[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 95 (Friday, June 8, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E810]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 REFORMING OUR DISASTER RESPONSE SYSTEM

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                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                          Friday, June 8, 2018

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, Hurricane Harvey hammered Houston last 
August, bringing with it a deluge of rain. In the nine months since 
then, Houston has begun to recover. Downtown Houston is full of 
students and workers of all ages, strolling the streets during their 
lunch break. However, there is still lots to be done. Only minutes 
north of downtown Houston, Minute Maid Park, and the Toyota Center is 
Kashmere Gardens, a neighborhood that 10,000 Houstonians have called 
home. Each street in this neighborhood has houses that are no longer 
habitable, with destroyed doors and gutted interiors.
  While the rest of Houston is flourishing, Kashmere Gardens is 
floundering. This is not due to the actions of any one agency, but 
rather the convoluted and bureaucratic disaster-response system that 
almost everyone agrees is failing to provide the necessary support in 
the wake of these disasters. Federal recovery funding currently comes 
from 17 different federal agencies, including HUD and DHS, which 
oversees FEMA. We must streamline the recovery process for the sake of 
those who are impacted by disasters. There are still Houstonians, 
including those in Kashmere Gardens, who are living in transitional 
housing because they are unable to navigate the government's cumbersome 
disaster recovery efforts. When someone's home is destroyed in a 
hurricane, wildfire, or volcanic explosion, they should not have to 
spend months trying to discern their eligibility for federal disaster 
relief. They should be able to focus on rebuilding their home and their 
life.
  Another hurricane season is just beginning, and it is expected to 
again be a season with above-average activity. We must learn from past 
disasters to better respond to disasters that are still to come.
  And that's just the way it is.

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