined appropriate by the Sec20 retary. 

21 (B) COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS ON

22 ADDITIONAL SOURCES.—The recommendations 

23 obtained under subparagraph (A) shall include 

24 recommendations from the Commission regard25 ing additional sources the Comptroller General 


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1 may interview for purposes of the investigation 

2 under subsection (a). 

Æ 


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