[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 106 (Friday, July 29, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          INTRODUCTION OF THE ``SAFE COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2005''

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                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 28, 2005

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, an essential component of livable 
communities is the ability to avoid, withstand and quickly recover from 
disaster events. Today I am joined by my colleague from Pennsylvania, 
Curt Weldon, in introducing the Safe Communities Act 2005. This bill 
will give communities the tools to help them plan for and reduce the 
impact of disaster events.
  The Safe Communities Act will create a new grant program to support 
state, local and regional planning activities aimed at reducing threats 
posed by natural and human-caused disasters. Grant-eligible projects 
include: comprehensive risk assessment and inventory of critical 
infrastructure, land-use planning for natural hazards and terrorism 
security, updating building codes and urban design techniques for risk-
reduction. The bill will also create a research program to investigate 
the best practices in comprehensive land use and community planning 
aimed at reducing threats posed by natural hazards and acts of terror.
  The number of people who live in harm's way is expanding 
dramatically; more properties and more lives are at risk from both 
natural and human-caused disasters. It is estimated that almost 75 
percent of our communities are at risk for some type of natural 
disaster, be it wildfire, hurricane, flooding, or earthquake. Rising 
disaster-recovery costs impact us all: taxpayers, the financial 
services and insurance industry, as well as local communities.
  Federal investment in natural disasters should include prevention and 
mitigation as well as response and recovery. Investment in prevention 
can save money in the long-term: The World Bank and U.S. Geological 
Survey have estimated that $40 billion invested in risk reduction 
strategies could have saved as much as $280 billion in worldwide 
economic losses from disasters in the 1990s--a $7 return for each 
dollar invested.
  I hope that this bill moves quickly through the legislative process 
so that the Federal Government can be a good partner to communities to 
help them prepare for and prevent natural disasters.

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