“A bill to make available necessary disaster assistance for families affected by major disasters, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section expands eligibility for individual and household assistance under section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5174)—i.e., FEMA aid for home repairs or replacement, temporary housing, and other needs—to individuals and households residing in a major disaster area without documented property ownership rights and not renting the property, or who resided or occupied the area during the incident period (including the homeless and occupants of boardinghouses, bunkhouses, manufactured or mobile homes, or travel trailers), for major disasters declared by the President under section 401 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5170), including Hurricane Maria (2017). The section further authorizes use of such assistance for costs to obtain title to an eligible property (e.g., land surveys, taxes, or fees) and directs the FEMA Administrator, for owner-occupant aid determinations under section 408(c)(2)-(3), to consider evidence of constructive ownership, including utility bills, merchant statements or mail, pay stubs, driver's licenses or IDs, property deeds or titles, mortgage documents, tax receipts, school registrations, wills or death/birth certificates, medical records, donation receipts, or any other reasonable proof of occupancy or ownership. This section applies to funds appropriated on or after the date of enactment.
This section directs the FEMA Administrator, not later than 30 days after enactment, to (1) create and distribute, as needed and in coordination with applicable jurisdictional authorities, a declarative statement form for applicants to self-certify eligibility for assistance under section 3, without requiring notarization; (2) exempt the form from Paperwork Reduction Act requirements (i.e., publication notice, public comment, and OMB review); (3) issue written guidance to FEMA employees on the section's requirements; and (4) make the form available in English and Spanish at all active Disaster Recovery Centers and publish it, along with appeal instructions, in English, Spanish, and other locally predominant languages on FEMA's website and social media. The section further provides applicants for assistance under section 3 since January 1, 2017, with at least 180 days after receiving notice to submit the form and reopen or appeal their cases.
This section revises federal assistance for repair, restoration, and replacement of disaster-damaged residences and facilities under Section 408 of the Stafford Act (i.e., aid provided by FEMA as a cost-effective alternative to temporary housing) by (1) expanding eligibility in subsection (b)(1) to all residences damaged by a major disaster (from those rendered uninhabitable); and (2) in subsection (c)—(A) revising the repair standard in paragraph (2)(A)(i) to ensure habitability during longer-term recovery (from repair to a safe and sanitary condition), including through coordination with other repair sources; and (B) in paragraph (4), limiting assistance to cases where the President determines it is a cost-effective alternative to other housing solutions, including temporary housing under this section.
This section directs the FEMA Administrator and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, for major disasters declared under the Stafford Act on or after enactment, to consult not later than 60 days after declaration on implementing a disaster housing assistance program or similar joint program under Stafford Act section 408 (i.e., temporary housing assistance). The program provides rental assistance to individuals and households displaced by the disaster, including those eligible under section 3(a) of this Act.