I 
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4478 
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act to direct the President to take actions to address the needs of 
children and families who are victims of a major disaster, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 20, 2010 
Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida 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 direct the President to take 
actions to address the needs of children and families 
who are victims of a major disaster, and for other pur-
poses. 
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 ‘‘Kids Wish II Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
Section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122) is 
amended— 
(1) in paragraph (9)(C) by inserting ‘‘child 
care,’’ after ‘‘educational,’’; 
(2) in paragraph (10)(A) by inserting ‘‘child 
care,’’ after ‘‘educational,’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(11) CHILDREN.—The term ‘children’ means 
individuals who are 18 years of age or younger. 
‘‘(12) EMERGENCY
CHILD
CARE.—The term 
‘emergency child care’ means supervision, recreation, 
and other services offered by a State or local govern-
ment (or a child care provider regulated by a State) 
for the purpose of providing nonparental care for 
children in the event of a major disaster or emer-
gency.’’. 
SEC. 3. ELIGIBILITY OF FOR-PROFIT CHILD CARE FACILI-
TIES FOR DISASTER ASSISTANCE. 
Title I of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 103. FOR-PROFIT CHILD CARE FACILITIES. 
‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, a 
private for-profit child care facility shall be eligible for as-
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sistance under this Act to the same extent as a private 
nonprofit child care facility.’’. 
SEC. 4. DISASTER PLANNING. 
Title III of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5141 et seq.) 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 327. DISASTER PLANNING TO ADDRESS NEEDS OF 
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES. 
‘‘(a) STATE AND LOCAL DISASTER PLANNING.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall encour-
age States and localities to include consideration of 
services and facilities for children within all phases 
of their disaster planning, training, and exercises. 
‘‘(2) SERVICES AND FACILITIES FOR CHILDREN 
DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘services 
and facilities for children’ includes— 
‘‘(A) health and mental health services and 
facilities for children; 
‘‘(B) school services and facilities; 
‘‘(C) child care services and facilities; 
‘‘(D) services and facilities associated with 
early education programs, including the Head 
Start program; 
‘‘(E) juvenile corrections, detention, and 
court services and facilities; 
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‘‘(F) child welfare services and facilities; 
and 
‘‘(G) residential care services and facilities 
for children, including residential treatment 
centers and group homes. 
‘‘(b) NATIONAL DISASTER PLANNING.—The Presi-
dent shall take such actions as may be necessary to include 
the provision of services and facilities for children within 
national planning activities, including the National Re-
sponse Framework and the National Disaster Recovery 
Framework. 
‘‘(c) SPECIFIC MEASURABLE CAPABILITIES OF DIS-
ASTER PLANS.—The President shall ensure, to the max-
imum extent practicable, that disaster plans for services 
and facilities for children, at a minimum, incorporate spe-
cific measurable capabilities for shelter-in-place, evacu-
ation, relocation, family reunification, temporary oper-
ating standards, and accommodation of children with dis-
abilities and chronic health needs and other special needs 
child populations.’’. 
SEC. 5. DISASTER ASSISTANCE FOR CHILD CARE SERVICES 
AND FACILITIES. 
(a) ESSENTIAL ASSISTANCE.—Section 403(a)(3) of 
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As-
sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170b(a)(3)) is amended— 
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(1) in subparagraph (D) by inserting ‘‘, child 
care,’’ after ‘‘schools’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara-
graph (I); 
(3) by striking the period at the end of sub-
paragraph (J) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(K) provision of emergency child care and 
assistance to families for child placement in 
emergency child care.’’. 
(b) REPAIR, RESTORATION, AND REPLACEMENT OF 
DAMAGED FACILITIES.—Section 406(a)(3)(B) of such Act 
(42 U.S.C. 5172(a)(3)(B)) is amended by inserting ‘‘child 
care,’’ after ‘‘education,’’. 
(c) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE
TO INDIVIDUALS
AND 
HOUSEHOLDS.—Section 408(e)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
5174(e)(2)) is amended— 
(1) in the paragraph heading by inserting 
‘‘CHILD CARE,’’ after ‘‘TRANSPORTATION,’’; and 
(2) by inserting ‘‘child care,’’ after ‘‘transpor-
tation,’’. 
SEC. 6. CASE MANAGEMENT SERVICES. 
Section 426 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5189d) is 
amended— 
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(1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 
‘‘The President’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) EMPHASIS ON CHILDREN AND FAMILIES.— 
In carrying out this section, the President shall es-
tablish a single Federal disaster case management 
program with an emphasis on achieving tangible, 
positive outcomes for all children and families who 
are victims of a major disaster. 
‘‘(2) COMPONENTS.—The program shall— 
‘‘(A) adequately address the physical 
health, mental health, nutrition, education, 
housing, transportation, and other human serv-
ices needs of children and families who are vic-
tims of a major disaster; 
‘‘(B) provide for the involvement of non-
profit agencies that provide disaster case man-
agement services; 
‘‘(C) provide access to funding that sup-
ports all aspects of disaster case management, 
including direct services to survivors; 
‘‘(D) provide for a single point of contact 
for disaster assistance applicants who need a 
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wide variety of services that may be provided by 
many different organizations; and 
‘‘(E) provide funding to support case man-
ager training.’’. 
SEC. 7. ASSISTANCE TO MEET NEEDS OF CHILDREN AND 
FAMILIES. 
Title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170 et seq.) is 
amended— 
(1) by redesignating the second section 425, re-
lating to essential service providers, as section 427; 
and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 428. ASSISTANCE TO MEET NEEDS OF CHILDREN AND 
FAMILIES. 
‘‘(a) MASS CARE SHELTERS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President may provide 
mass care shelters for victims of major disasters. 
Such shelters shall provide a safe and secure mass 
care shelter environment for children, including ap-
propriate access to essential services and supplies. 
‘‘(2) STANDARDS.—In carrying out this sub-
section, the President shall— 
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‘‘(A) develop and implement national 
standards and indicators for mass care shelters 
that are specific and responsive to children; 
‘‘(B) develop a list of essential age-appro-
priate shelter supplies for infants and children 
and fund the addition of child-specific supplies 
to caches for immediate deployment to support 
shelter operations; 
‘‘(C) ensure the implementation of stand-
ards and training to mitigate risks unique to 
children in shelters, including child abduction 
and sex offenders; and 
‘‘(D) ensure all shelter operators have ac-
cess to a fast, accurate, and low-cost system for 
conducting national fingerprint-based criminal 
history background checks for shelter workers 
and volunteers. 
‘‘(b) HOUSING.—The President— 
‘‘(1) shall give priority to families with children 
in providing disaster housing assistance under this 
title; and 
‘‘(2) may provide financial and other assistance 
for individuals and families who are victims of a 
major disaster to ensure an expedited transition into 
permanent housing, especially for families with chil-
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dren who have disabilities or other special health, 
mental health, or educational needs. 
‘‘(c) EVACUATION.—The President, in coordination 
with the heads of other appropriate Federal agencies, shall 
develop a standardized, interoperable national evacuee 
tracking and family reunification system that ensures the 
safety and well-being of children.’’. 
SEC. 8. DISASTER RELATED INFORMATION SERVICES. 
Section 616(a)(2)(B) of the Robert T. Stafford Dis-
aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
5196f(a)(2)(B)) is amended by inserting ‘‘children and’’ 
before ‘‘individuals with disabilities’’. 
Æ 
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