Title: Post-Disaster Fairness to States Act of 2017
Policy area: Emergency Management

Summary:
Post-Disaster Fairness to States Act of 2017
This bill amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act) to prohibit the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from taking administrative action to recover any payment for disaster or emergency assistance that is made three years after a completed disaster relief project where the project grantee certifies that the purpose of the grant was accomplished. Under current law, FEMA may initiate an action to recover assistance payments for up to three years after the transmission of a final expenditure report for a disaster or emergency.
Additionally, the bill prohibits FEMA from taking any action to recoup certain assistance under the Stafford Act provided to individuals and households (relating to a major disaster declared on or after January 1, 2012), if the receipt of such assistance occurred more than three years before FEMA first provided written notification of an intent to recoup such assistance.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1641 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1641

     To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
 Assistance Act to limit certain administrative actions, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 27, 2017

   Mr. Rubio introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
 Assistance Act to limit certain administrative actions, 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 ``Post-Disaster Fairness to States Act 
of 2017''.

SEC. 2. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Section 705 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5205) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1)--
                    (A) by striking ``Except'' and inserting 
                ``Notwithstanding section 3716(e) of title 31, United 
                States Code, and except''; and
                    (B) by striking ``report for the disaster or 
                emergency'' and inserting ``report for project 
                completion as certified by the grantee if the purpose 
                of the grant was accomplished''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``report for the 
                disaster or emergency'' and inserting ``report for 
                project completion as certified by the grantee if the 
                purpose of the grant was accomplished''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``for project 
                completion as certified by the grantee if the purpose 
                of the grant was accomplished'' after ``final 
                expenditure report''.
    (b) Applicability.--
            (1) In general.--With respect to disaster or emergency 
        assistance provided to a State or local government after 
        January 1, 2004, section 705 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
        Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5205), as 
        amended by subsection (a), is applicable to any administrative 
        action to recover a payment of such assistance for which a 
        final agency decision has not been made as of the date of 
        enactment of this Act.
            (2) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this section, or the 
        amendments made by this section, shall be construed to 
        invalidate or otherwise affect any administration action or 
        final agency decision completed before the date of enactment of 
        this Act.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON RECOVERY OF FEMA ASSISTANCE FUNDS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 3716(e) of title 31, 
United States Code, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency may not take any action to recoup covered assistance 
from the recipient of the covered assistance if the receipt of the 
covered assistance occurred on a date that is more than 3 years before 
the date on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency first 
provided to the recipient written notification of an intent to recoup 
the covered assistance.
    (b) Covered Assistance Defined.--In this section, the term 
``covered assistance'' means assistance provided--
            (1) under section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
        Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174); and
            (2) in relation to a major disaster declared by the 
        President under section 401 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) on or 
        after January 1, 2012.
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