[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 188 (Monday, December 5, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H8742-H8744]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            COMMUNITY DISASTER RESILIENCE ZONES ACT OF 2022

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 3875) to require the President to develop and maintain 
products that show the risk of natural hazards across the United 
States, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                S. 3875

       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 ``Community Disaster 
     Resilience Zones Act of 2022''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Section 101(b) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 
     and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121(b)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (2) in paragraph (6), by adding ``; and'' at the end; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) identifying and improving the climate and natural 
     hazard resilience of vulnerable communities.''.

     SEC. 3. NATURAL HAZARD RISK ASSESSMENT.

       (a) In General.--Title II of the Robert T. Stafford 
     Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5131 
     et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 206. NATURAL HAZARD RISK ASSESSMENT.

       ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) Community disaster resilience zone.--The term 
     `community disaster resilience zone' means a census tract 
     designated by the President under subsection (d)(1).
       ``(2) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means--
       ``(A) a State;
       ``(B) an Indian tribal government; or
       ``(C) a local government.
       ``(b) Products.--The President shall continue to maintain a 
     natural hazard assessment program that develops and maintains 
     products that--
       ``(1) are available to the public; and
       ``(2) define natural hazard risk across the United States.
       ``(c) Features.--The products maintained under subsection 
     (b) shall, for lands within States and areas under the 
     jurisdiction of Indian tribal governments--
       ``(1) show the risk of natural hazards; and
       ``(2) include ratings and data for--
       ``(A) loss exposure, including population equivalence, 
     buildings, and agriculture;
       ``(B) social vulnerability;
       ``(C) community resilience; and
       ``(D) any other element determined by the President.
       ``(d) Community Disaster Resilience Zones Designation.--
       ``(1) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the date on 
     which the President makes the update and enhancement required 
     under subsection (e)(4), and not less frequently than every 5 
     years thereafter, the President shall identify and designate 
     community disaster resilience zones, which shall be--
       ``(A) the 50 census tracts assigned the highest individual 
     hazard risk ratings; and

[[Page H8743]]

       ``(B) subject to paragraph (3), in each State, not less 
     than 1 percent of census tracts that are assigned high 
     individual risk ratings.
       ``(2) Risk ratings.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the 
     President shall use census tract risk ratings derived from a 
     product maintained under subsection (b) that--
       ``(A) reflect--
       ``(i) high levels of individual hazard risk ratings based 
     on an assessment of the intersection of--

       ``(I) loss to population equivalence;
       ``(II) building value; and
       ``(III) agriculture value;

       ``(ii) high social vulnerability ratings and low community 
     resilience ratings; and
       ``(iii) any other elements determined by the President; and
       ``(B) reflect the principal natural hazard risks identified 
     for the respective census tracts.
       ``(3) Geographic balance.--In identifying and designating 
     the community disaster resilience zones described in 
     paragraph (1)(B)--
       ``(A) for the purpose of achieving geographic balance, when 
     applicable, the President shall consider making designations 
     in coastal, inland, urban, suburban, and rural areas; and
       ``(B) the President shall include census tracts on Tribal 
     lands located within a State.
       ``(4) Duration.--The designation of a community disaster 
     resilience zone under paragraph (1) shall be effective for a 
     period of not less than 5 years.
       ``(e) Review and Update.--Not later than 180 days after the 
     date of enactment of the Community Disaster Resilience Zones 
     Act of 2022, and not less frequently than every 5 years 
     thereafter, the President shall--
       ``(1) with respect to any product that is a natural hazard 
     risk assessment--
       ``(A) review the underlying methodology of the product; and
       ``(B) receive public input on the methodology and data used 
     for the product;
       ``(2) consider including additional data in any product 
     that is a natural hazard risk assessment, such as--
       ``(A) the most recent census tract data;
       ``(B) data from the American Community Survey of the Bureau 
     of the Census, a successor survey, a similar survey, or 
     another data source, including data by census tract on 
     housing characteristics and income;
       ``(C) information relating to development, improvements, 
     and hazard mitigation measures;
       ``(D) data that assesses past and future loss exposure, 
     including analysis on the effects of a changing climate on 
     future loss exposure;
       ``(E) data from the Resilience Analysis and Planning Tool 
     of the Federal Emergency Management Agency; and
       ``(F) other information relevant to prioritizing areas that 
     have--
       ``(i) high risk levels of--

       ``(I) natural hazard loss exposure, including population 
     equivalence, buildings, infrastructure, and agriculture; and
       ``(II) social vulnerability; and

       ``(ii) low levels of community resilience;
       ``(3) make publicly available any changes in methodology or 
     data used to inform an update to a product maintained under 
     subsection (b); and
       ``(4) update and enhance the products maintained under 
     subsection (b), as necessary.
       ``(f) Natural Hazard Risk Assessment Insights.--In 
     determining additional data to include in products that are 
     natural hazard risk assessments under subsection (e)(2), the 
     President shall consult with, at a minimum--
       ``(1) the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 
     Agency;
       ``(2) the Secretary of Agriculture and the Chief of the 
     Forest Service;
       ``(3) the Secretary of Commerce, the Administrator of the 
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Director 
     of the Bureau of the Census, and the Director of the National 
     Institute of Standards and Technology;
       ``(4) the Secretary of Defense and the Commanding Officer 
     of the United States Army Corps of Engineers;
       ``(5) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
     Agency;
       ``(6) the Secretary of the Interior and the Director of the 
     United States Geological Survey;
       ``(7) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and
       ``(8) the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
       ``(g) Community Disaster Resilience Zone.--With respect to 
     financial assistance provided under section 203(i) to perform 
     a resilience or mitigation project within, or that primarily 
     benefits, a community disaster resilience zone, the President 
     may increase the amount of the Federal share described under 
     section 203(h) to not more than 90 percent of the total cost 
     of the resilience or mitigation project.
       ``(h) Resilience or Mitigation Project Planning 
     Assistance.--
       ``(1) In general.--The President may provide financial, 
     technical, or other assistance under this title to an 
     eligible entity that plans to perform a resilience or 
     mitigation project within, or that primarily benefits, a 
     community disaster resilience zone.
       ``(2) Purpose.--The purpose of assistance provided under 
     paragraph (1) shall be to carry out activities in preparation 
     for a resilience or mitigation project or seek an evaluation 
     and certification under subsection (i)(2) for a resilience or 
     mitigation project before the date on which permanent work of 
     the resilience or mitigation project begins.
       ``(3) Application.--If required by the President, an 
     eligible entity seeking assistance under paragraph (1) shall 
     submit an application in accordance with subsection (i)(1).
       ``(4) Funding.--In providing assistance under paragraph 
     (1), the President may use amounts set aside under section 
     203(i).
       ``(i) Community Disaster Resilience Zone Project 
     Applications.--
       ``(1) In general.--If required by the President or other 
     Federal law, an eligible entity shall submit to the President 
     an application at such time, in such manner, and containing 
     or accompanied by such information as the President may 
     reasonably require.
       ``(2) Evaluation and certification.--
       ``(A) In general.--Not later than 120 days after the date 
     on which an eligible entity submits an application under 
     paragraph (1), the President shall evaluate the application 
     to determine whether the resilience or mitigation project 
     that the entity plans to perform within, or that primarily 
     benefits, a community disaster resilience zone--
       ``(i) is designed to reduce injuries, loss of life, and 
     damage and destruction of property, such as damage to 
     critical services and facilities; and
       ``(ii) substantially reduces the risk of, or increases 
     resilience to, future damage, hardship, loss, or suffering.
       ``(B) Certification.--If the President determines that an 
     application submitted under paragraph (1) meets the criteria 
     described in subparagraph (A), the President shall certify 
     the proposed resilience or mitigation project.
       ``(C) Effect of certification.--The certification of a 
     proposed resilience or mitigation project under subparagraph 
     (B) shall not be construed to exempt the resilience or 
     mitigation project from the requirements of any other law.
       ``(3) Projects causing displacement.--With respect to a 
     resilience or mitigation project certified under paragraph 
     (2)(B) that involves the displacement of a resident from any 
     occupied housing unit, the entity performing the resilience 
     or mitigation project shall--
       ``(A) provide, at the option of the resident, a suitable 
     and habitable housing unit that is, with respect to the 
     housing unit from which the resident is displaced--
       ``(i) of a comparable size;
       ``(ii) located in the same local community or a community 
     with reduced hazard risk; and
       ``(iii) offered under similar costs, conditions, and terms;
       ``(B) ensure that property acquisitions resulting from the 
     displacement and made in connection with the resilience or 
     mitigation project--
       ``(i) are deed restricted in perpetuity to preclude future 
     property uses not relating to mitigation or resilience; and
       ``(ii) are the result of a voluntary decision by the 
     resident; and
       ``(C) plan for robust public participation in the 
     resilience or mitigation project.''.
       (b) National Risk Index Funding.--Nothing in section 206 of 
     the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
     Assistance Act, as added by subsection (a) of this section, 
     shall be construed to prohibit the Administrator of the 
     Federal Emergency Management Agency from using amounts 
     available to maintain and update the National Risk Index 
     until the earlier of--
       (1) the date on which those amounts are transferred to 
     another source; and
       (2) 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
       (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by this Act shall 
     only apply with respect to amounts appropriated on or after 
     the date of enactment of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) and the gentleman from Illinois 
(Mr. Rodney Davis) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia.


                             General Leave

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on S. 3875.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the Community Disaster Resilience Zones Act, led by 
Congresswoman Sharice Davids in the House, will enable the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency to identify the communities most in need of 
mitigation projects and to help them access the necessary funding and 
support to complete such projects.
  Climate change and development in high-risk zones has created a 
never-ending stream of disaster impacts that cause billions of dollars 
in damage around the country, which taxpayer

[[Page H8744]]

dollars must cover. This legislation will help protect communities and 
reduce the financial burden on taxpayers by targeting mitigation 
investments to communities that have the fewest resources to invest in 
resilience and are expected to incur the greatest amount of disaster 
damage.
  By directing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to publicly 
designate the most in-need and at-risk census tracts as Community 
Disaster Resilience Zones, stakeholders can effectively target 
mitigation investments to these communities and make them more 
resilient. This legislation also authorizes Federal cost share 
flexibility for Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant 
project applicants in designated Community Disaster Resilience Zones.
  I ask my colleagues to support the Community Disaster Resilience 
Zones Act, and I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1515

  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 3875, the Community Disaster 
Resilience Zones Act of 2022, which amends the Stafford Act to include 
a section on natural disaster risk assessment.
  This bill's intent is to make the public more aware of the inherent 
risks of disasters that may affect their communities.
  It directs the President, or FEMA, to maintain a publicly available 
risk assessment program that shows what hazards pose the most threat to 
communities. It also directs the President, or FEMA, to provide 
financial or technical assistance to communities in designated 
community disaster resilience zones.
  Establishing these zones will help communities, States, and the 
private sector better plan investments in mitigation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge support of the bill, and I reserve the balance of 
my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a letter of support 
for S. 3875 signed by 32 organizations.
                                                 December 5, 2022.
     Hon. Peter DeFazio,
     Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
         House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
     Hon. Sam Graves,
     Ranking Member, Committee on Transportation and 
         Infrastructure, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman DeFazio and Ranking Member Graves: We, the 
     undersigned organizations, write to express support for S. 
     3875, the Community Disaster Resilience Zones (CDRZ) Act of 
     2022, which the Senate passed by unanimous consent and is 
     nearly identical to the bill (H.R. 7242) your committee 
     passed. Collectively, our organizations represent a wide 
     variety of constituencies, including business, conservation, 
     emergency managers, housing, infrastructure, local 
     government, public safety, science, and taxpayer 
     organizations. We commend the CDRZ Act bill sponsors, 
     Representatives Sharice Davids and Garret Graves and Senators 
     Gary Peters and Rob Portman, for their bipartisan, bicameral 
     leadership and thank them for introducing the CDRZ Act bills. 
     This legislation is a critical, foundational step toward 
     prioritizing and directing a whole-of-nation focus on the 
     most vulnerable communities facing the risk of potentially 
     life-threatening and economically devastating climate and 
     natural disaster events.
       The CDRZ Act would amend the Stafford Act to establish a 
     statutory structure to identify and designate CDRZ 
     communities that are the most in need and most at risk to 
     natural hazards, such as hurricanes, flooding, earthquakes, 
     and wildfires, to increase public and private sector 
     investments in housing, infrastructure, and community-wide 
     resilience. Building smart, modern, resilient infrastructure, 
     including nature-based infrastructure, has long been among 
     our top priorities. We support the CDRZ Act, which would:
       Amend the Stafford Act by adding a requirement that FEMA 
     maintain and update products and tools that define natural 
     hazard risk across the U.S. and use that dataset to identify 
     and designate CDRZ communities that are the most in need and 
     most at risk to natural hazards;
       Authorize the President to provide CDRZ-designated 
     communities with assistance and funding for pre-disaster 
     mitigation planning and projects to increase resilience 
     against the identified hazards; and
       Help prioritize and attract additional public and private 
     sector funding (including public-private partnerships) for 
     resilience projects in or primarily benefitting CDRZ-
     designated communities.
       Thank you for your leadership. We look forward to 
     continuing to work with you and Congress to ensure our 
     communities most threatened by climate and natural disaster 
     risk and most economically vulnerable have the support, 
     resources, and opportunities they need to improve their 
     resilience.
           Sincerely,
       US Resiliency Council (USRC), U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 
     Taxpayers for Common Sense (TCS), SmarterSafer Coalition, 
     SBP, Resilience Innovation Hub, Reinsurance Association of 
     America (RAA), R Street Institute, National Wildlife 
     Federation (NWF), National Special Districts Coalition 
     (NSDC), National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS), 
     National Housing Conference (NHC), National Emergency 
     Management Association (NEMA), National Association of Mutual 
     Insurance Companies (NAMIC), National Association of Counties 
     (NACo), Interstate Council on Water Policy (ICWP).
       International Code Council (ICC), International Association 
     of Emergency Managers (IAEM), Insurance Institute for 
     Business & Home Safety (IBHS), Ecological Restoration 
     Business Association (ERBA), The Council of Insurance Agents 
     & Brokers (CIAB), Central United States Earthquake Consortium 
     (CUSEC), Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), 
     BuildStrong Coalition, Big City Emergency Managers (BCEM), 
     American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), American 
     Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), American Property Casualty 
     Insurance Association (APCIA), American Planning Association 
     (APA), American Institute of Architects (AIA), American 
     Council of Engineerng Companies (ACEC), After the Fire: 
     Recover, Rebuild. Reimagine. (ATF3R).

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to the 
time remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Illinois has 19 minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance 
of my time for closing.
  My colleague, the chair of the subcommittee I have been blessed to 
serve on as ranking member, the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure, I thank her for working with us in a bipartisan way to 
move this bill forward.
  Disaster resiliency matters in a district like mine that encompasses 
the Illinois and Mississippi River Basin. We see disasters on a regular 
basis. In fact, when I got to this institution 10 years ago, one of the 
first votes I had to make was on funding Superstorm Sandy relief. I 
remember saying the first time that I had a chance to talk about 
disaster assistance, as a brand new freshman, my comments were if the 
Federal Government should do something right, it is helping communities 
recover from disasters that they had no control over.
  This is another good bipartisan step to making sure that happens in 
communities all across this Nation, from Montana to Washington, D.C., 
to Illinois and elsewhere.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge support for this fine piece of legislation, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for 
closing.
  This bill will also help my district, which was built on the rivers 
and where disaster resilience is most needed.
  In closing, we know that investments in mitigation measures save up 
to $11 for every $1 spent. This legislation will save taxpayer dollars 
by investing in mitigation and protecting vulnerable communities.
  I thank my colleague, Sharice Davids, for her work on this issue, and 
I support this targeted, data-driven approach. I urge my colleagues to 
do the same, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, S. 3875.
  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. ROSENDALE. 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.

                          ____________________