Individual Assistance Improvement Act of 2015

To improve Federal disaster relief and emergency assistance, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Individual Assistance Improvement Act of 2015 2. Improvements to Federal disaster relief and emergency assistance (a) Report on Small State and Rural Area Assistance Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall submit to Congress a report with recommendations for improving Federal assistance, with respect to small States and rural areas, under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq. (b) Factors for Individual Assistance Program In measuring the severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster and evaluating the need for assistance to individuals under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, the Administrator shall not apply, with respect to a rural area, the factor set out in section 206.48(b)(1) of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to the concentration of damages). (c) Release of Documentation Related to Disaster Declaration Decisions Not later than 25 days after a Governor, or Chief Executive of an Indian tribal government, requests documentation related to a major disaster declaration decision under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5170 (1) an analysis of the factors that the Federal Emergency Management Agency considered in making the decision, including any threshold, limit, or average that the Agency applied; and (2) a rationale explaining the decision. (d) Study on Damage Assessment (1) Study The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a comprehensive review of— (A) the damage assessment processes of the Agency with respect to major disaster declarations; and (B) the teams that carry out such processes. (2) Report Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a report on the results of the review conducted under paragraph (1), including recommendations for improving such processes. (e) Biennial Study of Average Amount of Individual Assistance (1) Study Not later than the end of the first quarter of the first full fiscal year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the Administrator shall conduct a study— (A) to compare— (i) the average amount of individual assistance provided per person for each major disaster declared during the 5 most recently completed fiscal years; (ii) the average damages realized per individual for each such disaster; and (iii) for each event where a request for a major disaster declaration was denied during the 5 most recently completed fiscal years, the average damages realized per individual for each such event; and (B) to collect the data needed to update the table included after section 206.48(b)(6) of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to the average amount of individual assistance by State). (2) Report and Update Not later than 180 days after the completion of each study under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall submit to Congress a report on the results of the study and update the table described in paragraph (1)(B). (f) Definitions In this Act, the following definitions shall apply: (1) Governor The term Governor 42 U.S.C. 5122 (2) Rural The term rural (A) outside a metropolitan statistical area, as defined by the Office of Management and Budget; or (B) in a census tract in a metropolitan statistical area with a Department of Agriculture rural-urban commuting area code of 4 or higher. (3) Small State The term small State

Summary: Individual Assistance Improvement Act of 2015 This bill requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to submit to Congress an annual report on recommendations for improving federal assistance for small states and rural areas under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act and additional resources required for such improvements. In measuring the severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster and evaluating the need for assistance to individuals under that Act, FEMA shall not apply, with respect to a rural area, the factor relating to concentration of damages. FEMA shall provide the governor or the chief executive of an Indian tribal government with documentation related to a major disaster declaration decision within 25 days after such individual requests that documentation, including: (1) an analysis of the factors that it considered in making the decision, and (2) its rationale. The Government Accountability Office shall conduct a comprehensive review of: (1) FEMA's damage assessment processes for major disaster declarations, and (2) the teams that carry out such processes. FEMA shall conduct a study, biennially, to: (1) compare the average amount of individual assistance provided per person for each major disaster declared during the five most recently completed fiscal years, the average damages realized per individual for each disaster, and the average damages realized per individual for each event where a request for a major disaster declaration was denied during the five most recently completed fiscal years; and (2) collect the data needed to update a table relating to the average amount of individual assistance by state.