What This Bill Does
This bill allows the President to give money to states and American Indian tribes to help them recover from major disasters. The assistance covers costs for cleanup, fixing infrastructure and homes, reducing future disaster damage, and helping the economy recover after a disaster is officially declared.
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Who It Affects
States and American Indian tribes that experience major declared disasters, the President, Congress, the Small Business Administration, and people who receive disaster assistance.
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Key Provisions
• The President can give disaster recovery money to states and tribes for unmet needs like cleanup, housing repair, and economic recovery after a major disaster is declared (Sec. 431(a))
• States and tribes must report how they spent the first 50 percent of money received, and Congress has 60 days to approve the spending before releasing the remaining 50 percent (Sec. 431(d)(2)(A) and (B)(i))
• States and tribes can use up to 13 percent of grant money for administrative costs like audits and oversight, though the President can adjust this percentage based on the total amount received (Sec. 431(c)(1))
• The President must collect disaster damage data and make it public within 90 days, but must protect personal information of people who receive assistance (Sec. 431(b))
• States and tribes must require that whoever receives money from them uses fair competition when buying goods and services and follows federal laws (Sec. 431(d)(3))
• Any unused money must be returned to the federal treasury after 6 years, unless the President extends this deadline in writing (Sec. 431(g)(4) and (5))
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What Changes
The law creates a new program allowing direct federal grants to states and tribes for disaster recovery that they control (not the President), separate from other existing disaster assistance programs. It also creates a new reserve account in the Treasury called the Natural Disaster Recovery Reserve Fund to pay for technical help and training for states and tribes managing these grants.
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Important Definitions
**Unmet Need:** Any item, support, or help that has been checked and confirmed as necessary for someone to recover from a major disaster. Examples include food, clothing, shelter, first aid, emotional support, household items, home repair, or rebuilding.
**State Auditor:** The person each state chooses to report on how disaster money was spent and confirm that no money was wasted or misused.
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1605
To authorize the President to provide disaster assistance to States and Indian
Tribes under a major disaster recovery program, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 14, 2023
Mr. ROUZER (for himself and Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure
A BILL
To authorize the President to provide disaster assistance
to States and Indian Tribes under a major disaster re-
covery program, 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 ‘‘Natural Disaster Re-
4
covery Program Act of 2023’’.
5
SEC. 2. NATURAL DISASTER RECOVERY PROGRAM.
6
The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
7
gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) is amended
8
by adding at the end of title IV the following:
9
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•HR 1605 IH
‘‘SEC. 431. NATURAL DISASTER RECOVERY PROGRAM.
1
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY; USE.—The President may provide
2
assistance under this section to States and Indian Tribes
3
for unmet need, including necessary expenses for activities
4
related to disaster relief, resiliency, long-term recovery,
5
restoration of infrastructure and housing, mitigation, and
6
economic revitalization after a major disaster is declared
7
under section 401.
8
‘‘(b) COORDINATION OF DISASTER BENEFITS AND
9
DATA WITH OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—
10
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall coordi-
11
nate with other agencies to obtain data on recovery
12
needs and unmet need, including the Administrator
13
of the Small Business Administration and other
14
agencies when necessary regarding disaster benefits.
15
Not later than 90 days after a major disaster is de-
16
clared, the President shall make publicly available all
17
data collected, possessed, or analyzed during the
18
course of a disaster recovery for which assistance is
19
provided under this section, including—
20
‘‘(A) all data on damage caused by the dis-
21
aster;
22
‘‘(B) information on how any Federal as-
23
sistance provided in connection with the dis-
24
aster is expended;
25
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•HR 1605 IH
‘‘(C) information regarding the effect of
1
the disaster on education, transportation capa-
2
bilities and dependence, housing needs, health
3
care capacity, and displacement of persons; and
4
‘‘(D) the extent of the unmet need.
5
‘‘(2) PROTECTION OF PERSONALLY IDENTIFI-
6
ABLE
INFORMATION.—In carrying out this sub-
7
section, the President and the grantee shall take
8
such actions as may be necessary to ensure that per-
9
sonally identifiable information regarding recipients
10
of assistance provided under this section is not made
11
publicly available by any agency with which informa-
12
tion is shared pursuant to this subsection.
13
‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—
14
‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—
15
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A State or Indian
16
Tribe receiving a grant under this section may
17
use not more than 13 percent of the amount of
18
grant funds received, or within such other per-
19
centage as may be established pursuant to sub-
20
paragraph (B), for administrative costs, includ-
21
ing costs related to audits, reviews, oversight,
22
evaluation, and investigations.
23
‘‘(B) DISCRETION TO ESTABLISH SLIDING
24
SCALE.—The President may establish a series
25
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•HR 1605 IH
of percentage limitations on the amount of
1
grant funds received that may be used by a
2
grantee for administrative costs, but only if—
3
‘‘(i) such percentage limitations are
4
based on the amount of grant funds re-
5
ceived by a grantee; and
6
‘‘(ii) such series provides that the per-
7
centage that may be used is lower for
8
grantees receiving a greater amount of
9
grant funds and such percentage that may
10
be used is higher for grantees receiving a
11
lesser amount of grant funds.
12
‘‘(2) CAPACITY BUILDING.—From funds made
13
available for use under this section, the President
14
shall provide necessary technical assistance to grant-
15
ees to ensure grantees are compliant with Federal
16
law, and capacity building and technical assistance,
17
including assistance regarding contracting and pro-
18
curement processes, including providing solicitation
19
and contractual templates that conform to Federal
20
requirements for use by grantees.
21
‘‘(d) ALLOCATION, PROCESS, AND PROCEDURES; CO-
22
ORDINATION.—
23
‘‘(1) ALLOCATION.—
24
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•HR 1605 IH
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The President shall
1
allocate funds under this section proportionally
2
to grantees based on their level of unmet need
3
as determined pursuant to subsection (b).
4
‘‘(B) GRANTEE
USE
OF
FUNDS.—Each
5
grantee, not the President, shall be responsible
6
for determining how funds provided under this
7
section are prioritized and spent and a grantee
8
shall not be required to provide an action or
9
spending plan before or after funds are allo-
10
cated, except that the grantee shall use a por-
11
tion of these funds for cleaning and removing
12
debris from rivers, creeks, streams, and ditches.
13
‘‘(C) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding sec-
14
tion 312, a loan shall not be considered a dupli-
15
cation of benefits or otherwise impact the level
16
of unmet need under this section.
17
‘‘(2)
GRANTEE
PROCESSES
AND
PROCE-
18
DURES.—
19
‘‘(A) INITIAL
GRANT
FUNDS.—Initially,
20
grantees shall be awarded 50 percent of their
21
total allocation under paragraph (1). After ex-
22
penditure of such amount, a grantee shall sub-
23
mit a report, detailing how such grant funds
24
were spent, to the Committees on Appropria-
25
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•HR 1605 IH
tions of the House of Representatives and the
1
Senate, the Committee on Transportation and
2
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives,
3
and the Committee on Homeland Security and
4
Governmental Affairs of the Senate. Such re-
5
port shall include a certification from the State
6
Auditor that none of the funds were wasted or
7
used inappropriately.
8
‘‘(B) CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL.—
9
‘‘(i) APPROVAL.—Not later than 60
10
days after receipt of the report under sub-
11
paragraph (A), Congress shall approve or
12
disapprove the report. If the report is ap-
13
proved, or if 60 days has lapsed and Con-
14
gress has not commented on the report,
15
the remaining 50 percent of the allocation
16
under paragraph (1) shall be released to
17
the grantee.
18
‘‘(ii) DISAPPROVAL.—If Congress dis-
19
approves the report, the grantee shall work
20
with Congress to address any and all con-
21
cerns regarding how the initial 50 percent
22
of the grant money was expended. Once
23
these concerns are resolved, the remaining
24
funds shall be released to the grantee.
25
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•HR 1605 IH
‘‘(iii) FRAUD OR ABUSE.—If Congress
1
determines that a grantee committed fraud
2
or abuse, Congress shall require the Presi-
3
dent to recover all funds provided to the
4
grantee under this section. Any amount re-
5
covered under this clause shall be redistrib-
6
uted to other grantees with approved re-
7
ports pursuant to clause (i).
8
‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS.—Each State and Indian
9
Tribe that receives funds under this section shall es-
10
tablish or adhere to existing guidelines for procure-
11
ment processes and procedures and require that sub-
12
grantees—
13
‘‘(A) provide for full and open competition
14
and require cost or price analysis;
15
‘‘(B) specify methods of procurement and
16
their applicability, but not allow cost-plus-a-per-
17
centage-of cost or percentage-of-construction-
18
cost methods of procurement;
19
‘‘(C) include standards of conduct gov-
20
erning employees engaged in the award or ad-
21
ministration of contracts; and
22
‘‘(D) ensure that all purchase orders and
23
contracts include any clauses required by Fed-
24
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•HR 1605 IH
eral statute, Executive order, or implementing
1
regulation.
2
‘‘(e) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.—Recipients of funds
3
received under this section that use funds to supplement
4
funds provided under section 402, 403, 404, 406, 407,
5
408(c)(4), 428, or 502 may adopt, without review or pub-
6
lic comment, any environmental review, approval, or per-
7
mit performed by a Federal agency.
8
‘‘(f) BEST PRACTICES.—The President shall identify
9
best practices for grantees on issues including developing
10
action plans, establishing financial controls, building
11
grantee technical and administrative capacity, procure-
12
ment, and use of grant funds as local match for other
13
sources of Federal funding. Not later than 1 year after
14
the date of enactment of this section, the President shall
15
publish a compilation of such identified best practices and
16
share with all relevant grantees to facilitate a more effi-
17
cient and effective disaster recovery process.
18
‘‘(g) NATURAL
DISASTER
RECOVERY
RESERVE
19
FUND.—
20
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the
21
Treasury of the United States an account to be
22
known as the Natural Disaster Recovery Reserve
23
Fund (in this section referred to as the ‘Fund’).
24
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•HR 1605 IH
‘‘(2) AMOUNTS.—The Fund shall consist of any
1
amounts appropriated to or deposited into the Fund,
2
including amounts deposited into the Fund pursuant
3
to paragraph (4).
4
‘‘(3) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts in the Fund
5
shall be available, pursuant to a declaration of a
6
major disaster, only for providing technical assist-
7
ance and capacity building in connection with sub-
8
section (c)(4) for grantees that have been allocated
9
assistance under this section in connection with such
10
disaster to facilitate planning and increase capacity
11
to administer assistance under this section.
12
‘‘(4) UNUSED AMOUNTS.—If any amounts made
13
available for assistance under this section to grant-
14
ees remain unexpended on the earlier of—
15
‘‘(A) the date that the grantee of such
16
amounts notifies the President that the grantee
17
has completed all activities; or
18
‘‘(B) except as provided in paragraph (5),
19
the expiration of the 6-year period beginning
20
when the President obligates such amounts to
21
the grantee, the President shall transfer such
22
unexpended amounts to the Secretary of the
23
Treasury for deposit into the Fund, except that
24
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•HR 1605 IH
the President may permit the grantee to retain
1
amounts needed to close out the grant.
2
‘‘(5) EXTENSION
OF
PERIOD
FOR
USE
OF
3
FUNDS.—The period under paragraph (4)(B) may
4
be extended by not more than 4 years if, before the
5
expiration of such 6-year period, the President
6
waives this requirement and submits a written jus-
7
tification for such waiver to the Committees on Ap-
8
propriations of the House of Representatives and the
9
Senate that specifies the period of such extension.
10
‘‘(h) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—Until such time as the
11
President issues regulations to implement this section, the
12
President may—
13
‘‘(1) waive notice and comment rulemaking, if
14
the President determines the waiver is necessary to
15
expeditiously implement the provisions of this sec-
16
tion; and
17
‘‘(2) carry out the grant program under this
18
section as a pilot program.
19
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the
20
following terms shall apply:
21
‘‘(1) STATE AUDITOR.—The term ‘State audi-
22
tor’ means the individual selected by each State or
23
the Chief Executive to submit information pursuant
24
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•HR 1605 IH
to subsection (c)(3) and a certification in accordance
1
with subsection (d)(2)(A).
2
‘‘(2) UNMET NEED.—The term ‘unmet need’
3
means any unresourced item, support, or assistance
4
that has been assessed and verified as necessary for
5
a survivor to recover from a major disaster, includ-
6
ing food, clothing, shelter, first aid, emotional and
7
spiritual care, household items, home repair, or re-
8
building.’’.
9
Æ
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