I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5775 
To ensure greater equity in Federal disaster assistance policies and programs 
by authorizing an equity steering group and equity advisor within the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency, improving data collection to 
measure disparate outcomes and participation barriers, requiring equity 
criteria to be applied to policies and programs, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 27, 2023 
Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi (for himself, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Ms. NORTON, Ms. 
VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. HIGGINS of 
New York, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. 
SWALWELL, Ms. TITUS, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. CARTER of Lou-
isiana, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California, Mr. MOSKOWITZ, and Mr. 
THANEDAR) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Com-
mittee on Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined 
by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To ensure greater equity in Federal disaster assistance poli-
cies and programs by authorizing an equity steering 
group and equity advisor within the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency, improving data collection to meas-
ure disparate outcomes and participation barriers, requir-
ing equity criteria to be applied to policies and programs, 
and for other purposes. 
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23:09 Sep 30, 2023
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Emergency 
Management Advancement of Equity Act’’ or the ‘‘FEMA 
Equity Act’’. 
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title. 
Sec. 2. Table of contents. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
TITLE I—ENSURING EQUITY IN FEDERAL DISASTER 
MANAGEMENT 
Sec. 101. Data collection, analysis, and criteria. 
Sec. 102. Criteria for ensuring equity in policies and programs. 
Sec. 103. Metrics; report. 
TITLE II—OPERATIONAL ENHANCEMENT TO IMPROVE EQUITY IN 
FEDERAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT 
Sec. 201. Equity advisor. 
Sec. 202. Equity Enterprise Steering Group. 
Sec. 203. GAO review of equity reforms. 
TITLE III—GAO REVIEW OF FACTORS TO DETERMINE 
ASSISTANCE 
Sec. 301. GAO review of factors to determine assistance. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency. 
(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Agency’’ means the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency. 
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(3) 
EMERGENCY.—The 
term 
‘‘emergency’’ 
means an emergency declared by the President 
under section 501 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
5191). 
(4) EQUITY.—The term ‘‘equity’’ means the 
guarantee of fair treatment, advancement, equal op-
portunity, and access for underserved communities 
and others, the elimination of barriers that have pre-
vented full participation for underserved commu-
nities, and the reduction of disparate outcomes. 
(5) EQUITABLE.—The term ‘‘equitable’’ means 
having or exhibiting equity. 
(6) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘‘Federal 
assistance’’ means assistance provided pursuant to— 
(A) a declaration of a major disaster or 
emergency under the Robert T. Stafford Dis-
aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act; 
(B) sections 203 and 205 of the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist-
ance Act; and 
(C) section 1366 of the National Flood In-
surance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4104c). 
(7) MAJOR DISASTER.—The term ‘‘major dis-
aster’’ means a major disaster declared by the Presi-
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dent under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
U.S.C. 5170). 
(8) UNDERSERVED
COMMUNITY.—The term 
‘‘underserved community’’ means— 
(A) the Native-American, Native Hawai-
ian, and Alaskan-Native community; 
(B) the African-American community; 
(C) the Asian community; 
(D) the Hispanic community (including in-
dividuals of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and 
Central or South American origin); 
(E) the Pacific Islander community; 
(F) the Middle Eastern and North African 
community; 
(G) a rural community; 
(H) a low-income community; 
(I) individuals with disabilities; 
(J) a limited English proficiency commu-
nity; 
(K) other individuals or communities oth-
erwise adversely affected by persistent poverty 
or inequality; and 
(L) any other disadvantaged community, 
as determined by the Administrator. 
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TITLE I—ENSURING EQUITY IN 
FEDERAL DISASTER MANAGE-
MENT 
SEC. 101. DATA COLLECTION, ANALYSIS, AND CRITERIA. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Housing and Urban De-
velopment and the Administrator of the Small Business 
Administration, develop and implement a process to en-
sure equity in the provision of Federal assistance and 
throughout all programs and policies of the Agency. 
(b) SPECIFIC AREAS FOR CONSULTATION.—In car-
rying out subsection (a), the Administrator shall identify 
requirements for ensuring the quality, consistency, acces-
sibility, and availability of information needed to identify 
programs and policies of the Agency that may not support 
the provision of equitable Federal assistance, including— 
(1) information requirements; 
(2) data sources and collection methods; and 
(3) strategies for overcoming data or other in-
formation challenges. 
(c) MODIFICATION
OF
DATA
COLLECTION
SYS-
TEMS.—The Administrator shall modify the data collec-
tion systems of the Agency based on the process developed 
under subsection (a) to ensure the quality, consistency, ac-
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cessibility, and availability of information needed to iden-
tify any programs and policies of the Agency that may 
not support the provision of equitable Federal assistance. 
SEC. 102. CRITERIA FOR ENSURING EQUITY IN POLICIES 
AND PROGRAMS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall de-
velop, disseminate, and update, as appropriate, criteria to 
apply to policies and programs of the Agency to ensure 
equity in the provision of Federal assistance and through-
out all programs and policies of the Agency. 
(b) CONSULTATION.—In developing and dissemi-
nating the criteria required under subsection (a), the Ad-
ministrator shall consult with— 
(1) the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Lib-
erties of the Department of Homeland Security; 
(2) the United States Department of Housing 
and Urban Development; and 
(3) the Small Business Administration. 
(c) INTEGRATION OF CRITERIA.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, to 
the maximum extent possible, integrate the criteria 
developed under subsection (a) into existing and fu-
ture processes related to the provision of Federal as-
sistance. 
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(2) 
PRIORITY.—The 
Administrator 
shall 
prioritize integrating the criteria under paragraph 
(1) into processes related to the provision of— 
(A) assistance under sections 402, 403, 
406, 407, 428, and 502 of the Robert T. Staf-
ford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act (42 U.S.C. 5170a et seq.); 
(B) Federal assistance to individuals and 
households under section 408 of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 5174); 
(C) hazard mitigation assistance under 
section 404 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5170c); and 
(D) predisaster hazard mitigation assist-
ance under section 203 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
5133). 
SEC. 103. METRICS; REPORT. 
(a) METRICS.—In carrying out this title, the Admin-
istrator shall— 
(1) establish metrics to measure the efficacy of 
the process developed under section 101 and the cri-
teria developed under section 102; and 
(2) seek input from relevant representatives of 
State, regional, local, territorial, and Tribal govern-
ments, representatives of community-based organiza-
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tions, subject matter experts, and individuals from 
underserved communities impacted by disasters. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the dis-
semination of the criteria under section 102(a), and annu-
ally thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to Congress 
a report describing how the criteria and processes devel-
oped under this title have impacted efforts to ensure eq-
uity in the provision of Federal assistance and throughout 
all programs and policies of the Agency, including— 
(1) any obstacles identified or areas for im-
provement with respect to implementation of such 
criteria and processes, including any recommended 
legislative changes; 
(2) the effectiveness of such criteria and proc-
esses, as measured by the metrics established under 
subsection (a); and 
(3) any impacts of such criteria and processes 
on the provision of Federal assistance, with specific 
attention to impacts related to efforts within the 
Agency to address barriers to access and reducing 
disparate outcomes. 
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TITLE 
II—OPERATIONAL 
EN-
HANCEMENT 
TO 
IMPROVE 
EQUITY 
IN 
FEDERAL 
DIS-
ASTER MANAGEMENT 
SEC. 201. EQUITY ADVISOR. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall designate 
a senior official within the Agency as an equity advisor 
to the Administrator to be responsible for advising the Ad-
ministrator on Agency efforts to ensure equity in the pro-
vision of Federal assistance and throughout all programs 
and policies of the Agency. 
(b) QUALIFICATIONS.—In designating an equity advi-
sor under subsection (a), the Administrator shall select an 
individual who is a qualified expert with significant experi-
ence with respect to equity policy, civil rights policy, or 
programmatic reforms. 
(c) DUTIES.—In addition to advising the Adminis-
trator, the equity advisor designated under subsection (a) 
shall— 
(1) participate in the implementation of sec-
tions 101 and 102; 
(2) monitor equity the implementation of equity 
efforts within the Agency and within Federal Emer-
gency Management Agency Regions to ensure con-
sistency in the implementation of policy or pro-
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grammatic changes intended to ensure equity in the 
provision of Federal assistance and throughout all 
programs and policies of the Agency; 
(3) identify ways to improve the policies and 
programs of the Agency to ensure that such policies 
and programs are equitable, including enhancing op-
portunities to support underserved populations in 
preparedness, mitigation, protection, response, and 
recovery; and 
(4) any other activities the Administrator con-
siders appropriate. 
(d) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out the duties 
under this section, the equity advisor shall, on an ongoing 
basis, consult with representatives of underserved commu-
nities, including communities directly impacted by disas-
ters, to evaluate opportunities and develop approaches to 
advancing equity within the Agency, including by increas-
ing coordination, communication, and engagement with— 
(1) community-based organizations; 
(2) civil rights organizations; 
(3) institutions of higher education; 
(4) research institutions; 
(5) academic organizations specializing in diver-
sity, equity, and inclusion issues; and 
(6) religious and faith-based organizations. 
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