Preliminary Damage Assessment Improvement Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.3709 | Sponsor: Rep. Katko, John (R-NY)
Policy area: Emergency Management

Summary:
Preliminary Damage Assessment Improvement Act of 2021
This bill directs the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to (1) submit to Congress a report describing the preliminary damage assessment process, as carried out by FEMA in the five years before this bill's enactment; and (2) convene an advisory panel to assist FEMA in improving critical components of that process.

To direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
 to submit to Congress a report on preliminary damage assessments and 
   make necessary improvements to processes in the Federal Emergency 
               Management Agency, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Preliminary Damage Assessment 
Improvement Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Preliminary damage assessments play a critical role in 
        assessing and validating the impact and magnitude of a 
        disaster.
            (2) Through the preliminary damage assessment process, 
        representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
        validate information gathered by State and local officials that 
        serves as the basis for disaster assistance requests.
            (3) Various factors can impact the duration of a 
        preliminary damage assessment and the corresponding submission 
        of a major disaster request, however, the average time between 
        when a disaster occurs, and the submission of a corresponding 
        disaster request has been found to be approximately twenty days 
        longer for flooding disasters.
            (4) With communities across the country facing increased 
        instances of catastrophic flooding and other extreme weather 
        events, accurate and efficient preliminary damage assessments 
        have become critically important to the relief process for 
        impacted States and municipalities.

SEC. 3. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency shall submit to Congress a report describing the preliminary 
damage assessment process, as supported by the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency in the 5 years before the date of enactment of this 
Act.
    (b) Contents.--The report described in subsection (a) shall contain 
the following:
            (1) The process of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
        for deploying personnel to support preliminary damage 
        assessments.
            (2) The number of Agency staff participating on disaster 
        assessment teams.
            (3) The training and experience of such staff described in 
        paragraph (2).
            (4) A calculation of the average amount of time disaster 
        assessment teams described in paragraph (1) are deployed to a 
        disaster area.
            (5) The efforts of the Agency to maintain a consistent 
        liaison between the Agency and State, local, tribal, and 
        territorial officials within a disaster area.

SEC. 4. PRELIMINARY DAMAGE ASSESSMENT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency shall convene an advisory panel consisting of 
emergency management personnel employed by State, local, territorial, 
or tribal authorities, and the representative organizations of such 
personnel to assist the Agency in improving critical components of the 
preliminary damage assessment process.
    (b) Membership.--
            (1) In general.--This advisory panel shall consist of at 
        least 2 representatives from national emergency management 
        organizations and at least 1 representative from each of the 10 
        regions of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, selected 
        from emergency management personnel employed by State, local, 
        territorial, or tribal authorities within each region.
            (2) Inclusion on panel.--To the furthest extent 
        practicable, representation on the advisory panel shall include 
        emergency management personnel from both rural and urban 
        jurisdictions.
    (c) Considerations.--The advisory panel convened under subsection 
(a) shall--
            (1) consider--
                    (A) establishing a training regime to ensure 
                preliminary damage assessments are conducted and 
                reviewed under consistent guidelines;
                    (B) utilizing a common technological platform to 
                integrate data collected by State and local governments 
                with data collected by the Agency; and
                    (C) assessing instruction materials provided by the 
                Agency for omissions of pertinent information or 
                language that conflicts with other statutory 
                requirements; and
            (2) identify opportunities for streamlining the 
        consideration of preliminary damage assessments by the Agency, 
        including eliminating duplicative paperwork requirements and 
        ensuring consistent communication and decision making among 
        Agency staff.
    (d) Interim Report.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to Congress a 
report regarding the findings of the advisory panel, steps that will be 
undertaken by the Agency to implement the findings of the advisory 
panel, and additional legislation that may be necessary to implement 
the findings of the advisory panel.
    (e) Rulemaking and Final Report.--Not later than 2 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue such 
regulations as are necessary to implement the recommendations of the 
advisory panel and submit to Congress a report discussing--
            (1) the implementation of recommendations from the advisory 
        panel;
            (2) the identification of any additional challenges to the 
        preliminary damage assessment process, including whether 
        specific disasters result in longer preliminary damage 
        assessments; and
            (3) any additional legislative recommendations necessary to 
        improve the preliminary damage assessment process.
                                                       Calendar No. 545

117th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 3709

                          [Report No. 117-194]

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