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Title II — Public assistance

S. 2247 · 119th Congress · Jul 10, 2025 · Lineage

II Public assistance

Sec. 201 Public assistance management costs

Section 324(b)(2)(B) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5165b(b)(2)(B))—
(1)
by striking “12 percent” and inserting “15 percent”; and
(2)
by striking “7 percent” and inserting “10 percent”.

Sec. 202 Advance assistance; training

Title III of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5141 et seq.), is amended by adding at the end the following:

“328. Training

“(a) In general—Not later than 30 days after the date on which the President declares a major disaster under section 401 with respect to a jurisdiction and upon the request of the Governor or Chief Executive of the jurisdiction, the President shall conduct an intensive training for the jurisdiction and any governmental agency of the jurisdiction.

“(b) Supplement—The training conducted under subsection (a) for a jurisdiction shall supplement any training or briefing convened by the jurisdiction.

“(c) Contents—The training conducted under subsection (a) shall, at a minimum, explain—

“(1) the process of receiving resources and financial assistance relating to a major disaster under this Act, beginning with the declaration of the major disaster and ending with the disbursement of resources or financial assistance;

“(2) each resource and financial assistance award available to the jurisdiction under this Act;

“(3) the required documentation and eligibility criteria for each resource and financial assistance award available to the jurisdiction under this Act;

“(4) acronyms and other terms of art regularly used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency; and

“(5) any other concepts or processes the President determines necessary.

“(d) Virtual offering—The training required under subsection (a) may be offered virtually when reasonably practicable.

“329. Advance assistance

“(a) Public assistance defined—In this section, the term public assistance means assistance awarded under the programs under section 403, 406, 407, and 502.

“(b) Advance assistance—With respect to a grantee or subgrantee of public assistance using the public assistance for a project, the President—

“(1) may provide not more than 75 percent of the estimated cost of the project before costs are incurred; and

“(2) upon request of the grantee or subgrantee, shall provide not less than 25 percent and not more than 75 percent of the estimated cost of a project before costs are incurred if the grantee or subgrantee sustains damage, as measured by a preliminary damage assessment, which may include the sum of multiple preliminary damage assessments for projects using public assistance in the jurisdiction, that is—

“(A) with respect to a project being performed in a jurisdiction with a population of not more than 2,000, not less than the annual budget of the grantee or subgrantee during the preceding fiscal year;

“(B) with respect to a project being performed in a jurisdiction with a population between 2,001 and 3,500, not less than 2 times larger than the annual budget of the grantee or subgrantee during the preceding fiscal year; and

“(C) with respect to a project being performed in a jurisdiction with a population between 3,501 and 5,000, not less than 3 times larger than the annual budget of the grantee or subgrantee during the preceding fiscal year.

“(c) Safeguards—A grantee or subgrantee of public assistance receiving assistance under subsection (b) shall provide to the Administrator methodology of the grantee or subgrantee to ensure safeguards against waste, fraud, and abuse.”

Sec. 203 Technical assistance pilot program

(a)
Establishment— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator may establish a program under which, upon the request of a Governor or Chief Executive of a State or Indian Tribal government, the Administrator may award assistance to the State or Indian tribal government that includes—
(1)
the assignment of employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the State or Indian tribal government to provide technical assistance for low-capacity jurisdictions throughout the public assistance process, including with the respect to—
(A)
project scoping;
(B)
damage documentation;
(C)
training State or Indian tribal government personnel to be knowledgeable about all available programs under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.); and
(D)
other related tasks; or
(2)
funding to hire additional employees or contractors of the State to help low-capacity jurisdictions navigate the process of applying for and receiving for assistance under this Act, including—
(A)
project scoping;
(B)
damage documentation;
(C)
the grant application process; and
(D)
other related tasks.
(b)
Selection— In selecting States and Indian tribal governments to which to award assistance under this section, the Administrator shall determine the need of the State or Indian tribal government for assistance based on—
(1)
the hazard risk of the State or Indian tribal government based on the National Risk Index;
(2)
the existing disaster management capacity of the State or Indian tribal government, as measured by the number of available personnel and the amount of resources of the State or Indian tribal government;
(3)
the availability of a nongovernmental disaster response and recovery capacity in the State or Indian tribal government; and
(4)
any other factor determined necessary by the Administrator.
(c)
Termination— The program established under subsection (a) shall terminate on the date that is 5 years after the establishment of the program.
(d)
Report— Not later than 1 year after the date of the establishment of the program under subsection (a), and annually thereafter until the date described in subsection (d), the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the program that includes—
(1)
a list of the States and Indian tribal governments that have received assistance under the program; and
(2)
an account of the form and scope of the assistance provided under the program to each State and Indian tribal government.
(e)
GAO Audit— Not later than 3 years after the date of the establishment of the program under subsection (a), the Comptroller General of the United States shall—
(1)
conduct an audit of the program;
(2)
study the effectiveness of the program; and
(3)
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a recommendation whether to extend or expand the program.
(f)
Authorization of appropriations— There are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator $500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031 to carry out this section.

Sec. 204 Simplified procedures

Section 422 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5189) is amended by striking subsection (a) and the undesignated matter preceding subsection (b) and inserting the following:

“(a) In general

“(1) Eligible project—In this subsection, the term eligible project means a project—

“(A)

“(i) under section 406 that includes repairing, restoring, or replacing any damaged or destroyed public facility or private nonprofit facility;

“(ii) with emergency assistance under section 403 or 502; or

“(iii) under section 407 relating to debris removal; and

“(B) the Federal cost estimate of which is less than the greater of—

“(i) $1,000,00, which shall be adjusted to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers by the Department of Labor—

“(I) on the date of enactment of the Disaster Assistance Improvement and Decentralization Act for the period between October 10, 2022, and such date; and

“(II) annually thereafter; and

“(ii) if the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency has established a threshold under subsection (b), the amount established under subsection (b).

“(2) Cost coverage

“(A) In general—On application by a State or local government that performs an eligible project, the President may make the contribution of the State or local government under section 403, 406, 407, or 502, as the case may be, on the basis of the cost incurred from the performance of the eligible project.

“(B) Limit—The amount of the contribution under subparagraph (A) with respect to an eligible project may not exceed 150 percent of the Federal cost estimate of the eligible project.

“(3) Exception—Paragraph (2) shall not apply with respect to a State or local government if the cost of the performance of an eligible project by the State or local government exceeds the cost estimate of the eligible project as a result of poor management, fraud, or waste.”

Sec. 205 Simplified procedures pilot program

(a)
Establishment— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, notwithstanding the amount specified under section 422(a) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5189(a)), the Administrator shall establish a pilot program under which the Administrator may select high-capacity jurisdictions performing a project under section 403, 406, 407, or 502 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5170b, 5172, 5173, 5192), the cost of which is less than $10,000,000, to be eligible for the contribution described in such section 422(a).
(b)
Adjustment of amount— Not less frequently than annually, the Administrator shall adjust the amount specified in subsection (a) to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Department of Labor.
(c)
Safeguards— A high-capacity jurisdiction selected under subsection (a) shall provide to the Administrator methodology of the high-capacity jurisdiction to ensure safeguards against waste, fraud, and abuse.
(d)
Termination— The program established under subsection (a) shall terminate on the date that is 5 years after the date of the establishment of the program.
(e)
Report— Not later than 1 year after the date of the establishment of the program under subsection (a), and annually thereafter until the date described in subsection (d), the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the program.
(f)
GAO Audit— Not later than 3 years after the date of the establishment of the program under subsection (a), the Comptroller General of the United States shall—
(1)
conduct an audit of the program;
(2)
study the effectiveness of the program; and
(3)
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a recommendation whether to extend or expand the program.

Sec. 206 Regulations

(a)
In general— Not later than 540 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue a final rulemaking that implements this title and the amendments made by this title.
(b)
Interim guidance— Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue interim guidance to implement this title and the amendments made by this title that expires upon the earlier of—
(1)
540 days after the of enactment of this Act; and
(2)
the issuance of the final rulemaking under subsection (a).
(c)
Guidance— Not later than 90 days after the date on which the Administrator issues the final rulemaking under subsection (a), the Administrator shall issue any necessary guidance related to the rulemaking.
(d)
Report— Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report summarizing the rulemaking and guidance issued under subsections (a) and (c).