Resilient Communities Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3531 To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to allow the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide capitalization grants to States to establish revolving funds to provide assistance to reduce the harmful impacts to people and property from multiple hazards, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 27, 2019 Mr. GRAVES of Missouri 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 allow the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide cap- italization grants to States to establish revolving funds to provide assistance to reduce the harmful impacts to people and property from multiple hazards, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Resilient Communities 4 Act of 2019’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 3531 IH SEC. 2. REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS TO MITIGATE FOR MUL- 1 TIPLE HAZARDS. 2 Title II of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 3 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5131 et seq.) is 4 amended by adding at the end the following: 5 ‘‘SEC. 205. REVOLVING LOAN FUND. 6 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 7 ‘‘(1) the term ‘eligible entity’ means a State or 8 Indian Tribal Government as those terms are de- 9 fined in section 102 of this Act; 10 ‘‘(2) the term ‘participating entity’ means an el- 11 igible entity that— 12 ‘‘(A) has entered into an agreement under 13 subsection (b)(1); and 14 ‘‘(B) agrees to comply with the require- 15 ments of this section; 16 ‘‘(3) the term ‘mitigation loan fund’ means a 17 multihazard mitigation assistance revolving loan 18 fund established by an eligible entity under this sec- 19 tion; and 20 ‘‘(4) the term ‘eligible recipient’ means a local 21 governmental entity, a State agency or subdivision 22 thereof. 23 ‘‘(b) GENERAL AUTHORITY.— 24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may 25 enter into an agreement with an eligible entity to 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:51 Jul 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 3531 IH provide a capitalization grant for the eligible entity 1 to establish a revolving loan fund that will provide 2 funding assistance to an eligible recipient to reduce 3 disaster risks for homeowners, businesses, nonprofit 4 organizations, and communities in order to de- 5 crease— 6 ‘‘(A) the loss of life and property; 7 ‘‘(B) the cost of insurance; and 8 ‘‘(C) Federal disaster payments. 9 ‘‘(2) TIMING OF DEPOSIT AND AGREEMENTS 10 FOR DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the 12 last day of the fiscal year following the fiscal 13 year in which a capitalization grant is made to 14 a participating entity under paragraph (1), the 15 participating entity shall— 16 ‘‘(i) deposit the grant in the mitiga- 17 tion loan fund of the eligible entity; and 18 ‘‘(ii) enter into 1 or more agreements 19 to distribute the grant funds for purposes 20 authorized under subsection (d). 21 ‘‘(B) NONCOMPLIANCE.—Except as pro- 22 vided in subparagraph (C), if a participating 23 entity does not comply with subparagraph (A) 24 with respect to a grant, the Administrator shall 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 3531 IH reallocate the grant in accordance with para- 1 graph (3). 2 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—The Administrator 3 may not reallocate any funds under subpara- 4 graph (B) to a participating entity that violated 5 subparagraph (A) with respect to a grant made 6 during the same fiscal year in which the funds 7 to be reallocated were originally made available. 8 ‘‘(3) ALLOCATION.— 9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 10 shall allocate amounts made available to carry 11 out this section to participating entities— 12 ‘‘(i) for the participating entities to 13 deposit in the mitigation loan funds estab- 14 lished by the participating entities; and 15 ‘‘(ii) except as provided in paragraph 16 (5), in accordance with the requirements 17 described in subparagraph (B). 18 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The requirements 19 described in this subparagraph are as follows: 20 ‘‘(i) Eligible entities must apply to the 21 Administrator for an allocation of financial 22 assistance to capitalize the loans and com- 23 mit to a 10 percent match of the requested 24 funds. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 3531 IH ‘‘(ii) Seventy-five percent of the 1 project selection must be composed of local 2 government hazard mitigation projects and 3 eligible entities must give at least 3 weeks 4 notice to their local governments before re- 5 quiring all hazard mitigation projects to be 6 submitted. 7 ‘‘(iii) Eligible entities may not provide 8 more than $5,000,000 in loan funds to- 9 ward the completion of any single hazard 10 mitigation project. 11 ‘‘(iv) A participating entity must 12 agree to the revolving loan repayment 13 terms issued by the Administrator upon 14 being selected to participate. 15 ‘‘(v) No more than 10 percent of the 16 loan funds provided to a participating enti- 17 ty may be used for the purposes of plan- 18 ning. 19 ‘‘(C) PRIORITIZATION.—The Administrator 20 shall prioritize loan funds to participating enti- 21 ties with intended use plans that include 22 projects that— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 3531 IH ‘‘(i) include the restoration and aug- 1 mentation of natural and built infrastruc- 2 ture; 3 ‘‘(ii) involve more than 1 eligible enti- 4 ty or recipient partnering together; 5 ‘‘(iii) take into account regional im- 6 pacts of hazards such as— 7 ‘‘(I) river basins; 8 ‘‘(II) river corridors; 9 ‘‘(III) micro and macro water- 10 sheds; and 11 ‘‘(IV) estuaries, bays, and coastal 12 regions; and 13 ‘‘(iv) involve the resilience of major 14 economic sectors and critical national in- 15 frastructure such as ports, power and 16 water production and distribution centers, 17 bridges, and waterways essential to inter- 18 state commerce. 19 ‘‘(4) FURTHER REVOLVING FUND REQUIRE- 20 MENTS.—A participating entity that exercises the 21 authority under paragraph (3)(A) in a fiscal year 22 shall provide matching funds from non-Federal 23 sources in an amount that is equal to 10 percent of 24 the amount that the participating entity receives 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 3531 IH under paragraph (3)(A) in that fiscal year for pur- 1 poses described in the respective intended use plan. 2 ‘‘(5) RESERVATION OF FUNDS.—The Adminis- 3 trator shall reserve not more than 1.5 percent of the 4 amount made available to carry out this section in 5 a fiscal year— 6 ‘‘(A) for administrative costs incurred by 7 FEMA in carrying out this section; and 8 ‘‘(B) for FEMA to provide technical assist- 9 ance to recipients of loans under this section. 10 ‘‘(6) PARTNERSHIPS.—Eligible recipients may 11 partner with nongovernmental organizations to en- 12 sure projects reduce disaster risks for homeowners, 13 businesses, nonprofit organizations, and commu- 14 nities. 15 ‘‘(c) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW OF REVOLVING LOAN 16 FUND PROJECTS.—Notwithstanding any other Federal 17 law, Federal environmental review of the mitigation loan 18 fund projects shall be delegated to the participating enti- 19 ties but only for the purposes of carrying out the mitiga- 20 tion revolving loan fund program as authorized under this 21 section. Such participating entities shall establish a Fed- 22 eral equivalency environmental review involving consider- 23 ation of alternatives, analysis of potential effects, oppor- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 3531 IH tunity for public notice and comments, and compliance 1 with Federal environmental laws and Executive orders. 2 ‘‘(d) USE OF FUNDS.— 3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts deposited in a 4 mitigation loan fund, including repayments of loans 5 made from the fund and interest earned on the 6 amounts in the fund, shall be used— 7 ‘‘(A) consistent with paragraphs (2) and 8 (3) and subsection (h), to provide financial as- 9 sistance for any eligible recipient; 10 ‘‘(B) as a source of revenue and security 11 for leveraged loans, the proceeds of which shall 12 be deposited in the mitigation loan fund; or 13 ‘‘(C) for the sale of bonds as security for 14 payment of the principal and interest on rev- 15 enue or general obligation bonds issued by the 16 participating entity to provide matching funds 17 under subsection (g), if the proceeds from the 18 sale of the bonds are deposited in the mitigation 19 loan fund. 20 ‘‘(2) PURPOSES.—An eligible recipient of finan- 21 cial assistance provided through amounts from a 22 mitigation loan fund— 23 ‘‘(A) shall use the amounts in a cost-effec- 24 tive manner under requirements established by 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 3531 IH the participating entity, which may require an 1 applicant for financial assistance to submit a 2 cost-benefit analysis before the date on which 3 the applicant receives the assistance; 4 ‘‘(B) shall use the amounts for projects 5 that are located in communities that have devel- 6 oped a local hazard mitigation plan that has 7 been approved by the Administrator; 8 ‘‘(C) may use the amounts to— 9 ‘‘(i) establish and carry out enforce- 10 ment activities and implement consensus- 11 based codes, specifications, and standards; 12 ‘‘(ii) study special zoning overlay dis- 13 tricts that better interface waterfront de- 14 velopment with natural assets through the 15 use of buffer zones and shoreline set-backs, 16 protect freshwater resources for drinking 17 and manufacturing, and flood prevention 18 through installation and restoration of nat- 19 ural infrastructure such as connected 20 floodplain, wetlands, marshes, setback 21 areas, and riverfront parks; 22 ‘‘(iii) study agriculture risk compensa- 23 tion districts where there is a desire to re- 24 move or set-back levees protecting highly 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 3531 IH developed agricultural land to mitigate for 1 flooding, allowing agricultural producers to 2 receive compensation for assuming greater 3 flood risk that would alleviate flood expo- 4 sure to population centers and areas with 5 critical national infrastructure; 6 ‘‘(iv) study land use incentives that 7 reward developers for greater reliance on 8 LID stormwater best management prac- 9 tices, exchange density increases for in- 10 creased open space and improvement of 11 neighborhood catch basins to mitigate 12 urban flooding, reward developers for in- 13 cluding and augmenting natural infrastruc- 14 ture adjacent to and around building 15 projects without reliance on increased 16 sprawl; or 17 ‘‘(v) study an erosion response plan 18 that accommodates river, lake, and ocean 19 shoreline retreating or bluff stabilization 20 due to increased flooding and disaster im- 21 pacts. 22 ‘‘(3) ALLOWANCE.—The Administrator shall 23 promulgate an allowance within this section to allow 24 participating entities to use revolving loan funds to- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 3531 IH ward resilience to hazards. Participating entities 1 may direct a portion of revolving loan funds toward 2 resilience activities that mitigate for the impacts of 3 the following: 4 ‘‘(A) FLOODING.—Funds may be applied 5 to— 6 ‘‘(i) structural elevation; 7 ‘‘(ii) flood proofing; 8 ‘‘(iii) the relocation or removal of 9 buildings; 10 ‘‘(iv) environmental restoration activi- 11 ties that directly reduce flood risk; 12 ‘‘(v) construction, repair or replace- 13 ment of non-Federal levees; 14 ‘‘(vi) nonprofits, businesses, and other 15 nongovernmental entities for projects that 16 will reduce flood risk; and 17 ‘‘(vii) other activities determined ap- 18 propriate by the Administrator. 19 ‘‘(B) DROUGHT AND PROLONGED EPI- 20 SODES OF INTENSE HEAT.—Funds may be ap- 21 plied to— 22 ‘‘(i) planning and protocols for 23 healthcare facility response and plans that 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 3531 IH add heat-related illness treatment capac- 1 ities; 2 ‘‘(ii) planning and protocols for the 3 deployment of cooling centers for vulner- 4 able populations; 5 ‘‘(iii) heat island and heat sink effect 6 reduction activities such as— 7 ‘‘(I) increasing urban canopies; 8 and 9 ‘‘(II) replacing natural assets 10 more suited to drought and warmer 11 climates; 12 ‘‘(iv) replacing infrastructure vulner- 13 able to the rapid deteriorating effects of in- 14 tense heat with better alternatives includ- 15 ing natural solutions; 16 ‘‘(v) restoration of natural infrastruc- 17 ture such as forests to absorb heat effects; 18 ‘‘(vi) restoration and installment of 19 wetlands and marshes to retain moisture 20 during drought and intensely hot periods; 21 ‘‘(vii) increased urban green space 22 that works to reduce heat island effects; 23 ‘‘(viii) water conservation plans and 24 protocols designed for severe drought; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:24 Jul 06, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3531.IH H3531 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 •HR 3531 IH ‘‘(ix) small business assistance pro- 1 gram assembly and planning for businesses 2 likely to be most impacted by drought. 3 ‘‘(C) SEVERE STORMS.—Funds may be ap- 4 plied to mitigation and resilience for the fol- 5 lowing: 6 ‘‘(i) STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS AND 7 TORNADIC ACTIVITY.—Funds may be used 8 for infrastructure resilience activities that 9 mitigate against significan [Text truncated for display. 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