I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 533
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance
Act to authorize programs for predisaster mitigation, to streamline the
administration of disaster relief, to control the Federal costs of disaster
assistance, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 3, 1999
Mr. BOEHLERT (for himself and Mr. BORSKI) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
gency Assistance Act to authorize programs for
predisaster mitigation, to streamline the administration
of disaster relief, to control the Federal costs of disaster
assistance, and for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Disaster Mitigation
Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO ROBERT T. STAFFORD DISASTER
RELIEF AND EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE ACT.
Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms
of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi-
sion of law, the reference shall be considered to be made
to a section or other provision of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
5121 et seq.).
TITLE I—PREDISASTER HAZARD
MITIGATION
SEC. 101. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) greater emphasis needs to be placed on
identifying and assessing the risks to State and local
communities and implementing adequate measures
to reduce losses from natural disasters and to ensure
that critical facilities and public infrastructure will
continue to function after a disaster;
(2) expenditures for post-disaster assistance are
increasing without commensurate reduction in the
likelihood of future losses from such natural disas-
ters;
(3) a high priority in the expenditure of Federal
funds under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act should be to imple-
ment predisaster activities at the local level; and
(4) with a unified effort of economic incentives,
awareness and education, technical assistance, and
demonstrated Federal support, States and local com-
munities will be able to increase their capabilities to
form effective community-based partnerships for
mitigation purposes, implement effective natural dis-
aster mitigation measures that reduce the risk of fu-
ture damage, hardship, and suffering, ensure contin-
ued functioning of critical facilities and public infra-
structure, leverage additional non-Federal resources
into meeting disaster resistance goals, and make
commitments to long-term mitigation efforts in new
and existing structures.
(b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this title to estab-
lish a predisaster hazard mitigation program that—
(1) reduces the loss of life and property, human
suffering, economic disruption, and disaster assist-
ance costs resulting from natural hazards; and
(2) provides a source of predisaster hazard
mitigation funding that will assist States and local
governments in implementing effective mitigation
measures that are designed to ensure the continued
functioning of critical facilities and public infrastruc-
ture after a natural disaster.
SEC. 102. STATE MITIGATION PROGRAM.
Section 201(c) (42 U.S.C. 5131(c)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(1);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (2) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) set forth, with the ongoing cooperation of
local governments and consistent with section 409, a
comprehensive and detailed State program for miti-
gating against emergencies and major disasters, in-
cluding provisions for prioritizing mitigation meas-
ures.’’.
SEC. 103. DISASTER ASSISTANCE PLANS.
Section 201(d) (42 U.S.C. 5131(d)) is amended to
read as follows:
‘‘(d) GRANTS FOR DISASTER ASSISTANCE AND HAZ-
ARD IDENTIFICATION.—The President is authorized to
make grants for—
‘‘(1) not to exceed 50 percent of the cost of im-
proving, maintaining, and updating State disaster
assistance plans including, consistent with section
409, evaluation of natural hazards and development
of the programs and actions required to mitigate
such hazards; and
‘‘(2) the development and application of im-
proved floodplain mapping technologies that can be
used by Federal, State, and local governments and
that the President determines will likely result in
substantial savings over current floodplain mapping
methods.’’.
SEC. 104. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.
Title II (42 U.S.C. 5131–5132) is amended by add-
ing at the end the following:
‘‘SEC. 203. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.
‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The President may es-
tablish a program to provide financial assistance to States
and local governments for the purpose of undertaking
predisaster hazard mitigation activities that are cost effec-
tive and substantially reduce the risk of future damage,
hardship, or suffering from a major disaster.
‘‘(b) PURPOSE OF ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), a State or local government that receives
financial assistance under this section shall use the
assistance for funding activities that are cost effec-
tive and substantially reduce the risk of future dam-
age, hardship, or suffering from a major disaster.
‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION.—The State or local gov-
ernment may use not more than 10 percent of finan-
cial assistance it receives under this section in a fis-
cal year for funding activities to disseminate infor-
mation regarding cost effective mitigation tech-
nologies (such as preferred construction practices
and materials), including establishing and maintain-
ing centers for protection against natural disasters
to carry out such dissemination.
‘‘(c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—The amount of finan-
cial assistance to be made available to a State, including
amounts made available to local governments of such
State, under this section in a fiscal year shall—
‘‘(1) not be less than the lesser of $500,000 or
1.0 percent of the total funds appropriated to carry
out this section for such fiscal year; but
‘‘(2) not exceed 15 percent of such total funds.
‘‘(d) CRITERIA.—Subject to the limitations of sub-
sections (c) and (e), in determining whether to provide as-
sistance to a State or local government under this section
and the amount of such assistance, the President shall
consider the following criteria:
‘‘(1) The clear identification of prioritized cost-
effective mitigation activities that produce meaning-
ful and definable outcomes.
‘‘(2) If the State has submitted a mitigation
program in cooperation with local governments
under section 201(c), the degree to which the activi-
ties identified in paragraph (1) are consistent with
the State mitigation program.
‘‘(3) The opportunity to fund activities that
maximize net benefits to society.
‘‘(4) The ability of the State or local govern-
ment to fund mitigation activities.
‘‘(5) The extent to which assistance will fund
mitigation activities in small impoverished commu-
nities.
‘‘(6) The level of interest by the private sector
to enter into a partnership to promote mitigation.
‘‘(7) Such other criteria as the President estab-
lishes in consultation with State and local govern-
ments.
‘‘(e) STATE NOMINATIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of each State
may recommend to the President not less than 5
local governments to receive assistance under this
section. The recommendations shall be submitted to
the President not later than January 1 of calendar
year 1999 and each calendar year thereafter or such
later date in the calendar year as the President may
establish. In making such recommendations, the
Governors shall consider the criteria identified in
subsection (d).
‘‘(2) USE.—
‘‘(A) GENERAL
RULE.—In providing as-
sistance to local governments under this sec-
tion, the President shall select from local gov-
ernments recommended by the Governors under
this subsection.
‘‘(B) WAIVER.—Upon request of a local
government, the President may waive the limi-
tation in subparagraph (A) if the President de-
termines that extraordinary circumstances jus-
tify the waiver and that granting the waiver will
further the purpose of this section.
‘‘(3) EFFECT OF FAILURE TO NOMINATE.—If a
Governor of a State fails to submit recommendations
under this subsection in a timely manner, the Presi-
dent may select, subject to the criteria in subsection
(d), any local governments of the State to receive as-
sistance under this section.
‘‘(f) SMALL IMPOVERISHED COMMUNITIES.—For the
purpose of this section, the term ‘small impoverished com-
munities’ means communities of 3,000 or fewer individuals
that are economically disadvantaged, as determined by the
State in which the community is located and based on cri-
teria established by the President.
‘‘(g) FEDERAL SHARE.—Financial assistance pro-
vided under this section may contribute up to 75 percent
of the total cost of mitigation activities approved by the
President; except that the President may contribute up to
90 percent of the total cost of mitigation activities in small
impoverished communities.
‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$50,000,000 for fiscal year 1998, $70,000,000 for fiscal
year 1999, and $80,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.
‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF SECTION 404 FUNDS.—Ef-
fective October 1, 1999, in addition to amounts appro-
priated under subsection (h), the President may use, to
carry out this section, funds that are appropriated to carry
out section 404 for post-disaster mitigation activities that
have not been obligated within 30 months of the disaster
declaration upon which the funding availability is based.
‘‘(j) REPORT ON FEDERAL AND STATE ADMINISTRA-
TION.—Not later than 18 months after the date of enact-
ment of the Disaster Mitigation Act of 1999, the Presi-
dent, in consultation with State and local governments,
shall transmit to Congress a report evaluating efforts to
implement this section and recommending a process for
transferring greater authority and responsibility for ad-
ministering the assistance program authorized by this sec-
tion to capable States.’’.
SEC. 105. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE.
The President shall establish an interagency task
force for the purpose of coordinating the implementation
of the predisaster hazard mitigation program authorized
by section 203 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act. The Director of the Fed-
eral Emergency Management Agency shall chair such task
force.
SEC. 106. MAXIMUM CONTRIBUTION FOR MITIGATION
COSTS.
(a) IN
GENERAL.—Section 404(a) (42 U.S.C.
5170c(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘15 percent’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘20 percent’’.
(b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub-
section (a) shall apply to major disasters declared under
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief Act and Emergency
Assistance Act after January 1, 1997.
SEC. 107. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.
The heading for title II is amended to read as follows:
‘‘TITLE II—DISASTER PREPARED-
NESS AND MITIGATION AS-
SISTANCE’’.
TITLE II—STREAMLINING AND
COST REDUCTION
SEC. 201. MANAGEMENT COSTS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III (42 U.S.C. 5141–5164)
is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘SEC. 322. MANAGEMENT COSTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro-
vision of law (including any administrative rule or guid-
ance), the President shall establish by rule management
cost rates for grantees and subgrantees. Such rates shall
be used to determine contributions under this Act for
management costs.
‘‘(b) MANAGEMENT COSTS DEFINED.—Management
costs include indirect costs, administrative expenses, asso-
ciated expenses, and any other expenses not directly
chargeable to a specific project under a major disaster,
emergency, or emergency preparedness activity or meas-
ure. Such costs include the necessary costs of requesting,
obtaining, and administering Federal assistance and costs
incurred by a State for preparation of damage survey re-
ports, final inspection reports, project applications, final
audits, and related field inspections by State employees,
including overtime pay and per diem and travel expenses
of such employees, but not including pay for regular time
of such employees.
‘‘(c) REVIEW.—The President shall review the man-
agement cost rates established under subsection (a) not
later than 3 years after the date of establishment of such
rates and periodically thereafter.’’.
(b) APPLICABILITY.—Section 322 of the Robert T.
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act
(as added by subsection (a) of this section) shall apply
as follows:
(1) Subsections (a) and (b) of such section 322
shall apply to major disasters declared under such
Act on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
Until the date on which the President establishes the
management cost rates under such subsection, sec-
tion 406(f) shall be used for establishing such rates.
(2) Subsection (c) of such section 322 shall
apply to major disasters declared under such Act on
or after the date on which the President establishes
such rates under subsection (a) of such section 322.
SEC. 202. ASSISTANCE TO REPAIR, RESTORE, RECON-
STRUCT, OR REPLACE DAMAGED FACILITIES.
(a) CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 406(a) (42 U.S.C.
5172(a)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(a) CONTRIBUTIONS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President may make
contributions—
‘‘(A) to a State or local government for the
repair, restoration, reconstruction, or replace-
ment of a public facility which is damaged or
destroyed by a major disaster and for associ-
ated expenses incurred by such government;
and
‘‘(B) subject to paragraph (2), to a person
who owns or operates a private nonprofit facil-
ity damaged or destroyed by a major disaster
for the repair, restoration, reconstruction, or re-
placement of such facility and for associated ex-
penses incurred by such person.
‘‘(2) CONDITIONS FOR ASSISTANCE TO PRIVATE
NONPROFIT FACILITIES.—The President may make
contributions to a private nonprofit facility under
paragraph (1)(B) only if the owner or operator of
the facility—
‘‘(A) has applied for a disaster loan under
section 7(b) of the Small Business Act (15
U.S.C. 636(b)); and
‘‘(B)(i) has been determined to be ineli-
gible for such a loan; or
‘‘(ii) has obtained such a loan in the maxi-
mum amount for which the Small Business Ad-
ministration determines the facility is eligible.’’.
(b) MINIMUM FEDERAL SHARE.—Section 406(b) (42
U.S.C. 5172(b)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b) MINIMUM
FEDERAL
SHARE.—The Federal
share of assistance under this section shall be not less
than 75 percent of the eligible cost of repair, restoration,
reconstruction, or replacement carried out under this sec-
tion.’’.
(c) 
LARGE
IN-LIEU
CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section
406(c) (42 U.S.C. 5172(c)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(c) LARGE IN-LIEU CONTRIBUTIONS.—
‘‘(1) FOR PUBLIC FACILITIES.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which
a State or local government determines that the
public welfare would not be best served by re-
pairing, restoring, reconstructing, or replacing
any public facility owned or controlled by such
State or local government, the State or local
government may elect to receive, in lieu of a
contribution under subsection (a)(1)(A), a con-
tribution of 75 percent of the Federal share of
the Federal estimate of the cost of repairing,
restoring, reconstructing, or replacing such fa-
cility and of management expenses.
‘‘(B) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds contributed
to a State or local government under this para-
graph may be used to repair, restore, or expand
other selected public facilities, to construct new
facilities, or to fund hazard mitigation measures
which the State or local government determines
to be necessary to meet a need for govern-
mental services and functions in the area af-
fected by the major disaster.
‘‘(2) FOR PRIVATE NONPROFIT FACILITIES.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In any case where a
person who owns or operates a private nonprofit
facility determines that the public welfare would
not be best served by repairing, restoring, re-
constructing, or replacing such facility, such
person may elect to receive, in lieu of a con-
tribution under subsection (a)(1)(B), a con-
tribution of 75 percent of the Federal share of
the Federal estimate of the cost of repairing,
restoring, reconstructing, or replacing such fa-
cility and of management expenses.
‘‘(B) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds contributed
to a person under this paragraph may be used
to repair, restore, or expand other selected pri-
vate nonprofit facilities owned or operated by
the person, to construct new private nonprofit
facilities to be owned or operated by the person,
or to fund hazard mitigation measures that the
person determines to be necessary to meet a
need for its services and functions in the area
affected by the major disaster.
‘‘(3) MODIFICATION OF FEDERAL SHARE.—The
President shall modify the Federal share of the cost
estimate provided in paragraphs (1) and (2) if the
President determines an alternative cost share will
likely reduce the total amount of Federal assistance
provided under this section. The Federal cost share
for purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not ex-
ceed 90 percent and shall not be less than 50 per-
cent.’’.
(d) ELIGIBLE COST.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 406(e) (42 U.S.C.
5172(e)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(e) ELIGIBLE COST.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of this
section, the estimate of the cost of repairing, restor-
ing, reconstructing, or replacing a public facility or
private nonprofit facility on the basis of the design
of such facility as it existed immediately before the
major disaster and in conformity with current appli-
cable codes, specifications, and standards (including
floodplain management and hazard mitigation cri-
teria required by the President or by the Coastal
Barrier Resources Act (16 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.))
shall be treated as the eligible cost of such repair,
restoration, reconstruction, or replacement. Subject
to paragraph (2), the President shall use the cost
estimation procedures developed under paragraph
(3) to make the estimate under this paragraph.
‘‘(2) MODIFICATION
OF
ELIGIBLE
COST.—In
the event the actual cost of repairing, restoring, re-
constructing, or replacing a facility under this sec-
tion is more than 120 percent or less than 80 per-
cent of the cost estimated under paragraph (1), the
President may determine that the eligible cost be the
actual cost of such repair, restoration, reconstruc-
tion, or replacement. The government or person re-
ceiving assistance under this section shall reimburse
the President for the portion of such assistance that
exceeds the eligible cost of such repair, restoration,
reconstruction, or replacement.
‘‘(3) EXPERT
PANEL.—Not later than 18
months after the date of enactment of the Disaster
Mitigation Act of 1999, the President, acting
through the Director of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, shall establish an expert panel,
including representatives from the construction in-
dustry, to develop procedures for estimating the cost
of repairing, restoring, reconstructing, or replacing a
facility consistent with industry practices.
‘‘(4) SPECIAL RULE.—In any case in which the
facility being repaired, restored, reconstructed, or re-
placed under this section was under construction on
the date of the major disaster, the cost of repairing,
restoring, reconstructing, or replacing such facility
shall include, for purposes of this section, only those
costs which, under the contract for such construc-
tion, are the owner’s responsibility and not the con-
tractor’s responsibility.’’.
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made
by paragraph (1) shall take effect on the date of en-
actment of this Act; except that paragraph (1) of
section 406(e) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (as amended
by paragraph (1) of this subsection) shall take effect
on the date that the procedures developed under
paragraph (3) of such section take effect.
(e) ASSOCIATED EXPENSES.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 406 (42 U.S.C.
4172) is amended by striking subsection (f).
(2) OTHER ELIGIBLE COSTS.—Section 406(e)
(42 U.S.C. 5172(f)), as amended by subsection (d)
of this section, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
‘‘(5) OTHER ELIGIBLE COSTS.—For purposes of
this section, other eligible costs include the following:
‘‘(A) COSTS
OF
NATIONAL
GUARD.—The
cost of mobilizing and employing the National
Guard for performance of eligible work.
‘‘(B) COSTS OF PRISON LABOR.—The costs
of using prison labor to perform eligible work,
including wages actually paid, transportation to
a worksite, and extraordinary costs of guards,
food, and lodging.
‘‘(C) OTHER
LABOR
COSTS.—Base and
overtime wages for an applicant’s employees
and extra hires performing eligible work plus
fringe benefits on such wages to the extent that
such benefits were being paid before the disas-
ter.’’.
(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Paragraphs (1) and (2)
shall take effect on the date on which the President
establishes management cost rates under section
322(a) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (as added by section
201(a) of this Act). The amendment made by para-
graph (1) shall only apply to disasters declared by
the President under such Act after the date on
which the President establishes such cost rates.
SEC. 203. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND
HOUSEHOLDS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 408 (42 U.S.C. 5174) is
amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 408. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUALS AND
HOUSEHOLDS.
‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Subject to the require-
ments of this section, the President, in consultation with
the Governor of the affected State, may provide financial
assistance, and, if necessary, direct services, to disaster
victims who as a direct result of a major disaster have
necessary expenses and serious needs where such victims
are unable to meet such expenses or needs through other
means.
‘‘(b) HOUSING ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(1) ELIGIBILITY.—The President may provide
financial or other assistance under this section to in-
dividuals and families to respond to the disaster-re-
lated housing needs of those who are displaced from
their predisaster primary residences or whose
predisaster primary residences are rendered un-
inhabitable as a result of damage caused by a major
disaster.
‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF APPROPRIATE TYPES
OF ASSISTANCE.—The President shall determine ap-
propriate types of housing assistance to be provided
to disaster victims under this section based upon
considerations of cost effectiveness, convenience to
disaster victims, and such other factors as the Presi-
dent may consider appropriate. One or more types of
housing assistance may be made available, based on
the suitability and availability of the types of assist-
ance, to meet the needs of disaster victims in the
particular disaster situation.
‘‘(c) TYPES OF HOUSING ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(1) TEMPORARY HOUSING.—
‘‘(A) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The President
may provide financial assistance under this
section to individuals or households to rent
alternate housing accommodations, existing
rental units, manufactured housing, rec-
reational vehicles, or other readily fab-
ricated dwellings.
‘‘(ii) AMOUNT.—The amount of as-
sistance under clause (i) shall be based on
the fair market rent for the accommoda-
tion being furnished plus the cost of any
transportation, utility hookups, or unit in-
stallation not being directly provided by
the President.
‘‘(B) DIRECT ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The President
may also directly provide under this section
housing units, acquired by purchase or
lease, to individuals or households who, be-
cause of a lack of available housing re-
sources, would be unable to make use of
the assistance provided under subpara-
graph (A).
‘‘(ii) PERIOD
OF
ASSISTANCE.—The
President may not provide direct assist-
ance under clause (i) with respect to a
major disaster after the expiration of the
18-month period beginning on the date of
the declaration of the major disaster by the
President, except that the President may
extend such period if the President deter-
mines that due to extraordinary cir-
cumstances an extension would be in the
public interest.
‘‘(iii) 
COLLECTION
OF
RENTAL
CHARGES.—After the expiration of the 18-
month period referred to in clause (ii), the
President may charge fair market rent for
the accommodation being provided.
‘‘(2) REPAIRS.—The President may provide fi-
nancial assistance for the repair of owner-occupied
private residences, utilities, and residential infra-
structure (such as private access routes) damaged by
a major disaster to a habitable or functioning condi-
tion. A recipient of assistance provided under this
paragraph need not show that the assistance can be
met through other means, except insurance proceeds,
if the assistance is used for emergency repairs to
make a private residence habitable and does not ex-
ceed $5,000 (based on fiscal year 1998 constant dol-
lars).
‘‘(3) REPLACEMENT.—The President may pro-
vide financial assistance for the replacement of
owner-occupied private residences damaged by a
major disaster. Assistance provided under this para-
graph shall not exceed $10,000 (based on fiscal year
1998 constant dollars). The President may not waive