Predisaster Mitigation Program Reauthorization Act of 2003

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3181) to amend the Robert

T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to reauthorize the predisaster mitigation program, and for other purposes.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, H.R. 3181, the Predisaster Mitigation Program Reauthorization Act of 2003 reauthorizes the Predisaster Mitigation Program for an additional 3 years and allows the President to offer additional home repair assistance to disaster victims; restores the percentage of Hazard Mitigation Grant Program funds to previously authorized levels; and requires the completion of a Congressional Budget Office study on the cost-effectiveness of the program.

This program, which was originally authorized as a pilot program as a part of the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 was intended to study the effectiveness of mitigation grants in the absence of a disaster, as opposed to solely following a disaster, as is currently the practice.

In addition to reauthorizing the Predisaster Mitigation Program, the bill makes two changes to other programs within the Stafford Act. H.R. 3181 authorizes the President to give additional home repair assistance when the initial amount is insignificant, and it also restores the percentage of funding available under the HMGP. In the omnibus appropriation bill that concluded the last Congress, this percentage was modified, and there was compelling testimony before our subcommittee and also brought to the attention of the members of the full Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure by people in emergency management administrations across the country that the previous levels authorized by the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure were absolutely essential to the work that they do.

The bill also requires the completion of a CBO study on the effectiveness of the PDM. This study is required by December 30, 2006, by which time it is expected that there will be more information on which to study the effectiveness of the PDM.

This legislation is the product of a comprehensive and inclusive legislative process. It is, I believe, a balanced approach to disaster mitigation and worthy of our support. I thank the ranking member of our subcommittee, the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), for her invaluable assistance in crafting this legislation, and also the chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young) and the distinguished ranking member, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar). Madam Speaker, I urge immediate adoption of H.R. 3181.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Burns), a very valuable new member of our subcommittee and full committee. A lot of Members join the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, but few have understood it as quickly as the gentleman from Georgia.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

I want to thank my friend from Oregon for participating, also my friend from Georgia, again thank all the members of the subcommittee and those in the emergency management field across the country that helped participate and craft this legislation. The very able and capable staff of the committee has reminded me that yesterday we had on the floor a bill dealing with flood insurance which has a mitigation program; and although they have done mighty work, to date they have only secured 938 properties and removed them from further flood damage. This program that we are reauthorizing today has engaged in the purchase of 20,000 properties.

Again, the testimony before the subcommittee was stark and it was clear. It is easy to get a community to come together and spend money after a flood, after a hurricane, after a tornado. It is very difficult to get people to make that investment prior to, but the testimony is clear that if you make that investment in seismic upgrading of buildings or other features throughout parts of the country, you can literally save billions of dollars. It is a good program. I urge support.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3181 the Predisaster Mitigation Reauthorization Act. As the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) pointed out, the purpose is to reauthorize predisaster mitigation which provides assistance on a competitive basis to States and localities to undertake hazard mitigation projects. It is absolutely incontrovertible that if we take steps early in the process, we will protect lives, we will protect property. There is an added benefit in keeping disaster costs down and insurance rates in check.

One way or another, we all pay for natural disaster events through Federal disaster relief and insurance premiums. Nationwide, annual homeowner insurance premiums have increased 42.2 percent since 1995. In the last 25 years, there have been almost 1,000 Presidential disasters declared, and the GAO has estimated that Federal disaster relief has increased fivefold in the course of the last decade. From 1998 to 2001, this is almost $40 billion.

Not only will this legislation help homeowners be whole again, but it will save taxpayers billions of dollars in disaster assistance in the long haul.

One of the concerns I and a number of Members had when we had the Federal Emergency Management Agency with its long history of helping our Nation deal with natural disasters moved into the Department of Homeland Security was the concern that the focus on the day-to-day disaster preparedness and emergency response, I would be lost in that large bureaucracy. I am hopeful that in the course of our heightened homeland security concerns, that we do not allow the focus of that agency to become blurred. Maintaining the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program is an essential part of maintaining that focus.

By funding mitigation projects after disasters at the time when communities are most closely focused on the benefits of mitigation and protecting families from future loss, we are able to invent resources and make a difference. Sadly, there are already stories in the newspapers in southern California after, the disastrous fires and the testimony to inadequate planning and enforcement even of local regulations, the people are talking about moving back into harm's way.

The Predisaster Mitigation Program Reauthorization Act we bring to the floor today provides the balance between the predisaster program and reaffirming our support for postmitigation.

The pilot project, as has been referenced would provide for the distribution of grants to carry out disaster mitigation programs, was created to promote appropriate mitigation efforts without having to wait for a disaster to trigger the availability of funds in the future.

Even though authorized to start in 1999, it only began this calendar year, and the competitive grants have yet to be received or awarded. Even though we want to evaluate the effectiveness of the program, and the CBO cannot yet compete its mandate due to the lack of substantive information, it is appropriate for us to reauthorize for 3 years to make sure we get the evidence.

We ought to be very clear that we want to have the facts and figures to support being able to do more in the future. I deeply appreciate the work of our chairman, the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), and the ranking member, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), and the work of the chairman of the subcommittee, the

gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette), and the ranking member, the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton). They provide continuing focus on this important area that too often fail to get the attention it deserves. If we do our job right, we will make a difference for people all across the country: taxpayers, homeowners, and the people who have the tough jobs working in the trenches.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3181, the Predisaster Mitigation Reauthorization Act of 2003. This bill makes a limited number of necessary amendments to the Stafford Act. The Stafford Act governs the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) responsibilities to help communities prepare for and respond to disasters. Many of the FEMA's functions were transferred to the Department of Homeland Security's Directorate of Emergency Prepareness and Response when that Department was created last year.

Over the last 25 years, this country has had nearly one thousand presidential disaster declarations in the United States and the Insular Territories. These disasters have cost our Nation billions of dollars and taken an untold number of lives.

The Stafford Act authorizes programs that not only provide funding for post-disaster recovery, but also provide funding for importance pre-disaster hazard mitigation projects.

In October 2000, Congress passed the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (DMA), which reauthorized the Stafford Act and created several new programs. One of those new programs was a pre-disaster mitigation program that allowed FEMA to award grants to States on a competitive basis to implement pre-disaster mitigation plans. Although authorized to begin in fiscal year 1999, the program began in earnest only a few months ago. No competitive grant applications have yet been received by FEMA, and none of the competitive grants have been awarded. In light of this, H.R. 3181 extends the authorization of this program for another three years in order to give FEMA the time to implement the program and to give Congress the time to fairly evaluate it. In addition, the bill redirects the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to conduct a study on the program's effectiveness.

Further, the bill reaffirms our support for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) that seeks to substantially reduce the risk of future damage, hardship, or loss in any area affected by a major disaster. This program has a proven record of success. It is successful in large part because it funds hazard mitigation projects immediately after a disaster strikes, when the public and local governments are most focused on mitigation measures. In addition, it has the strong support of State and local governments.

Finally, this bill would allow the Undersecretary to provide additional home repair assistance for a homeowner upon the homeowner's showing of an inability to make the necessary repairs by other means. Not being able to properly repair a home after a disease can add further distress to an already devastating situation. While current law provides for a $5,000 cap on home repair assistance for individuals who have been impacted by a disaster, there is a significant percentage of homeowners who continue to struggle with unmet needs. This bill remedies that concern.

Madam Speaker, I'd also like to thank my colleagues on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Chairman Young, Subcommittee Chairman LaTourette, and Subcommittee Democratic Ranking Member Norton, for their work on this important bill. I believe this bill provides a balanced approach to mitigation by providing for both pre- and post-disaster mitigation programs. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to support passage of H.R. 3181, the Predisaster Mitigation Program Reauthorization Act of 2003. This comprehensive bill, developed on a bipartisan basis, extends the predisaster mitigation program for an additional 3 years, makes two important changes to the Stafford Act, and requires a Congressional Budget Office study of the program's effectiveness.

This program, which was originally included in the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000, takes the next step in protecting our communities from the devastating effects of disasters. By encouraging communities to engage in cost-effective disaster mitigation projects before disasters strike, we can dramatically reduce the response and recovery cost of these disasters.

Unlike terrorism, natural disasters can and will strike every State and territory in the United States. From the ice storms that we suffer in my home State of Georgia to hurricanes that have even impacted Washington, D.C., every State and locality can prepare itself to reduce its risk from disasters. Whether it be seismic retrofits of buildings, safe rooms in schools, improved levees, or awareness programs, the actions that we take today will determine how we fare in a disaster. This program makes necessary funds available for such projects.

H.R. 3181 also makes two very important changes to the Stafford Act. These changes have been requested by professional organizations and have strong bipartisan support. H.R. 3181 restores to previously authorized levels the percentage of HMGP funds available following disasters and authorizes additional home repair assistance for individuals when the initial amount of $5,000 is insufficient. Each of these changes will make recovering from a disaster and preparing for disasters easier, thereby reducing future costs.

Finally, this bill requires a CBO study of the effectiveness of this program, a study which will guide future considerations for our efforts in the United States to ensure disaster relief.

I urge the adoption of H.R. 3181.

Madam Speaker, I raise today in support of H.R. 3181, the Predisaster Mitigation Act Reauthorization Act of 2002. I would like to commend my colleagues on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Chairman Young, Subcommittee Chairman Latourette and Subcommittee Democratic Ranking Member Norton, for all of their work on this important bill.

This bill makes a limited number of necessary amendments to the Stafford Act, which governs the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) responsibilities to help communities prepare for and respond to disasters. The Stafford Act authorizes programs that provide funding for both post-disaster recovery, and for important pre-disaster hazard mitigation projects.

The pre-disaster mitigation program was authorized to begin in fiscal year 1999; however, the program began in earnest only a few months ago. The program allowed FEMA to award grants to states on a competitive basis to implement pre-disaster mitigation plans. Because of its late start, no competitive grant applications have yet been received by FEMA, and none of the competitive grants have been awarded. Among other things, this bill extends the authorization of this program for another three years to give FEMA the time necessary to implement the program and to give Congress the time necessary to fairly evaluate it.

Madam Speaker, I believe this is a good bill that provides a balanced approach to both pre- and post-disaster mitigation programs. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the bill.