IIB 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2903 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2012 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs 

AN ACT 

To reauthorize the programs and activities of the Federal 

Emergency Management Agency. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘FEMA Reauthorization Act of 2012’’. 

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

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 

TITLE I—REAUTHORIZATION OF FEMA AND MODERNIZATION OF 

INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYSTEM 

Sec. 101. Reauthorization of Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

Sec. 102. Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Modernization. 

TITLE II—STAFFORD ACT AND OTHER PROGRAMS 

Sec. 201. Reauthorization of urban search and rescue response system. 

Sec. 202. Reauthorization of emergency management assistance compact 

grants. 

Sec. 203. Disposal of excess property to assist other disaster survivors. 

Sec. 204. Storage, sale, transfer, and disposal of housing units. 

Sec. 205. Other methods of disposal. 

Sec. 206. Establishment of criteria relating to administration of hazard mitigation assistance by States. 

Sec. 207. Review of regulations and policies. 

Sec. 208. Appeals process. 

Sec. 209. Implementation of cost estimating. 

Sec. 210. Tribal requests for a major disaster or emergency declaration under 

the Stafford Act. 

Sec. 211. Individual assistance factors. 

Sec. 212. Public assistance pilot program. 

Sec. 213. Public assistance debris removal procedures. 

Sec. 214. Use of funds. 

Sec. 215. Reduction of authorization for emergency management performance 

grants. 

Sec. 216. Technical correction. 

Sec. 217. National Dam Safety Program Act reauthorization. 


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1 TITLE I—REAUTHORIZATION OF 

2 FEMA AND MODERNIZATION 

3 OF INTEGRATED PUBLIC 

4 ALERT AND WARNING SYS5 TEM 

6 SEC. 101. REAUTHORIZATION OF FEDERAL EMERGENCY 

7 MANAGEMENT AGENCY. 

8 Section 699 of the Post-Katrina Emergency Manage9 ment Reform Act of 2006 (6 U.S.C. 811) is amended to 

10 read as follows: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 699. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

12 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

13 this title and the amendments made by this title for the 

14 salaries and expenses of the Agency— 

15 ‘‘(1) for fiscal year 2012, $1,031,378,000, in16 cluding amounts transferred from grant programs; 

17 ‘‘(2) for fiscal year 2013, $1,031,378,000, in18 cluding amounts transferred from grant programs; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(3) for fiscal year 2014, $1,031,378,000, in21 cluding amounts transferred from grant programs.’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYS2 TEM MODERNIZATION. 

3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 

4 ‘‘Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Moderniza5 tion Act of 2012’’. 

6 (b) INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYS7 TEM MODERNIZATION.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—To provide timely and effec9 tive disaster warnings under this section, the Presi10 dent, acting through the Administrator of the Fed11 eral Emergency Management Agency, shall— 

12 (A) modernize the integrated public alert 

13 and warning system of the United States (in 

14 this section referred to as the ‘‘public alert and 

15 warning system’’) to ensure that the President 

16 under all conditions is able to alert and warn 

17 governmental authorities and the civilian popu18 lation in areas endangered by disasters; and 

19 (B) implement the public alert and warn20 ing system. 

21 (2) IMPLEMENTATION REQUIREMENTS.—In car22 rying out paragraph (1), the Administrator shall, 

23 consistent with the recommendations in the final re24 port of the Integrated Public Alert and Warning 

25 System Advisory Committee (established under sub26 section (c))— 


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1 (A) establish or adopt, as appropriate, 

2 common alerting and warning protocols, stand3 ards, terminology, and operating procedures for 

4 the public alert and warning system; 

5 (B) include in the public alert and warning 

6 system the capability to adapt the distribution 

7 and content of communications on the basis of 

8 geographic location, risks, or personal user 

9 preferences, as appropriate; 

10 (C) include in the public alert and warning 

11 system the capability to alert and warn, and 

12 provide the equivalent amount of information to 

13 individuals with disabilities and individuals with 

14 access and functional needs; 

15 (D) ensure that training, tests, and exer16 cises are conducted for the public alert and 

17 warning system and that the system is incor18 porated into other training and exercise pro19 grams of the Department of Homeland Secu20 rity, as appropriate; 

21 (E) establish and integrate into the Na22 tional Incident Management System a com23 prehensive and periodic training program to in24 struct and educate Federal, State, Tribal, and 

25 local government officials in the use of the 


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1 Common Alerting Protocol enabled Emergency 

2 Alert System; 

3 (F) conduct, at least once every 3 years, 

4 periodic nationwide tests of the public alert and 

5 warning system; and 

6 (G) ensure that the public alert and warn7 ing system is resilient, secure, and can with8 stand acts of terrorism and other external at9 tacks. 

10 (3) SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS.—The public alert 

11 and warning system shall— 

12 (A) incorporate multiple communications 

13 technologies; 

14 (B) be designed to adapt to, and incor15 porate, future technologies for communicating 

16 directly with the public; 

17 (C) to the extent technically feasible, be 

18 designed to provide alerts to the largest portion 

19 of the affected population, including non20 resident visitors and tourists and individuals 

21 with disabilities and access and functional 

22 needs, and improve the ability of remote areas 

23 to receive alerts; 


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1 (D) promote local and regional public and 

2 private partnerships to enhance community pre3 paredness and response; 

4 (E) provide redundant alert mechanisms if 

5 practicable so as to reach the greatest number 

6 of people regardless of whether they have access 

7 to, or utilize, any specific medium of commu8 nication or any particular device; and 

9 (F) include a mechanism to ensure the 

10 protection of individual privacy. 

11 (4) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Not later than 

12 180 days after the date of submission of the report 

13 of the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System 

14 Advisory Committee, the Administrator shall submit 

15 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc16 ture and the Committee on Homeland Security of 

17 the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

18 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 

19 Senate a detailed plan to implement the public alert 

20 and warning system. The plan shall include a 

21 timeline for implementation, a spending plan, and 

22 recommendations for any additional authority that 

23 may be necessary to fully implement this subsection. 

24 (5) MAXIMUM FUNDS.—The Administrator may 

25 use not more than $13,287,000 of the amount made 


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1 available pursuant to section 699 of the Post2 Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 

3 2006 (6 U.S.C. 811) for each of fiscal years 2012, 

4 2013, and 2014 to carry out the provisions of this 

5 section. 

6 (c) INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYS7 TEM ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 

8 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days 

9 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis10 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agen11 cy shall establish an advisory committee to be known 

12 as the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System 

13 Advisory Committee (in this subsection referred to 

14 as the ‘‘Advisory Committee’’). 

15 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Committee 

16 shall be composed of the following members (or their 

17 designees) to be appointed by the Administrator as 

18 soon as practicable after the date of enactment of 

19 this Act: 

20 (A) The Chairman of the Federal Commu21 nications Commission. 

22 (B) The Administrator of the National 

23 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the 

24 Department of Commerce. 


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1 (C) The Assistant Secretary for Commu2 nications and Information of the Department of 

3 Commerce. 

4 (D) Representatives of State and local gov5 ernments, representatives of emergency man6 agement agencies, and representatives of emer7 gency response providers, selected from among 

8 individuals nominated by national organizations 

9 representing governments and personnel. 

10 (E) Representatives from federally recog11 nized Indian tribes and national Indian organi12 zations. 

13 (F) Individuals who have the requisite 

14 technical knowledge and expertise to serve on 

15 the Advisory Committee, including representa16 tives of— 

17 (i) communications service providers; 

18 (ii) vendors, developers, and manufac19 turers of systems, facilities, equipment, 

20 and capabilities for the provision of com21 munications services; 

22 (iii) third-party service bureaus; 

23 (iv) the broadcasting industry; 

24 (v) the national organization rep25 resenting the licensees and permittees of 


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1 noncommercial broadcast television sta2 tions; 

3 (vi) the cellular industry; 

4 (vii) the cable industry; 

5 (viii) the satellite industry; and 

6 (ix) national organizations rep7 resenting individuals with disabilities and 

8 access and functional needs and national 

9 organizations representing the elderly. 

10 (G) Qualified representatives of such other 

11 stakeholders and interested and affected parties 

12 as the Administrator considers appropriate. 

13 (3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Administrator shall 

14 serve as the Chairperson of the Advisory Committee. 

15 (4) MEETINGS.— 

16 (A) INITIAL MEETING.—The initial meet17 ing of the Advisory Committee shall take place 

18 not later than 120 days after the date of enact19 ment of this Act. 

20 (B) OTHER MEETINGS.—After the initial 

21 meeting, the Advisory Committee shall meet at 

22 the call of the Chairperson. 

23 (C) NOTICE; OPEN MEETINGS.—Meetings 

24 held by the Advisory Committee shall be duly 


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1 noticed at least 14 days in advance and shall be 

2 open to the public. 

3 (5) RULES.— 

4 (A) QUORUM.—One-third of the members 

5 of the Advisory Committee shall constitute a 

6 quorum for conducting business of the Advisory 

7 Committee. 

8 (B) SUBCOMMITTEES.—To assist the Advi9 sory Committee in carrying out its functions, 

10 the Chairperson may establish appropriate sub11 committees composed of members of the Advi12 sory Committee and other subject matter ex13 perts as the Chairperson considers necessary. 

14 (C) ADDITIONAL RULES.—The Advisory 

15 Committee may adopt such other rules as are 

16 necessary to carry out its duties. 

17 (6) CONSULTATION WITH NONMEMBERS.—The 

18 Advisory Committee and the program offices for the 

19 integrated public alert and warning system for the 

20 United States shall regularly meet with groups that 

21 are not represented on the Advisory Committee to 

22 consider new and developing technologies that may 

23 be beneficial to the public alert and warning system. 

24 Such groups may include— 


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1 (A) the Defense Advanced Research 

2 Projects Agency; 

3 (B) entities engaged in federally funded re4 search; and 

5 (C) academic institutions engaged in rel6 evant work and research. 

7 (7) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Advisory Com8 mittee shall develop recommendations for an inte9 grated public alert and warning system, including— 

10 (A) recommendations for common alerting 

11 and warning protocols, standards, terminology, 

12 and operating procedures for the public alert 

13 and warning system; and 

14 (B) recommendations to provide for a pub15 lic alert and warning system that— 

16 (i) has the capability to adapt the dis17 tribution and content of communications 

18 on the basis of geographic location, risks, 

19 or personal user preferences, as appro20 priate; 

21 (ii) has the capability to alert and 

22 warn individuals with disabilities and indi23 viduals with limited English proficiency; 

24 (iii) incorporates multiple communica25 tions technologies; 


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1 (iv) is designed to adapt to, and incor2 porate, future technologies for commu3 nicating directly with the public; 

4 (v) is designed to provide alerts to the 

5 largest portion of the affected population 

6 feasible, including nonresident visitors and 

7 tourists, and improve the ability of remote 

8 areas to receive alerts; 

9 (vi) promotes local and regional public 

10 and private partnerships to enhance com11 munity preparedness and response; and 

12 (vii) provides redundant alert mecha13 nisms if practicable in order to reach the 

14 greatest number of people regardless of 

15 whether they have access to, or utilize, any 

16 specific medium of communication or any 

17 particular device. 

18 (8) INITIAL AND ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later 

19 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

20 the Advisory Committee shall submit to the Admin21 istrator, the Committee on Transportation and In22 frastructure and the Committee on Homeland Secu23 rity of the House of Representatives, and the Com24 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental AfVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:53 Sep 21, 2012 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.RFS H2903

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1 fairs of the Senate a report containing the rec2 ommendations of the Advisory Committee. 

3 (9) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT.— 

4 Neither the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

5 U.S.C. App.) nor any rule, order, or regulation pro6 mulgated under that Act shall apply to the Advisory 

7 Committee. 

8 (10) TERMINATION.—The Advisory Committee 

9 shall terminate not later than 3 years after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act. 

11 (d) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

12 Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the 

13 authority of the Department of Commerce or the Federal 

14 Communications Commission. 

15 TITLE II—STAFFORD ACT AND 

16 OTHER PROGRAMS 

17 SEC. 201. REAUTHORIZATION OF URBAN SEARCH AND RES18 CUE RESPONSE SYSTEM. 

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

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

21 5141 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 327. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RE2 SPONSE SYSTEM. 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following 

4 definitions apply: 

5 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis6 trator’ means the Administrator of the Federal 

7 Emergency Management Agency. 

8 ‘‘(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘Agency’ means the 

9 Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

10 ‘‘(3) HAZARD.—The term ‘hazard’ has the 

11 meaning given that term by section 602. 

12 ‘‘(4) NON-EMPLOYEE SYSTEM MEMBER.—The 

13 term ‘non-employee System member’ means a Sys14 tem member not employed by a sponsoring agency 

15 or participating agency. 

16 ‘‘(5) PARTICIPATING AGENCY.—The term ‘par17 ticipating agency’ means a State or local govern18 ment, nonprofit organization, or private organization 

19 that has executed an agreement with a sponsoring 

20 agency to participate in the System. 

21 ‘‘(6) SPONSORING AGENCY.—The term ‘spon22 soring agency’ means a State or local government 

23 that is the sponsor of a task force designated by the 

24 Administrator to participate in the System. 


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1 ‘‘(7) SYSTEM.—The term ‘System’ means the 

2 National Urban Search and Rescue Response Sys3 tem to be administered under this section. 

4 ‘‘(8) SYSTEM MEMBER.—The term ‘System 

5 member’ means an individual who is not a full-time 

6 employee of the Federal Government and who serves 

7 on a task force or on a System management or other 

8 technical team. 

9 ‘‘(9) TASK FORCE.—The term ‘task force’ 

10 means an urban search and rescue team designated 

11 by the Administrator to participate in the System. 

12 ‘‘(b) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Subject to the require13 ments of this section, the Administrator shall continue to 

14 administer the emergency response system known as the 

15 National Urban Search and Rescue Response System. 

16 ‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—In administering the System, the 

17 Administrator shall provide for a national network of 

18 standardized search and rescue resources to assist States 

19 and local governments in responding to hazards. 

20 ‘‘(d) TASK FORCES.— 

21 ‘‘(1) DESIGNATION.—The Administrator shall 

22 designate task forces to participate in the System. 

23 The Administrator shall determine the criteria for 

24 such participation. 


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1 ‘‘(2) SPONSORING AGENCIES.—Each task force 

2 shall have a sponsoring agency. The Administrator 

3 shall enter into an agreement with the sponsoring 

4 agency with respect to the participation of each task 

5 force in the System. 

6 ‘‘(3) COMPOSITION.— 

7 ‘‘(A) PARTICIPATING AGENCIES.—A task 

8 force may include, at the discretion of the spon9 soring agency, 1 or more participating agencies. 

10 The sponsoring agency shall enter into an 

11 agreement with each participating agency of the 

12 task force with respect to the participation of 

13 the participating agency on the task force. 

14 ‘‘(B) OTHER INDIVIDUALS.—A task force 

15 may also include, at the discretion of the spon16 soring agency, other individuals not otherwise 

17 associated with the sponsoring agency or a par18 ticipating agency of the task force. The spon19 soring agency of a task force may enter into a 

20 separate agreement with each such individual 

21 with respect to the participation of the indi22 vidual on the task force. 

23 ‘‘(e) MANAGEMENT AND TECHNICAL TEAMS.—The 

24 Administrator shall maintain such management teams and 


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1 other technical teams as the Administrator determines are 

2 necessary to administer the System. 

3 ‘‘(f) APPOINTMENT OF SYSTEM MEMBERS INTO

4 FEDERAL SERVICE.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may ap6 point a System member into Federal service for a 

7 period of service to provide for the participation of 

8 the System member in exercises, preincident staging, 

9 major disaster and emergency response activities, 

10 and training events sponsored or sanctioned by the 

11 Administrator. 

12 ‘‘(2) NONAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL

13 SERVICE LAWS.—The Administrator may make ap14 pointments under paragraph (1) without regard to 

15 the provisions of title 5, United States Code, gov16 erning appointments in the competitive service. 

17 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER AUTHORI18 TIES.—The authority of the Administrator to make 

19 appointments under this subsection shall not affect 

20 any other authority of the Administrator under this 

21 Act. 

22 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—A System member who is 

23 appointed into Federal service under paragraph (1) 

24 shall not be considered an employee of the United 


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1 States for purposes other than those specifically set 

2 forth in this section. 

3 ‘‘(g) COMPENSATION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) PAY OF SYSTEM MEMBERS.—Subject to 

5 such terms and conditions as the Administrator may 

6 impose by regulation, the Administrator shall make 

7 payments to the sponsoring agency of a task force— 

8 ‘‘(A) to reimburse each employer of a Sys9 tem member on the task force for compensation 

10 paid by the employer to the System member for 

11 any period during which the System member is 

12 appointed into Federal service under subsection 

13 (f)(1); and 

14 ‘‘(B) to make payments directly to a non15 employee System member on the task force for 

16 any period during which the non-employee Sys17 tem member is appointed into Federal service 

18 under subsection (f)(1). 

19 ‘‘(2) REIMBURSEMENT FOR EMPLOYEES FILL20 ING POSITIONS OF SYSTEM MEMBERS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to such terms 

22 and conditions as the Administrator may im23 pose by regulation, the Administrator shall 

24 make payments to the sponsoring agency of a 

25 task force to reimburse each employer of a SysVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:53 Sep 21, 2012 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.RFS H2903

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1 tem member on the task force for compensation 

2 paid by the employer to an employee filling a 

3 position normally filled by the System member 

4 for any period during which the System mem5 ber is appointed into Federal service under sub6 section (f)(1). 

7 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—Costs incurred by an 

8 employer shall be eligible for reimbursement 

9 under subparagraph (A) only to the extent that 

10 the costs are in excess of the costs that would 

11 have been incurred by the employer had the 

12 System member not been appointed into Fed13 eral service under subsection (f)(1). 

14 ‘‘(3) METHOD OF PAYMENT.—A System mem15 ber shall not be entitled to pay directly from the 

16 Agency for a period during which the System mem17 ber is appointed into Federal service under sub18 section (f)(1). 

19 ‘‘(h) PERSONAL INJURY, ILLNESS, DISABILITY, OR

20 DEATH.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A System member who is 

22 appointed into Federal service under subsection 

23 (f)(1) and who suffers personal injury, illness, dis24 ability, or death as a result of a personal injury sus25 tained while acting in the scope of such appointment 


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1 shall, for the purposes of subchapter I of chapter 81 

2 of title 5, United States Code, be treated as though 

3 the member were an employee (as defined by section 

4 8101 of that title) who had sustained the injury in 

5 the performance of duty. 

6 ‘‘(2) ELECTION OF BENEFITS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a System member 

8 (or, in the case of the death of the System 

9 member, the System member’s dependent) is 

10 entitled— 

11 ‘‘(i) under paragraph (1) to receive 

12 benefits under subchapter I of chapter 81 

13 of title 5, United States Code, by reason of 

14 personal injury, illness, disability, or death, 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(ii) to receive benefits from a State 

17 or local government by reason of the same 

18 personal injury, illness, disability, or death, 

19 the System member or dependent shall elect to 

20 receive either the benefits referred to in clause 

21 (i) or (ii). 

22 ‘‘(B) DEADLINE.—A System member or 

23 dependent shall make an election of benefits 

24 under subparagraph (A) not later than 1 year 

25 after the date of the personal injury, illness, 


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1 disability, or death that is the reason for the 

2 benefits or until such later date as the Sec3 retary of Labor may allow for reasonable cause 

4 shown. 

5 ‘‘(C) EFFECT OF ELECTION.—An election 

6 of benefits made under this paragraph is irrev7 ocable unless otherwise provided by law. 

8 ‘‘(3) REIMBURSEMENT FOR STATE OR LOCAL

9 BENEFITS.—Subject to such terms and conditions as 

10 the Administrator may impose by regulation, in the 

11 event that a System member or dependent elects 

12 benefits from a State or local government under 

13 paragraph (2)(A), the Administrator shall reimburse 

14 the State or local government for the value of those 

15 benefits. 

16 ‘‘(i) LIABILITY.—A System member appointed into 

17 Federal service under subsection (f)(1), while acting with18 in the scope of the appointment, is deemed an employee 

19 of the Government under section 1346(b) of title 28, 

20 United States Code, and chapter 171 of that title, relating 

21 to tort claims procedure. 

22 ‘‘(j) EMPLOYMENT AND REEMPLOYMENT RIGHTS.— 

23 With respect to a System member who is not a regular 

24 full-time employee of a sponsoring agency or participating 

25 agency, the following terms and conditions apply: 


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1 ‘‘(1) Service as a System member is deemed 

2 ‘service in the uniformed services’ for purposes of 

3 chapter 43 of title 38, United States Code, relating 

4 to employment and reemployment rights of individ5 uals who have performed service in the uniformed 

6 services (regardless of whether the individual re7 ceives compensation for such participation). All 

8 rights and obligations of such persons and proce9 dures for assistance, enforcement, and investigation 

10 shall be as provided for in such chapter. 

11 ‘‘(2) Preclusion of giving notice of service by 

12 necessity of appointment under this section is 

13 deemed preclusion by ‘military necessity’ for pur14 poses of section 4312(b) of title 38, United States 

15 Code, pertaining to giving notice of absence from a 

16 position of employment. A determination of such ne17 cessity shall be made by the Administrator and shall 

18 not be subject to judicial review. 

19 ‘‘(k) LICENSES AND PERMITS.—If a System member 

20 holds a valid license, certificate, or other permit issued by 

21 any State or other governmental jurisdiction evidencing 

22 the member’s qualifications in any professional, mechan23 ical, or other skill or type of assistance required by the 

24 System, the System member is deemed to be performing 

25 a Federal activity when rendering aid involving such skill 


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1 or assistance during a period of appointment into Federal 

2 service under subsection (f)(1). 

3 ‘‘(l) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall es5 tablish and maintain an advisory committee to pro6 vide expert recommendations to the Administrator in 

7 order to assist the Administrator in administering 

8 the System. 

9 ‘‘(2) COMPOSITION.—The advisory committee 

10 shall be composed of members from geographically 

11 diverse areas, and shall include— 

12 ‘‘(A) the chief officer or senior executive 

13 from at least three sponsoring agencies; 

14 ‘‘(B) the senior emergency manager from 

15 at least two States that include sponsoring 

16 agencies; and 

17 ‘‘(C) at least one representative rec18 ommended by the leaders of the task forces. 

19 ‘‘(3) INAPPLICABILITY OF TERMINATION RE20 QUIREMENT.—Section 14(a)(2) of the Federal Advi21 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply 

22 to the advisory committee under this subsection. 

23 ‘‘(m) PREPAREDNESS COOPERATIVE AGREE24 MENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability 

2 of appropriations for such purpose, the Adminis3 trator shall enter into an annual preparedness coop4 erative agreement with each sponsoring agency. 

5 Amounts made available to a sponsoring agency 

6 under such a preparedness cooperative agreement 

7 shall be for the following purposes: 

8 ‘‘(A) Training and exercises, including 

9 training and exercises with other Federal, 

10 State, and local government response entities. 

11 ‘‘(B) Acquisition and maintenance of 

12 equipment, including interoperable communica13 tions and personal protective equipment. 

14 ‘‘(C) Medical monitoring required for re15 sponder safety and health in anticipation of and 

16 following a major disaster, emergency, or other 

17 hazard, as determined by the Administrator. 

18 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Not19 withstanding section 1552(b) of title 31, United 

20 States Code, amounts made available for cooperative 

21 agreements under this subsection that are not ex22 pended shall be deposited in an Agency account and 

23 shall remain available for such agreements without 

24 fiscal year limitation. 


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1 ‘‘(n) RESPONSE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The 

2 Administrator shall enter into a response cooperative 

3 agreement with each sponsoring agency, as appropriate, 

4 under which the Administrator agrees to reimburse the 

5 sponsoring agency for costs incurred by the sponsoring 

6 agency in responding to a major disaster or emergency. 

7 ‘‘(o) OBLIGATIONS.—The Administrator may incur 

8 all necessary obligations consistent with this section in 

9 order to ensure the effectiveness of the System. 

10 ‘‘(p) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

12 appropriated to carry out the System and the provi13 sions of this section $35,250,000 for each of fiscal 

14 years 2012, 2013, and 2014. 

15 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—The Ad16 ministrator may use not to exceed 6 percent of the 

17 funds appropriated for a fiscal year pursuant to 

18 paragraph (1) for salaries, expenses, and other ad19 ministrative costs incurred by the Administrator in 

20 carrying out this section.’’. 

21 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

22 (1) APPLICABILITY OF TITLE 5, UNITED

23 STATES CODE.—Section 8101(1) of title 5, United 

24 States Code, is amended— 


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1 (A) in subparagraph (D) by striking ‘‘and’’ 

2 at the end; 

3 (B) by moving subparagraph (F) to appear 

4 after subparagraph (E); 

5 (C) in subparagraph (F)— 

6 (i) by striking ‘‘United States Code,’’; 

7 and 

8 (ii) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 

9 (D) by inserting after subparagraph (F) 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘(G) an individual who is a System mem12 ber of the National Urban Search and Rescue 

13 Response System during a period of appoint14 ment into Federal service pursuant to section 

15 327 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

16 and Emergency Assistance Act;’’. 

17 (2) INCLUSION AS PART OF UNIFORMED SERV18 ICES FOR PURPOSES OF USERRA.—Section 4303 of 

19 title 38, United States Code, is amended— 

20 (A) in paragraph (13) by inserting ‘‘, a pe21 riod for which a System member of the Na22 tional Urban Search and Rescue Response Sys23 tem is absent from a position of employment 

24 due to an appointment into Federal service 

25 under section 327 of the Robert T. Stafford 


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1 Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act’’ 

2 before ‘‘, and a period’’; and 

3 (B) in paragraph (16) by inserting after 

4 ‘‘Public Health Service,’’ the following: ‘‘System 

5 members of the National Urban Search and 

6 Rescue Response System during a period of ap7 pointment into Federal service under section 

8 327 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

9 and Emergency Assistance Act,’’. 

10 SEC. 202. REAUTHORIZATION OF EMERGENCY MANAGE11 MENT ASSISTANCE COMPACT GRANTS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title VI of the Rob13 ert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 

14 Act (42 U.S.C. 5196 et seq.) is amended by adding at 

15 the end the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 617. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE COM17 PACT GRANTS. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Fed19 eral Emergency Management Agency may make grants to 

20 provide for implementation of the Emergency Manage21 ment Assistance Compact consented to by Congress in the 

22 joint resolution entitled ‘Joint resolution granting the con23 sent of Congress to the Emergency Management Assist24 ance Compact’ (Public Law 104–321; 110 Stat. 3877). 


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1 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE GRANT RECIPIENTS.—States and the 

2 Administrator of the Emergency Management Assistance 

3 Compact shall be eligible to receive grants under sub4 section (a). 

5 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—A grant received under this 

6 section shall be used— 

7 ‘‘(1) to carry out recommendations identified in 

8 the Emergency Management Assistance Compact 

9 after-action reports for the 2004 and 2005 hurricane 

10 seasons; 

11 ‘‘(2) to administer compact operations on behalf 

12 of States, as such term is defined in the compact, 

13 that have enacted the compact; 

14 ‘‘(3) to continue coordination with the Federal 

15 Emergency Management Agency and appropriate 

16 Federal agencies; 

17 ‘‘(4) to continue coordination with States and 

18 local governments and their respective national orga19 nizations; and 

20 ‘‘(5) to assist State and local governments, 

21 emergency response providers, and organizations 

22 representing such providers with credentialing the 

23 providers and the typing of emergency response re24 sources. 


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1 ‘‘(d) COORDINATION.—The Administrator of the 

2 Federal Emergency Management Agency shall consult 

3 with the Administrator of the Emergency Management 

4 Assistance Compact to ensure effective coordination of ef5 forts in responding to requests for assistance. 

6 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

7 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

8 $2,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2012, 2013, and 

9 2014. Such sums shall remain available until expended.’’. 

10 (b) REPEAL.—Section 661 of the Post-Katrina 

11 Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (6 U.S.C. 

12 761) is repealed. 

13 SEC. 203. DISPOSAL OF EXCESS PROPERTY TO ASSIST 

14 OTHER DISASTER SURVIVORS. 

15 Title III of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

16 and Emergency Assistance Act as amended by this Act 

17 is further amended by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 328. DISPOSAL OF EXCESS MATERIALS, SUPPLIES, 

19 AND EQUIPMENT. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro21 vision of law, if the President determines that materials, 

22 supplies, or equipment acquired by the President pursuant 

23 to title IV or V for response or recovery efforts in connec24 tion with a major disaster or emergency are in excess of 

25 the amount needed for those efforts, the President may 


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1 transfer the excess materials, supplies, or equipment di2 rectly to a State, local government, or relief or disaster 

3 assistance organization for the purpose of— 

4 ‘‘(1) assisting disaster survivors in other major 

5 disasters and emergencies; and 

6 ‘‘(2) assisting survivors in incidents caused by 

7 a hazard that do not result in a declaration of a 

8 major disaster or emergency if the Governor of the 

9 affected State certifies that— 

10 ‘‘(A) there is an urgent need for the mate11 rials, supplies, or equipment; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the State is unable to provide the ma13 terials, supplies, or equipment in a timely man14 ner. 

15 ‘‘(b) HAZARD DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

16 ‘hazard’ has the meaning given that term by section 

17 602.’’. 

18 SEC. 204. STORAGE, SALE, TRANSFER, AND DISPOSAL OF 

19 HOUSING UNITS. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi21 nitions apply: 

22 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis23 trator’’ means the Administrator of FEMA. 

24 (2) EMERGENCY; MAJOR DISASTER.—The terms 

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1 ings given such terms in section 102 of the Stafford 

2 Act (42 U.S.C. 5122). 

3 (3) FEMA.—The term ‘‘FEMA’’ means the 

4 Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

5 (4) HAZARD.—The term ‘‘hazard’’ has the 

6 meaning given such term in section 602 of the Staf7 ford Act (42 U.S.C. 5195a). 

8 (5) STAFFORD ACT.—The term ‘‘Stafford Act’’ 

9 means the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 

10 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). 

11 (b) NEEDS ASSESSMENT; ESTABLISHMENT OF CRI12 TERIA.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enact13 ment of this Act, the Administrator shall complete an as14 sessment to determine the number of temporary housing 

15 units that FEMA needs to maintain in stock to respond 

16 appropriately to emergencies or major disasters occurring 

17 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

18 (c) PLAN.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis21 trator shall establish a plan and guidelines for— 

22 (A) storing the number of temporary hous23 ing units that FEMA needs to maintain in 

24 stock, as determined by the Administrator 

25 under subsection (b); and 


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1 (B) selling, transferring, donating, or oth2 erwise disposing of the temporary housing units 

3 in the inventory of FEMA that are in excess of 

4 the number of temporary housing units that 

5 FEMA needs to maintain in stock, as deter6 mined by the Administrator under subsection 

7 (b). 

8 (2) REPORT.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

10 days after the date of enactment of this Act 

11 and annually thereafter, the Administrator shall 

12 submit to the Committee on Transportation and 

13 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 

14 and the Committee on Homeland Security and 

15 Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on 

16 the actions that the Administrator has taken to 

17 establish and implement the plan and guidelines 

18 established under paragraph (1). 

19 (B) REQUIRED INFORMATION.—In each 

20 report submitted under subparagraph (A), the 

21 Administrator shall document the number of 

22 temporary housing units remaining in the in23 ventory of FEMA and the number of units sold, 

24 transferred, donated, and otherwise disposed of 

25 pursuant to this section. 


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1 (3) UPDATE.—The Administrator shall update 

2 the plan established under paragraph (1) as nec3 essary to ensure that the Administrator maintains in 

4 the inventory of FEMA only those temporary hous5 ing units that are needed to respond appropriately 

6 to emergencies or major disasters. 

7 (d) TRANSFER OF TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS TO

8 STATES.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

10 408(d)(2) of the Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. 

11 5174(d)(2)), and subject to the requirements of 

12 paragraph (2), the Administrator may transfer or 

13 donate to States, on a priority basis, pursuant to 

14 subsection (c)(1)(B), excess temporary housing units 

15 in the inventory of FEMA. 

16 (2) STATE REQUESTS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

18 days after the date of enactment of this Act, a 

19 State may submit to the Administrator a re20 quest to receive excess temporary housing units 

21 under paragraph (1). 

22 (B) ELIGIBILITY.—A State shall be eligible 

23 to receive excess temporary housing units under 

24 paragraph (1) if the State agrees— 


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1 (i) to use the units to provide tem2 porary housing to survivors of incidents 

3 that are caused by hazards and that the 

4 Governor of the State determines require 

5 State assistance; 

6 (ii) to pay to store and maintain the 

7 units; 

8 (iii) in the event of a major disaster 

9 or emergency declared for the State by the 

10 President under the Stafford Act, to make 

11 the units available to the President or to 

12 use the units to provide housing directly to 

13 survivors of the major disaster or emer14 gency in the State; 

15 (iv) to comply with the nondiscrimina16 tion provisions of section 308 of the Staf17 ford Act (42 U.S.C. 5151); and 

18 (v) to obtain and maintain hazard and 

19 flood insurance on the units. 

20 (C) INCIDENTS.—The incidents referred to 

21 in subparagraph (B)(i) may include incidents 

22 that do not result in a declaration of a major 

23 disaster or emergency by the President under 

24 the Stafford Act. 

25 (3) DISTRIBUTION.— 


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1 (A) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCESS.—The 

2 Administrator shall establish a process— 

3 (i) to review requests submitted by 

4 States under paragraph (2); and 

5 (ii) to distribute excess temporary 

6 housing units that are in the inventory of 

7 FEMA. 

8 (B) ALLOCATION.—If the number of tem9 porary housing units requested by States under 

10 paragraph (2) exceeds the number of excess 

11 temporary housing units available, the Adminis12 trator shall allocate the available units among 

13 the States that have submitted a request. 

14 (4) REMAINING TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS.— 

15 Temporary housing units that are not transferred or 

16 donated under paragraph (1) shall be sold, trans17 ferred, donated, or otherwise disposed of subject to 

18 the requirements of section 408(d)(2) of the Staf19 ford Act (42 U.S.C. 5174(d)(2)) and other applica20 ble provisions of law. 

21 (5) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUC22 TION.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to 

23 affect section 689k of the Post-Katrina Emergency 

24 Management Reform Act of 2006 (120 Stat. 1456). 

25 For purposes of that section, a transfer or donation 


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1 to a State of a temporary housing unit under para2 graph (1) shall be treated as a disposal to house in3 dividuals or households under section 408 of the 

4 Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. 5174). 

5 SEC. 205. OTHER METHODS OF DISPOSAL. 

6 Section 408(d)(2)(B) of the Robert T. Stafford Dis7 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

8 5174(d)(2)(B)) is amended— 

9 (1) in clause (i) by striking ‘‘or’’; 

10 (2) in clause (ii) by striking the period at the 

11 end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(iii) may be sold, transferred, or do14 nated directly to a State or other govern15 mental entity or to a voluntary organiza16 tion for the sole purpose of providing tem17 porary housing to disaster victims in disas18 ters and incidents caused by a hazard (as 

19 such term is defined in section 602) that 

20 do not result in a declaration of a major 

21 disaster or emergency if, as a condition of 

22 the sale, transfer, or donation, the State, 

23 other governmental agency, or voluntary 

24 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 for the hous6 ing units.’’. 

7 SEC. 206. ESTABLISHMENT OF CRITERIA RELATING TO AD8 MINISTRATION OF HAZARD MITIGATION AS9 SISTANCE BY STATES. 

10 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

11 of this Act, the President shall establish the criteria re12 quired under section 404(c)(2) of the Robert T. Stafford 

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

14 5170c(c)(2)). 

15 SEC. 207. REVIEW OF REGULATIONS AND POLICIES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

17 date of enactment of this Act, the President, acting 

18 through the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 

19 Management Agency, shall review regulations and policies 

20 relating to Federal disaster assistance to eliminate regula21 tions the President determines are no longer relevant, to 

22 harmonize contradictory regulations, and to simplify and 

23 expedite disaster recovery and assistance. 

24 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

25 of enactment of this Act, the President shall transmit to 


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1 the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 

2 the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

3 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Sen4 ate a report describing changes made to regulations as a 

5 result of the review required under subsection (a), together 

6 with any legislative recommendations relating thereto. 

7 (c) STATE HAZARD MITIGATION PLANS.—The Presi8 dent, acting through the Administrator, shall revise regu9 lations related to the submission of State Hazard Mitiga10 tion Plans to extend the hazard mitigation planning cycle 

11 to every 5 years, consistent with local planning cycles. 

12 SEC. 208. APPEALS PROCESS. 

13 Section 423(b) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Re14 lief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5189a(b)) 

15 is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(b) PERIOD FOR DECISION.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A decision regarding an ap18 peal under subsection (a) shall be rendered within 

19 60 days after the date on which the Federal official 

20 designated to administer such appeal receives notice 

21 of such appeal. 

22 ‘‘(2) FAILURE TO SATISFY DEADLINE.—If the 

23 Federal official fails to satisfy the requirement 

24 under paragraph (1), the Federal official shall pro25 vide a written explanation of such failure to the apVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:53 Sep 21, 2012 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2903.RFS H2903

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1 plicant. The President, acting through the Adminis2 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agen3 cy, shall transmit quarterly to the Committee on 

4 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 

5 Representatives and the Committee on Homeland 

6 Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a 

7 report on such failures.’’. 

8 SEC. 209. IMPLEMENTATION OF COST ESTIMATING. 

9 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

10 of this Act, the President, acting through the Adminis11 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 

12 shall issue and begin to implement the regulations re13 quired by section 406(e)(3)(C) of the Robert T. Stafford 

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

15 5172(e)(3)(C)) to provide for cost estimation procedures 

16 that expedite recovery and to reduce the costs and time 

17 for completion of recovery projects through the creation 

18 of financial and performance incentives. 

19 SEC. 210. TRIBAL REQUESTS FOR A MAJOR DISASTER OR 

20 EMERGENCY DECLARATION UNDER THE 

21 STAFFORD ACT. 

22 (a) MAJOR DISASTER REQUESTS.—Section 401 of 

23 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As24 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘All requests for a declaration’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—All requests for a 

3 declaration’’; and 

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

5 ‘‘(b) INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT REQUESTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Executive of an 

7 affected Indian tribal government may submit a re8 quest for a declaration by the President that a 

9 major disaster exists consistent with the require10 ments of subsection (a). 

11 ‘‘(2) REFERENCES.—In implementing assist12 ance authorized by the President under this Act in 

13 response to a request of the Chief Executive of an 

14 affected Indian tribal government for a major dis15 aster declaration, any reference in this title or sec16 tion 319 to a State or the Governor of a State is 

17 deemed to refer to an affected Indian tribal govern18 ment or the Chief Executive of an affected Indian 

19 tribal government, as appropriate. 

20 ‘‘(3) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this sub21 section shall prohibit an Indian tribal government 

22 from receiving assistance under this title through a 

23 declaration made by the President at the request of 

24 a State under subsection (a) if the President does 


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1 not make a declaration under this subsection for the 

2 same incident. 

3 ‘‘(c) COST SHARE ADJUSTMENTS FOR INDIAN TRIB4 AL GOVERNMENTS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In providing assistance to 

6 an Indian tribal government under this title, the 

7 President may waive or adjust any payment of a 

8 non-Federal contribution with respect to the assist9 ance if— 

10 ‘‘(A) the President has the authority to 

11 waive or adjust the payment under another pro12 vision of this title; and 

13 ‘‘(B) the President determines that the 

14 waiver or adjustment is necessary and appro15 priate. 

16 ‘‘(2) CRITERIA FOR MAKING DETERMINA17 TIONS.—The President shall establish criteria for 

18 making determinations under paragraph (1)(B).’’. 

19 (b) EMERGENCY REQUESTS.—Section 501 of the 

20 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist21 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5191) is amended by adding at the 

22 end the following: 

23 ‘‘(c) INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT REQUESTS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Executive of an 

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1 quest for a declaration by the President that an 

2 emergency exists consistent with the requirements of 

3 subsection (a). 

4 ‘‘(2) REFERENCES.—In implementing assist5 ance authorized by the President under this title in 

6 response to a request of the Chief Executive of an 

7 affected Indian tribal government for an emergency 

8 declaration, any reference in this title or section 319 

9 to a State or the Governor of a State shall be 

10 deemed to refer to an affected Indian tribal govern11 ment or the Chief Executive of an affected Indian 

12 tribal government, as appropriate. 

13 ‘‘(3) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this sub14 section shall prohibit an Indian tribal government 

15 from receiving assistance under this title through a 

16 declaration made by the President at the request of 

17 a State under subsection (a) if the President does 

18 not make a declaration under this subsection for the 

19 same incident.’’. 

20 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 102 of the Robert T. 

21 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 

22 (42 U.S.C. 5122) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (7)(B) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘, that is not an Indian tribal government 

25 as defined in paragraph (6); and’’; 


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1 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through 

2 (10) as paragraphs (7) through (11), respectively; 

3 (3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(6) INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term 

6 ‘Indian tribal government’ means the governing body 

7 of any Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, 

8 pueblo, village, or community that the Secretary of 

9 the Interior acknowledges to exist as an Indian tribe 

10 under the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List 

11 Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a et seq.).’’; and 

12 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(12) CHIEF EXECUTIVE.—The term ‘Chief Ex14 ecutive’ means the person who is recognized by the 

15 Secretary of the Interior as the chief elected admin16 istrative officer of an Indian tribal government.’’. 

17 (d) REFERENCES.—Title I of the Robert T. Stafford 

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

19 5121 et seq.) is amended by adding after section 102 the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 103. REFERENCES. 

22 ‘‘Except as otherwise specifically provided, any ref23 erence in this Act to ‘State and local’, ‘State or local’, or 

24 ‘State, local’ with respect to governments or officials and 

25 any reference to a ‘local government’ in section 417 is 


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1 deemed to refer also to Indian tribal governments and offi2 cials, as appropriate.’’. 

3 (e) REGULATIONS.— 

4 (1) ISSUANCE.—The President shall issue regu5 lations to carry out the amendments made by this 

6 section. 

7 (2) FACTORS.—In issuing the regulations, the 

8 President shall consider the unique conditions that 

9 affect the general welfare of Indian tribal govern10 ments. 

11 SEC. 211. INDIVIDUAL ASSISTANCE FACTORS. 

12 In order to provide more objective criteria for evalu13 ating the need for assistance to individuals and to speed 

14 a declaration of a major disaster or emergency under the 

15 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist16 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), not later than 1 year 

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

18 of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in co19 operation with representatives of State, tribal, and local 

20 emergency management agencies, shall review, update, 

21 and revise through rulemaking the factors considered 

22 under section 206.48 of title 44, Code of Federal Regula23 tions (including section 206.48(b)(2) of such title relating 

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1 tribute to trauma), to measure the severity, magnitude, 

2 and impact of a disaster. 

3 SEC. 212. PUBLIC ASSISTANCE PILOT PROGRAM. 

4 (a) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President, acting 

6 through the Administrator of the Federal Emer7 gency Management Agency, and in coordination with 

8 States, tribal and local governments, and owners or 

9 operators of private non-profit facilities, shall estab10 lish and conduct a pilot program to— 

11 (A) reduce the costs to the Government of 

12 providing assistance to States, tribal and local 

13 governments, and owners or operators of pri14 vate non-profit facilities under section 406 of 

15 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 

16 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5172) 

17 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Act’’); 

18 (B) increase flexibility in the administra19 tion of section 406 of such Act; and 

20 (C) expedite the provision of assistance to 

21 States, tribal, and local governments provided 

22 under section 406 of the Act. 

23 (2) PARTICIPATION.—Only States, tribal and 

24 local governments, and owners or operators of pri25 vate non-profit facilities that elect to participate in 


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1 the pilot program may participate in the pilot pro2 gram for their projects. 

3 (3) ADMINISTRATION.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of the 

5 pilot program, the Administrator shall establish 

6 new procedures to administer assistance pro7 vided under section 406 of the Act. 

8 (B) NEW PROCEDURES.—The new proce9 dures established under subparagraph (A) shall 

10 include— 

11 (i) making grants on the basis of esti12 mates agreed to by the State, tribal, or 

13 local government, or owner or operator of 

14 a private non-profit facility and the Ad15 ministrator to provide financial incentives 

16 and disincentives for the State, tribal, or 

17 local government, or owner or operator of 

18 a private non-profit facility for the timely 

19 and cost-effective completion of projects 

20 under section 406 of the Act; 

21 (ii) notwithstanding sections 

22 406(c)(1)(A) and 406(c)(2)(A) of the Act, 

23 providing an option for a State, tribal, or 

24 local government, or owner or operator of 

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1 ceive an in-lieu contribution, without re2 duction, on the basis of estimates of the 

3 cost of repair, restoration, reconstruction, 

4 or replacement of a public facility owned or 

5 controlled by the State, tribal, or local gov6 ernment and of management expenses; 

7 (iii) consolidating, to the extent deter8 mined appropriate by the Administrator, 

9 the facilities of a State, tribal, or local gov10 ernment, or owner or operator of a private 

11 nonprofit facility as a single project based 

12 upon the estimates established under the 

13 pilot procedures; and 

14 (iv) notwithstanding any other provi15 sion of law, if the actual costs of a project 

16 completed under the pilot procedures are 

17 less than the estimated costs thereof, the 

18 Administrator may permit a grantee or sub 

19 grantee to use all or part of the excess 

20 funds for cost-effective activities that re21 duce the risk of future damage, hardship, 

22 or suffering from a major disaster. 

23 (4) WAIVER.—The Administrator may waive 

24 such regulations or rules applicable to the provisions 

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1 ministrator determines are necessary to carry out 

2 the pilot program under this section. 

3 (b) REPORT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 31, 

5 2015, the Administrator shall submit to the Com6 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 

7 House of Representatives and the Committee on 

8 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 

9 Senate a report regarding the effectiveness of the 

10 pilot program under this section. 

11 (2) CONTENTS.—The report submitted under 

12 paragraph (1) shall include— 

13 (A) an assessment by the Administrator of 

14 any administrative or financial benefits of the 

15 pilot program; 

16 (B) an assessment by the Administrator of 

17 the effect, including any savings in time and 

18 cost, of the pilot program; 

19 (C) any other findings and conclusions of 

20 the Administrator with respect to the pilot pro21 gram; and 

22 (D) any recommendations of the Adminis23 trator for additional authority to continue or 

24 make permanent the pilot program. 


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1 (c) DEADLINE FOR INITIATION OF IMPLEMENTA2 TION.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the Administrator shall begin implementation 

4 of the pilot program under this section. 

5 (d) PILOT PROGRAM DURATION.—The Administrator 

6 may not approve a project under the pilot program under 

7 this section after December 31, 2014. 

8 SEC. 213. PUBLIC ASSISTANCE DEBRIS REMOVAL PROCE9 DURES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President, acting through the 

11 Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 

12 Agency, shall establish new procedures to administer as13 sistance for debris and wreckage removal provided under 

14 sections 403(a)(3)(A), 407, and 502(a)(5) of the Robert 

15 T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 

16 (42 U.S.C. 5170b(a)(3)(A), 5173, and 5192(a)(5)). 

17 (b) NEW PROCEDURES.—The new procedures estab18 lished under subsection (a) may include— 

19 (1) making grants on the basis of fixed esti20 mates to provide financial incentives and disincen21 tives for the timely or cost effective completion of 

22 projects under sections 403(a)(3)(A), 407, and 

23 502(a)(5) of such Act if the State, tribal, or local 

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1 profit facility agrees to be responsible to pay for any 

2 actual costs that exceed the estimate; 

3 (2) using a sliding scale for the Federal share 

4 for removal of debris and wreckage based on the 

5 time it takes to complete debris and wreckage re6 moval; 

7 (3) allowing utilization of program income from 

8 recycled debris without offset to grant amount; 

9 (4) reimbursing base and overtime wages for 

10 employees and extra hires of a State, tribal, or local 

11 government, or owner or operator of a private non12 profit facility performing or administering debris 

13 and wreckage removal; and 

14 (5) notwithstanding any other provision of law, 

15 if the actual costs of projects under subsection 

16 (b)(1) are less than the estimated costs thereof, the 

17 Administrator may permit a grantee or sub grantee 

18 to use all or part of the excess funds for any of the 

19 following purposes: 

20 (A) Debris management planning. 

21 (B) Acquisition of debris management 

22 equipment for current or future use. 

23 (C) Other activities to improve future de24 bris removal operations, as determined by the 

25 Administrator. 


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1 SEC. 214. USE OF FUNDS. 

2 Unless otherwise specified in this Act, the Adminis3 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 

4 shall use amounts authorized pursuant to section 699 of 

5 the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 

6 2006 (6 U.S.C. 811) for reviews, reports, and studies in7 cluded in this Act. 

8 SEC. 215. REDUCTION OF AUTHORIZATION FOR EMER9 GENCY MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE 

10 GRANTS. 

11 Section 662(f)(5) of the Post-Katrina Emergency 

12 Management Reform Act of 2006 (6 U.S.C. 762) is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘$950,000,000’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘$946,600,000’’. 

15 SEC. 216. TECHNICAL CORRECTION. 

16 Section 202(c) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Re17 lief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5132(c)) 

18 is amended by striking ‘‘section 611(c)’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘section 611(d)’’. 

20 SEC. 217. NATIONAL DAM SAFETY PROGRAM ACT REAU21 THORIZATION. 

22 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 

23 ‘‘Dam Safety Act of 2012’’. 

24 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to re25 duce the risks to life and property from dam failure in 

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1 tive national dam safety program that brings together the 

2 expertise and resources of Federal and non-Federal com3 munities in achieving national dam safety hazard reduc4 tion. 

5 (c) AMENDMENTS TO THE NATIONAL DAM SAFETY

6 PROGRAM ACT.— 

7 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The National Dam 

9 Safety Program Act (33 U.S.C. 467 et seq.) is 

10 amended by striking ‘‘Director’’ each place it 

11 appears and inserting ‘‘Administrator’’. 

12 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

13 2(3) of such Act (33 U.S.C. 467(3)) is amend14 ed in the paragraph heading by striking ‘‘DI15 RECTOR’’ and inserting ‘‘ADMINISTRATOR’’. 

16 (2) INSPECTION OF DAMS.—Section 3(b)(1) of 

17 such Act (33 U.S.C. 467a(b)(1)) is amended by 

18 striking ‘‘or maintenance’’ and inserting ‘‘mainte19 nance, condition, or provision for emergency oper20 ations’’. 

21 (3) NATIONAL DAM SAFETY PROGRAM.— 

22 (A) OBJECTIVES.—Section 8(c)(4) of such 

23 Act (33 U.S.C. 467f(c)(4)) is amended to read 

24 as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(4) develop and implement a comprehensive 

2 dam safety hazard education and public awareness 

3 program to assist the public in mitigating against, 

4 preparing for, responding to, and recovering from 

5 dam incidents;’’. 

6 (B) BOARD.—Section 8(f)(4) of such Act 

7 (33 U.S.C. 467f(f)(4)) is amended by inserting 

8 ‘‘, representatives from nongovernmental orga9 nizations,’’ after ‘‘State agencies’’. 

10 (4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

11 (A) NATIONAL DAM SAFETY PROGRAM.— 

12 (i) ANNUAL AMOUNTS.—Section 

13 13(a)(1) of such Act (33 U.S.C. 

14 467j(a)(1)) is amended by striking 

15 ‘‘$6,500,000 for fiscal year 2007, 

16 $7,100,000 for fiscal year 2008, 

17 $7,600,000 for fiscal year 2009, 

18 $8,300,000 for fiscal year 2010, and 

19 $9,200,000 for fiscal year 2011’’ and in20 serting ‘‘$8,024,000 for each of fiscal 

21 years 2012 through 2015’’. 

22 (ii) MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF ALLOCA23 TION.— 

24 (I) IN GENERAL.—Section 

25 13(a)(2)(B) of such Act (33 U.S.C. 


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1 467j(a)(2)(B)) is amended by striking 

2 ‘‘50 percent of the reasonable cost of 

3 implementing the State dam safety 

4 program’’ and inserting ‘‘the amount 

5 of funds committed by the State to 

6 implement dam safety program activi7 ties’’. 

8 (II) APPLICABILITY.—The 

9 amendment made by subclause (I) 

10 shall apply to fiscal year 2013 and 

11 each fiscal year thereafter. 

12 (B) NATIONAL DAM INVENTORY.—Section 

13 13(b) of such Act (33 U.S.C. 467j(b)) is 

14 amended by striking ‘‘$650,000 for fiscal year 

15 2007, $700,000 for fiscal year 2008, $750,000 

16 for fiscal year 2009, $800,000 for fiscal year 

17 2010, and $850,000 for fiscal year 2011’’ and 

18 inserting ‘‘$383,000 for each of fiscal years 

19 2012 through 2015’’. 

20 (C) RESEARCH.—Section 13(c) of such Act 

21 (33 U.S.C. 467j(c)) is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘$1,600,000 for fiscal year 2007, $1,700,000 

23 for fiscal year 2008, $1,800,000 for fiscal year 

24 2009, $1,900,000 for fiscal year 2010, and 

25 $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2011’’ and inserting 


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1 ‘‘$1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2012 

2 through 2015’’. 

3 (D) DAM SAFETY TRAINING.—Section 

4 13(d) of such Act (33 U.S.C. 467j(d)) is 

5 amended by striking ‘‘$550,000 for fiscal year 

6 2007, $600,000 for fiscal year 2008, $650,000 

7 for fiscal year 2009, $700,000 for fiscal year 

8 2010, and $750,000 for fiscal year 2011’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘$750,000 for each of fiscal years 

10 2012 through 2015’’. 

11 (E) STAFF.—Section 13(e) of such Act (33 

12 U.S.C. 467j(e)) is amended by striking 

13 ‘‘$700,000 for fiscal year 2007, $800,000 for 

14 fiscal year 2008, $900,000 for fiscal year 2009, 

15 $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, and 

16 $1,100,000 for fiscal year 2011’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘$436,000 for each of fiscal years 2012 

18 through 2015’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives September 19, 

2012. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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