[Senate Report 107-336]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 749
107th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     107-336

======================================================================



 
       UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE EXTENSION FOR SEPTEMBER 11 VICTIMS

                                _______
                                

               November 12, 2002.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

   Mr. Jeffords, from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, 
                        submitted the following

                         [to accompany S. 2715]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works, to which was 
referred a bill (S. 2715), to provide an additional extension 
of the period of availability of unemployment assistance under 
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act in the case of victims of the terrorist attacks of 
September 11, 2001, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon and recommends that the bill do pass.

                               Background

    On September 11, 2001, terrorists attacked the Pentagon and 
the World Trade Center. These horrible events marked the first 
time since the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor that the United 
States has suffered an attack on domestic soil. The magnitude 
and enormity of these attacks are unprecedented in our Nation's 
history. Thousands of innocent people lost their lives. 
Thousands more lost their homes, their businesses, their jobs, 
their livelihoods.
    In New York, the attack left in its wake a mountain of 
debris, damaged buildings and lost jobs. Over the next 2 years, 
New York City will lose an estimated $105 billion as a result 
of the September 11th attack. The attack damaged or destroyed 
nearly 25 million square feet of office space, roughly 
equivalent to 20 percent of all the office space in downtown 
New York. Northern Virginia also will feel the effects of the 
attack for years to come.
    The President declared a major disaster in New York on 
September 11, 2001, and in Northern Virginia on September 21, 
2001. In the case of Presidential declaration of a major 
disaster, section 410(a) of the Stafford Act gives the 
President authority to provide disaster unemployment assistance 
to an eligible recipient until that individual finds suitable 
employment, but for no longer than 26 weeks after a major 
disaster declaration. The President may provide this assistance 
only when an individual is not entitled to any other 
unemployment compensation (as that term is defined in section 
85(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986). The Federal 
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administers the program.
    The 26-week deadline for the disaster unemployment 
assistance program in New York and Virginia expired in March of 
2002. Public Law 107-154, signed into law on March 25, 2002, 
extended the eligibility of this program an additional 13 
weeks, through June of 2002.
    According to FEMA, the Agency processed 6,674 applications 
for this assistance and approved 3,269 claims totaling 
$13,001,530 in New York. FEMA also processed 625 applications 
and approved 541 claims totaling $298,584 in Virginia. 
Approximately 1,200 people were still receiving disaster 
unemployment assistance in New York when the program expired in 
June of 2002.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

Section 1. Extension of Unemployment Assistance

                                SUMMARY

    Section 1 provides an additional 13-week extension of 
disaster unemployment assistance available under the Stafford 
Act related to September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

                               DISCUSSION

    S. 2715 responds to the continuing needs of individuals who 
lost their employment as a result of the September 11th 
attacks. The bill would not amend the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act), 
but would provide a second 13-week extension of the disaster 
unemployment assistance program, for a total of 52 weeks of 
eligibility from the date of the major disaster declaration.
    The committee intends for this extension to provide 
assistance to the approximately 1,200 disaster victims still 
receiving disaster unemployment assistance when the program 
expired in June 2002. This bill does not change in any way the 
qualifications established by FEMA for the provision of 
disaster unemployment assistance under the Stafford Act.
    The committee does not anticipate that FEMA will change the 
current regulatory scheme for administration of the disaster 
unemployment assistance program beyond offering an additional 
13 weeks of assistance to victims of the attack.

                          Legislative History

    Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton introduced S. 2715 on July 
9, 2002. The committee reported S. 2715 by voice vote on 
September 26, 2002.

                                Hearings

    The committee held a legislative hearing on related 
legislation, S. 1622, a bill to extend the disaster 
unemployment assistance program for 26 weeks. At that hearing 
on November 1, 2001, testimony was provided by Michael Brown, 
Deputy Director, Federal Emergency Management Agency; Joe 
Moravec, Commissioner, Public Building Service, General 
Services Administration; Dr. David Sampson, Assistant Secretary 
for Economic Development, Economic Development Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce; Richard Meserve, Chairman, Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission; Herbert Mitchell, Associate 
Administrator for Disaster Assistance, Small Business 
Administration; and Marianne L. Horinko, Assistant 
Administrator, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, 
Environmental Protection Agency.

                             Rollcall Votes

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works met to 
consider S. 2715 on September 26, 2002. The committee then 
agreed to report S. 2715 by voice vote.

                      Regulatory Impact Statement

    In compliance with section 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee makes evaluation of 
the regulatory impact of the reported bill.
    The bill does not create any additional regulatory burdens, 
nor will it cause any adverse impact on the personal privacy of 
individuals.

                          Mandates Assessment

    In compliance with the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(Public Law 104-4), the committee finds that S. 2715 would 
impose no unfunded mandates on local, State, or tribal 
governments.

                          Cost of Legislation

    Section 403 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act requires that a statement of the cost of the 
reported bill, prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, be 
included in the report. That statement follows:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                  Washington, DC, October 25, 2002.

Hon. James M. Jeffords, Chairman,
Committee on Environment and Public Works,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.

    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2715, a bill to 
provide an additional extension of the period of availability 
of unemployment assistance under the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in the case of 
victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact are Rachel 
Milberg (for Federal costs), who can be reached at 226-2860, 
and Susan Seig Tompkins (for State and local impact), who can 
be reached at 225-3220.
            Sincerely,
                                            Dan L. Crippen.
                              ----------                              

S. 2715, A bill to provide an additional extension of the period of 
        availability of unemployment assistance under the Robert T. 
        Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in the 
        case of victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, 
        as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Environment and 
        Public Works on September 26, 2002
Summary
    S. 2715 would require the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency (FEMA) to extend the amount of time from 39 weeks to 52 
weeks that victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks 
would be eligible to receive disaster unemployment assistance.
    CBO estimates that extending the period of eligibility 
would cost the Federal Government about $15 million in fiscal 
year 2003, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts. S. 
2715 would not affect direct spending or revenues.
    S. 2715 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) 
and would impose no costs on State, local, or tribal 
governments.
Estimated Cost to the Federal Government
    The estimated budgetary impact of S. 2715 is shown in the 
following table. The costs of this legislation fall within 
budget function 450 (community and regional development).


                                     By Fiscal Year, in Millions of Dollars
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       2003     2004     2005     2006     2007
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                 SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION
Estimated Authorization Level......................................       15        0        0        0        0
Estimated Outlays..................................................       15        0        0        0        0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Basis of Estimate
    For this estimate, CBO assumes that S. 2715 will be enacted 
by the end of calendar year 2002 and that the necessary funds 
will be appropriated. Based on information from FEMA and 
information about prior extensions of Federal unemployment 
compensation, CBO estimates that extending the period of 
eligibility for disaster unemployment benefits would cost about 
$15 million in fiscal year 2003.
    FEMA provided unemployment assistance to those affected by 
the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks who did not receive 
such assistance from the State of New York. Both the FEMA 
program and the State program expired in June 2002. At the time 
the programs expired, about 1,200 people were receiving 
assistance from the FEMA program, and about 21,500 people were 
receiving assistance from the State program. S. 2715 would 
extend the FEMA program.
    Since there is currently no extension of the State program, 
CBO expects that FEMA would provide assistance to people who 
had originally received assistance from that agency as well as 
to people who had originally received such assistance from the 
State of New York. Based on information from FEMA, CBO 
estimates that the total number of disaster unemployment 
assistance claims under S. 2715 would be about 11,000.
    CBO expects that the total number of recipients receiving 
assistance would decrease each week by 5 percent over the 13-
week period of eligibility. We estimate that under this bill 
the victims would receive an average rate of $140 a week for an 
average of about 10 weeks.
Intergovernmental and Private-Sector Impact
    S. 2715 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on State, 
local, or tribal governments.
Previous CBO Estimate
    On December 6, 2001, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S. 
1622, a bill to extend the period of availability of 
unemployment assistance under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in the case of victims of 
the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, as ordered 
reported by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public 
Works on November 8, 2001. And, on March 1, 2002, CBO 
transmitted a cost estimate for S. 1622 as ordered reported by 
the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on 
February 27, 2002. For those estimates, CBO did not assume that 
the FEMA program would cover people who had received assistance 
from the State of New York, so the estimated costs were lower.

Estimate Prepared By: Federal Costs: Rachel Milberg; Impact on 
State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Susan Sieg Tompkins; 
Impact on the Private Sector: Ralph Smith.

Estimate Approved By: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with section 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 
Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill 
as reported are shown as follows: Existing law proposed to be 
omitted is enclosed in [black brackets], new matter is printed 
in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown 
in roman:
                                ------                                


                          [Public Law 107-154]

An Act to extend the period of availability of unemployment assistance 
 under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
 Act in the case of victims of the terrorists attacks of September 11, 
                                 2001.

SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE.

    Notwithstanding section 410(a) of the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
517(a)), in the case of any individual eligible to receive 
unemployment assistance under section 410(a) of that Act as a 
result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the 
President shall make such assistance available for [39] 52 
weeks after after the major disaster is declared.

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