IB 
Union Calendar No. 322 
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3377 
[Report No. 111–562] 
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act to enhance the Nation’s disaster preparedness, response, recovery, 
and mitigation capabilities, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 29, 2009 
Mr. OBERSTAR (for himself, Mr. MICA, Ms. NORTON, and Mr. MARIO DIAZ- 
BALART of Florida) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
JULY 22, 2010 
Additional sponsors: Mr. FILNER, Mr. BOSWELL, Mr. TAYLOR, Ms. HIRONO, 
Mr. HARE, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. MICHAUD, Mr. COHEN, Ms. SHEA-POR-
TER, and Mr. LARSEN of Washington 
JULY 22, 2010 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on July 29, 2009] 
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A BILL 
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
gency Assistance Act to enhance the Nation’s disaster 
preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation capabili-
ties, and for other purposes. 
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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 ‘‘Disaster Response, Re-
covery, and Mitigation Enhancement Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
Sec. 1. Short title. 
Sec. 2. Table of contents. 
TITLE I—MAJOR DISASTER AND EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE 
ADMINISTRATION 
Sec. 101. Pre-disaster hazard mitigation. 
Sec. 102. Health benefits for temporary employees. 
Sec. 103. Disposal of excess property to assist other disaster survivors. 
Sec. 104. National Urban Search and Rescue Response System. 
Sec. 105. Disaster Relief Fund. 
TITLE II—MAJOR DISASTER AND EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE 
PROGRAMS 
Sec. 201. Additional mitigation assistance. 
Sec. 202. Temporary mortgage and rental payments. 
Sec. 203. Clarification of grant authority. 
Sec. 204. Case management services. 
Sec. 205. Household pets and service animals. 
Sec. 206. Storage, sale, transfer, and disposal of housing units. 
Sec. 207. Other methods of disposal. 
Sec. 208. Establishment of criteria relating to administration of hazard mitiga-
tion assistance by States. 
Sec. 209. Use of financial assistance to disseminate information regarding cost- 
effective mitigation technologies. 
TITLE III—OTHER MATTERS 
Sec. 301. Emergency management assistance compact grants. 
Sec. 302. Authority to accept and use gifts. 
Sec. 303. Individual assistance factors. 
Sec. 304. Technical corrections to references. 
Sec. 305. Functions of Federal coordinating officer. 
Sec. 306. Federal interagency disaster recovery task force. 
Sec. 307. Debris removal. 
Sec. 308. Review of regulations and policies. 
Sec. 309. Appeals process. 
Sec. 310. Repair, restoration, and replacement of damaged facilities. 
Sec. 311. Special procedures for widespread damage. 
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TITLE I—MAJOR DISASTER AND 
EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE AD-
MINISTRATION 
SEC. 101. PRE-DISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION. 
(a) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Section 203(f) of the 
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist-
ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5133(f)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(f) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall award 
financial assistance under this section on a competi-
tive basis and in accordance with the criteria in sub-
section (g). 
‘‘(2) MINIMUM
AND
MAXIMUM
AMOUNTS.—In 
providing financial assistance under this section, the 
President shall ensure that the amount of financial 
assistance made available to a State (including 
amounts made available to local governments of the 
State) for a fiscal year— 
‘‘(A) is not less than the lesser of— 
‘‘(i) $575,000; or 
‘‘(ii) the amount that is equal to one 
percent of the total funds appropriated to 
carry out this section for the fiscal year; 
and 
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‘‘(B) does not exceed the amount that is 
equal to 15 percent of the total funds appro-
priated to carry out this section for the fiscal 
year.’’. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 
203(m) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5133(m)) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(m) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010, 2011, and 
2012.’’. 
(c) REFERENCES.—Section 203 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
5133) is amended— 
(1) 
in 
the 
section 
heading 
by 
striking 
‘‘PREDISASTER’’ and inserting ‘‘PRE-DISASTER’’; 
(2) in the subsection heading for subsection (i) 
by striking ‘‘PREDISASTER’’ and inserting ‘‘PRE-DIS-
ASTER’’; 
(3) by striking ‘‘Predisaster’’ each place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘Pre-Disaster’’; and 
(4) by striking ‘‘predisaster’’ each place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘pre-disaster’’. 
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SEC. 102. HEALTH BENEFITS FOR TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES. 
Section 306 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5149) is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) HEALTH BENEFITS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any provi-
sion of title 5, United States Code, or related regula-
tions limiting or prohibiting the provision of health 
benefits for temporary or intermittent employees, per-
sonnel appointed under subsection (b)(1) shall be eli-
gible to enroll in the Federal Employees Health Bene-
fits plan or any successor health benefits plan ap-
proved and administered by the Office of Personnel 
Management under terms and conditions set by the 
agency appointing the temporary personnel. 
‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than one year 
after the date of enactment of this subsection, and an-
nually thereafter, the President shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
Senate a report on the implementation of this sub-
section.’’. 
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SEC. 103. DISPOSAL OF EXCESS PROPERTY TO ASSIST 
OTHER DISASTER SURVIVORS. 
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. DISPOSAL OF EXCESS MATERIALS, SUPPLIES, 
AND EQUIPMENT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of law, if the President determines that materials, sup-
plies, or equipment acquired by the President pursuant to 
title IV or V for response or recovery efforts in connection 
with a major disaster or emergency is in excess of the 
amount needed for those efforts, the President may transfer 
the excess materials, supplies, or equipment, by sale, at a 
price that is fair and equitable, directly to a State, local 
government, or relief or disaster assistance organization for 
the purpose of— 
‘‘(1) assisting disaster survivors in other major 
disasters and emergencies; and 
‘‘(2) assisting survivors in incidents caused by a 
hazard that do not result in a declaration of a major 
disaster or emergency if— 
‘‘(A) the Governor of the affected State cer-
tifies that— 
‘‘(i) there is an urgent need for the ma-
terials, supplies, or equipment; and 
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‘‘(ii) the State is unable to provide the 
materials, supplies, or equipment in a time-
ly manner; and 
‘‘(B) the President determines that the ma-
terials, supplies, or equipment is not readily 
available from commercial sources, except that 
this subparagraph shall not apply in the case of 
a transfer of perishable supplies. 
‘‘(b) DEPOSIT OF PROCEEDS.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, any proceeds received under sub-
section (a) shall be deposited in the appropriate Disaster 
Relief Fund account. 
‘‘(c) HAZARD DEFINED.—In this section, the term 
‘hazard’ has the meaning given that term by section 602.’’. 
SEC. 104. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RE-
SPONSE SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
5141 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘SEC. 328. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RE-
SPONSE SYSTEM. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi-
nitions apply: 
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‘‘(1) 
ADMINISTRATOR.—The 
term 
‘Adminis-
trator’ means the Administrator of the Federal Emer-
gency Management Agency. 
‘‘(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘Agency’ means the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency. 
‘‘(3) HAZARD.—The term ‘hazard’ has the mean-
ing given that term by section 602. 
‘‘(4) NON-EMPLOYEE
SYSTEM
MEMBER.—The 
term ‘non-employee System member’ means a System 
member not employed by a sponsoring agency or par-
ticipating agency. 
‘‘(5) PARTICIPATING
AGENCY.—The term ‘par-
ticipating agency’ means a State or local government, 
nonprofit organization, or private organization that 
has executed an agreement with a sponsoring agency 
to participate in the System. 
‘‘(6) SPONSORING
AGENCY.—The term ‘spon-
soring agency’ means a State or local government 
that is the sponsor of a task force designated by the 
Administrator to participate in the System. 
‘‘(7) SYSTEM.—The term ‘System’ means the Na-
tional Urban Search and Rescue Response System to 
be administered under this section. 
‘‘(8) SYSTEM MEMBER.—The term ‘System mem-
ber’ means an individual who is not a full-time em-
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ployee of the Federal Government, who serves on a 
task force or on a System management or other tech-
nical team. 
‘‘(9) TASK FORCE.—The term ‘task force’ means 
an urban search and rescue team designated by the 
Administrator to participate in the System. 
‘‘(b) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Subject to the require-
ments of this section, the Administrator shall continue to 
administer the emergency response system known as the Na-
tional Urban Search and Rescue Response System. 
‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—In administering the System, the 
Administrator shall provide for a national network of 
standardized search and rescue resources to assist States 
and local governments in responding to hazards. 
‘‘(d) TASK FORCES.— 
‘‘(1) DESIGNATION.—The Administrator shall 
designate task forces to participate in the System. The 
Administrator shall determine the criteria for such 
participation. 
‘‘(2) SPONSORING
AGENCIES.—Each task force 
shall have a sponsoring agency. The Administrator 
shall enter into an agreement with the sponsoring 
agency of each task force with respect to the partici-
pation of the task force in the System. 
‘‘(3) COMPOSITION.— 
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‘‘(A) PARTICIPATING
AGENCIES.—A task 
force may include, at the discretion of the spon-
soring agency of the task force, one or more par-
ticipating agencies. The sponsoring agency of a 
task force shall enter into an agreement with 
each participating agency of the task force with 
respect to the participation of the participating 
agency on the task force. 
‘‘(B) OTHER
INDIVIDUALS.—A task force 
may also include, at the discretion of the spon-
soring agency of the task force, other individuals 
not otherwise associated with the sponsoring 
agency or a participating agency of the task 
force. The sponsoring agency of a task force may 
enter into a separate agreement with each such 
individual with respect to the participation of 
the individual on the task force. 
‘‘(e) MANAGEMENT AND TECHNICAL TEAMS.—The Ad-
ministrator shall maintain such management teams and 
other technical teams as the Administrator determines are 
necessary to administer the System. 
‘‘(f) APPOINTMENT OF SYSTEM MEMBERS INTO FED-
ERAL SERVICE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may ap-
point a System member into Federal service for a pe-
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riod of service to provide for the participation of the 
System member in exercises, preincident staging, 
major disaster and emergency response activities, and 
training events sponsored or sanctioned by the Ad-
ministrator. 
‘‘(2) NONAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERV-
ICE LAWS.—The Administrator may make appoint-
ments under paragraph (1) without regard to the pro-
visions of title 5, United States Code, governing ap-
pointments in the competitive service. 
‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER AUTHORITIES.— 
The authority of the Administrator to make appoint-
ments under this subsection shall not affect any other 
authority of the Administrator under this Act. 
‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—A System member who is ap-
pointed into Federal service under paragraph (1) 
shall not be deemed an employee of the United States 
for purposes other than those specifically set forth in 
this section. 
‘‘(g) COMPENSATION.— 
‘‘(1) PAY OF SYSTEM MEMBERS.—Subject to such 
terms and conditions as the Administrator may im-
pose by regulation, the Administrator shall make pay-
ments to the sponsoring agency of a task force— 
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‘‘(A) to reimburse each employer of a Sys-
tem member on the task force for compensation 
paid by the employer to the System member for 
any period during which the System member is 
appointed into Federal service under subsection 
(f)(1); and 
‘‘(B) to make payments directly to a non- 
employee System member on the task force for 
any period during which the non-employee Sys-
tem member is appointed into Federal service 
under subsection (f)(1). 
‘‘(2) REIMBURSEMENT FOR EMPLOYEES FILLING 
POSITIONS OF SYSTEM MEMBERS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to such terms 
and conditions as the Administrator may impose 
by regulation, the Administrator shall make pay-
ments to the sponsoring agency of a task force to 
reimburse each employer of a System member on 
the task force for compensation paid by the em-
ployer to an employee filling a position normally 
filled by the System member for any period dur-
ing which the System member is appointed into 
Federal service under subsection (f)(1). 
‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—Costs incurred by an 
employer shall be eligible for reimbursement 
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(A) are needed to respond appropriately to 
emergencies or major disasters; and 
(B) are in suitable condition. 
(d) TRANSFER OF TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS TO 
STATES.— 
(1) 
IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 
section 
408(d)(2) of the Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. 5174(d)(2)), 
and subject to the requirements of paragraph (2), the 
Administrator may transfer or donate to States, on a 
priority basis, pursuant to subsection (c)(1)(B), excess 
temporary housing units in the inventory of FEMA 
that are in suitable condition. 
(2) STATE REQUESTS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months 
after the date of enactment of this Act, a State 
may submit to the Administrator a request to re-
ceive excess temporary housing units under 
paragraph (1). 
(B) ELIGIBILITY.—A State shall be eligible 
to receive excess temporary housing units under 
paragraph (1) if the State agrees— 
(i) to use the units to provide tem-
porary housing to survivors of incidents 
that are caused by hazards and that the 
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