[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 41 (Thursday, March 9, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1746-S1747]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DURBIN (for himself and Ms. Duckworth):
  S. 600. A bill to require rulemaking by the Administrator of the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency to address considerations in 
evaluating the need for public and individual disaster assistance, and 
for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr President, I am proud to introduce the Fairness in 
Federal Disaster Declarations Act today, together with my colleague 
Senator Duckworth, to try to bring some transparency and fairness into 
FEMA's disaster declaration process.
  The inspiration for this bill was a tragic one. On February 29, 2012, 
a category F-4 tornado tore through southeastern Illinois, causing 
major damage in the towns of Harrisburg and Ridgway. Eight people in 
Harrisburg died in that event and 15 people were killed in total. Winds 
reached 175 miles per hour. It is not too much of a stretch to say 
these two small towns were almost wiped off the map.
  And just last week, on February 28, 2017, another tragedy struck the 
small towns of Ottawa and Naplate after a category F-3 tornado tore 
through North Central Illinois. Two people in Ottawa died in last 
week's storm and at least 50 homes were damaged or destroyed.
  Requests for Federal assistance after a disaster are made by the 
Governor of each State based on State emergency management damage 
assessments. In the case of the Harrisburg and Ridgway tornado, the 
Governor's request for a Federal emergency declaration for individual 
assistance was denied, as was the State's appeal of that decision. With 
that denial, individuals whose homes or properties were damaged were 
precluded from direct Federal help.
  When I asked FEMA why it denied the Governor's request, I was told 
that the disaster did not meet or exceed the State's per capita figure. 
Currently, FEMA multiplies the number of people in a State by $1.43 to 
determine a threshold of the amount of damage a State would incur to be 
considered for Federal assistance. In Illinois, that figure is more 
than $18 million. In other words, because Illinois is a highly populous 
State, it is presumed it can absorb the costs of cleanup and recovery 
from disasters up to more than $18 million.
  From 2002 to 2012, Illinois was denied Federal disaster assistance 
seven times. Texas was denied 13 times. Florida was denied Federal 
disaster assistance eight times during that period, and California, New 
Jersey, and New York were each denied four times.
  FEMA's formula does not work for large, populous States, particularly 
those with a concentrated urban area, like Illinois.
  Illinois ran into this issue again in November 2013 when tornadoes 
swept through the State. That time, six people were killed and whole 
neighborhoods were nearly destroyed. The cities of Washington, Gifford, 
and New Minden, Illinois, experienced some of the worst tornado damage 
I have ever seen. Their infrastructure was decimated, but because 
Illinois did not meet one of FEMA's criteria, we were denied Federal 
public assistance.
  In the case of last week's tornado in Ottawa and Naplate, Illinois, 
may not even be able to request federal help because damage assessments 
are too low to reach anything close to FEMA's per capita requirement. 
But for these small towns, covering losses and cleaning up damage of 
this magnitude can put a real strain on the community.
  The Fairness in Federal Disaster Declaration seeks to improve the 
disaster analysis by assigning a value to each of the factors FEMA must 
consider when determining whether Federal disaster assistance will be 
made available. When it comes to individual assistance--funding to help 
people repair and rebuild their homes--the breakdown would be as 
follows:
  Concentration of damages--the density of damage in an individual 
community--would be considered 20 percent of the analysis. Trauma--the 
loss of life and injuries and the disruption of normal community 
functions--would be 20 percent. Special Populations--including the age 
and income of the residents, the amount of home ownership, etc.--would 
comprise 20 percent. Voluntary agency assistance--a consideration of 
what the volunteer and charitable groups are providing--would make up 5 
percent. The amount of Insurance coverage--20 percent. And average 
amount of individual assistance by State, which includes the per capita 
analysis, would make up 5 percent of the analysis.
  The bill also would add a seventh consideration to FEMA's metrics--
the economics of the area, which will receive 10 percent consideration. 
This includes factors such as the local assessable tax base, the median 
income as it compares to that of the State, and the poverty rate as it 
compares to that of the State.
  For Federal public assistance, the breakdown would be similar, with a 
greater emphasis placed on the localized impacts of the disaster, which 
would warrant 40 percent of the analysis.
  It is reasonable that FEMA should take into consideration the size of 
the State requesting assistance, but current regulations penalize large 
States. Assigning values to the factors will help ensure that the 
damage to a specific community weighs more than a State's population.
  Illinois is a geographically large State with a concentrated urban 
area. And downstate communities are being punished for it.
  If the cities of Ottawa and Naplate, Washington and Gifford, and 
Harrisburg and Ridgway cannot qualify under FEMA's current criteria for 
Federal assistance, something is wrong. The way FEMA evaluates whether 
to declare an area Federal disaster is not effective. It is working 
against small communities in States with large populations.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 600

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Fairness in Federal Disaster 
     Declarations Act of 2017''.

     SEC. 2. REGULATORY ACTION REQUIRED.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal 
     Emergency Management Agency (in this Act referred to as the 
     ``Administrator'' and ``FEMA'', respectively) shall amend the 
     rules of the Administrator under section 206.48 of title 44, 
     Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of 
     enactment of this Act, in accordance with the provisions of 
     this Act.
       (b) New Criteria Required.--The amended rules issued under 
     subsection (a) shall provide for the following:
       (1) Public assistance program.--Such rules shall provide 
     that, with respect to the evaluation of the need for public 
     assistance--
       (A) specific weighted valuations shall be assigned to each 
     criterion, as follows--
       (i) estimated cost of the assistance, 10 percent;
       (ii) localized impacts, 40 percent;
       (iii) insurance coverage in force, 10 percent;
       (iv) hazard mitigation, 10 percent;
       (v) recent multiple disasters, 10 percent;
       (vi) programs of other Federal assistance, 10 percent; and
       (vii) economic circumstances described in subparagraph (B), 
     10 percent; and
       (B) FEMA shall consider the economic circumstances of--
       (i) the local economy of the affected area, including 
     factors such as the local assessable tax base and local sales 
     tax, the median income as it compares to that of the State, 
     and the poverty rate as it compares to that of the State; and
       (ii) the economy of the State, including factors such as 
     the unemployment rate of the State, as compared to the 
     national unemployment rate.
       (2) Individual assistance program.--Such rules shall 
     provide that, with respect to the evaluation of the severity, 
     magnitude, and impact of the disaster and the evaluation of 
     the need for assistance to individuals--
       (A) specific weighted valuations shall be assigned to each 
     criterion, as follows--
       (i) concentration of damages, 20 percent;
       (ii) trauma, 20 percent;
       (iii) special populations, 20 percent;
       (iv) voluntary agency assistance, 10 percent;
       (v) insurance, 20 percent;
       (vi) average amount of individual assistance by State, 5 
     percent; and
       (vii) economic considerations described in subparagraph 
     (B), 5 percent; and
       (B) FEMA shall consider the economic circumstances of the 
     affected area, including factors such as the local assessable 
     tax base and local sales tax, the median income as it 
     compares to that of the State, and the poverty rate as it 
     compares to that of the State.
       (c) Effective Date.--The amended rules issued under 
     subsection (a) shall apply to

[[Page S1747]]

     any disaster for which a Governor requested a major disaster 
     declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
     Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) and was 
     denied on or after January 1, 2012.
                                 ______