[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 157 (Wednesday, September 28, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H8167-H8168]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      SMALL PROJECT EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE DISASTER RECOVERY ACT

  Mr. CARSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in 
the Senate amendments to the bill (H.R. 5641) to amend the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to increase the 
threshold for

[[Page H8168]]

eligibility for assistance under sections 403, 406, 407, and 502 of 
such Act, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the Senate amendments is as follows:
  Senate amendments:

     (1)On page 2, line 13, strike [``AND REPORT'' after 
     ``REVIEW''] and insert ``and Report'' after ``Review''.
     (2)On page 3, after line 3, insert:

     SEC. 3. AUDIT AND REVIEW.

       Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland 
     Security shall conduct an audit, and submit to Congress a 
     report, on whether there has been waste and abuse as a result 
     of the amendment made under section 2(a)(1).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Indiana (Mr. Carson) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Webster) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana.


                             General Leave

  Mr. CARSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on H.R. 5641.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Indiana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. CARSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5641. This legislation will 
expedite the approval process for small projects applying for aid 
through FEMA's public assistance program, a program that helps 
communities remove debris, implement emergency protective measures, and 
repair damage to public infrastructure.
  The House has already passed this once with overwhelming support, and 
the amendment we are considering today would solely add a reporting 
requirement to the language we previously supported.
  Also, in the time since we first passed this bill, the Biden 
administration has updated the small project threshold to $1 million 
via rulemaking. The $1 million threshold, Mr. Speaker, is currently 
expediting the post-disaster recovery process, cutting unnecessary red 
tape and helping communities get back on their feet.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. WEBSTER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5641, the SPEED Recovery Act, is a bipartisan bill 
that cuts red tape and helps expedite disaster recovery efforts, 
especially in small and rural areas. This legislation updates what the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency considers a small project.
  The bill already passed the House in April, as has been said, and 
today, it returns with a reasonable amendment from the Senate and adds 
a report by the inspector general of Homeland Security to help ensure 
that there is no fraud, waste, and abuse.
  Increasing the small project threshold allows communities to recover 
faster and allows FEMA to focus more of their time and resources on 
larger, more complex projects that represent 90 percent of the disaster 
costs.
  I have heard from communities in my district about paperwork burdens 
and increasing denials over technicalities, and I hope the commonsense 
adjustments of this bill will improve this process.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Puerto Rico 
(Miss Gonzalez-Colon).
  Miss GONZALEZ-COLON. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for yielding.
  Today, I rise again in support of H.R. 5641, the SPEED Recovery Act, 
which is bipartisan legislation introduced by Ranking Member Graves 
that passed the House in April.
  This bill cannot be timelier as Puerto Rico is once again dealing 
with the effects of yet another major disaster, Hurricane Fiona, while 
also communities in Florida are facing Hurricane Ian as we speak.
  We do have a lot of experience in those small projects that are never 
done because of the red tape or the long procedures that need to be 
dealt with between municipalities and FEMA.
  Too often, cities and municipalities face the burden of rising costs 
of material and labor, which means that the cost estimate for 
relatively simple projects, such as street repairs, now surpasses the 
threshold for what is defined as a small project.
  Today, $123,000 hardly covers the most trivial work, and we can talk 
about that. I mean, we still have a lot of those small projects since 
Hurricane Maria that are not being done, and now, many of those 
projects were hit by Hurricane Fiona. Although the money is there, the 
process is so big that even the initial amount won't cover those 
repairs.
  We have had cases where there may have been resources to start and 
finish promptly, but because of the price tag, we are forced to go 
through a more complicated process with FEMA, which can take years, 
years in which the people wonder when they will see the work.
  When a community does not see even small things taken care of, that 
weakens the social fabric and promotes displacement.

                              {time}  1730

  We cannot afford to keep going through that again. We have a 
responsibility to make the Federal Government more efficient, 
particularly in times of need.
  By increasing the threshold for eligibility for small projects, 
including adjustments for inflation, this bill will simplify that 
process, reducing administrative burdens, resulting in faster start of 
work and allowing more recovery projects to move forward.
  Mr. Speaker, I support this commonsense bipartisan legislation, and I 
urge all Members to support the Senate amendments and send them to the 
President's desk. Across the Nation, our communities will need it.
  Mr. CARSON. Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. WEBSTER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume to close.
  The amendments to H.R. 5641, the SPEED Recovery Act, is reasonable 
and will help to strengthen accountability.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Senators Portman and Peters, who are the 
bipartisan leaders of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs. Without their leadership in the Senate to push 
forward this measure, we would not be here today.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, who also helped 
by being engaged in this particular issue.
  Finally, I thank our great staff on both sides to get this bill to 
the finish line, especially my subcommittee staff director, Johanna 
Hardy and Maddy McCaslin.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this important legislation, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CARSON. Mr. Speaker, in closing, this legislation supports FEMA's 
role and codifies that the qualifying small project threshold will be 
$1 million.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Carson) that the House suspend the rules 
and concur in Senate amendments to the bill, H.R. 5641.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. NEHLS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

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