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II
116TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
S. 3534
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance
Act to provide assistance to individuals affected by a pandemic, and
for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 19, 2020
Ms. HARRIS 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 Emer-
gency Assistance Act to provide assistance to individuals
affected by a pandemic, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pandemic Disaster As-
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sistance Act of 2020’’.
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SEC. 2. ASSISTANCE FOR PANDEMICS.
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The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
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gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) is amend-
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ed—
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•S 3534 IS
(1) in section 102(1) (42 U.S.C. 5122(1)), by
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inserting ‘‘or pandemic’’ after ‘‘catastrophe’’;
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(2) in section 301 (42 U.S.C. 5141), by insert-
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ing ‘‘or an emergency due to a pandemic’’ after
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‘‘major disaster’’ each place the term appears;
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(3) in section 408(e) (42 U.S.C. 5174(e)), by
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inserting ‘‘or an emergency due to a pandemic’’
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after ‘‘major disaster’’ each place the term appears;
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(4) in section 410 (42 U.S.C. 5177)—
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(A) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or an
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emergency due to a pandemic’’ after ‘‘major
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disaster’’ each place the term appears; and
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(B) by adding at the end the following:
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‘‘(c) ASSISTANCE DURING A PANDEMIC.—In the case
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of an emergency due to a pandemic—
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‘‘(1) assistance authorized under this section
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shall be made available to an individual regardless of
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whether the individual is entitled to any other unem-
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ployment compensation (as that term is defined in
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section 85(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of
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1986); and
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‘‘(2) the minimum weekly benefit shall be 1.5
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times the national average State unemployment com-
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pensation weekly benefit for the previous year.’’;
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(5) in section 412 (42 U.S.C. 5179)—
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•S 3534 IS
(A) by inserting ‘‘or an emergency due to
1
a pandemic’’ after ‘‘major disaster’’ each place
2
the term appears; and
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(B) by adding at the end the following:
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‘‘(d) ASSISTANCE DURING A PANDEMIC.—In the case
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of an emergency due to a pandemic, for purposes of pro-
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viding benefits under this section, the Secretary of Agri-
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culture shall provide an alternative to the in-person inter-
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view requirement for all applicants for such benefits. This
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alternative shall be consistent with the alternative that is
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required to be provided for applicants entitled to accom-
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modations during a major disaster.’’; and
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(6) in section 502(a) (42 U.S.C. 5192(a))—
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(A) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘and’’ at
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the end;
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(B) in paragraph (8)(B), by striking the
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period at the end and inserting a semicolon;
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and
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(C) by adding at the end the following:
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‘‘(9) provide unemployment assistance in ac-
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cordance with section 410; and
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‘‘(10) provide assistance in accordance with sec-
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tion 412.’’.
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Æ
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