[House Report 116-148]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
116th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { 116-148
======================================================================
DISCLOSING AID SPENT TO ENSURE RELIEF ACT
_______
July 11, 2019.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. DeFazio, from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1984]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to whom
was referred the bill (H.R. 1984) to amend chapter 11 of title
31, United States Code, to require the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget to annually submit to Congress a
report on all disaster-related assistance provided by the
Federal Government, having considered the same, report
favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill
do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Purpose of Legislation........................................... 2
Background and Need for Legislation.............................. 2
Hearings......................................................... 2
Legislative History and Consideration............................ 2
Committee Votes.................................................. 3
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 3
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 3
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 4
Duplication of Federal Programs.................................. 4
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff
Benefits....................................................... 5
Federal Mandates Statement....................................... 5
Preemption Clarification......................................... 5
Advisory Committee Statement..................................... 5
Applicability to Legislative Branch.............................. 5
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation................... 5
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............ 6
Purpose of Legislation
The purpose of H.R. 1984 is to require the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to submit to Congress an
annual report on all disaster-related assistance provided by
the Federal Government.
Background and Need for Legislation
The Federal Government does not currently have a publicly-
accessible estimate of the amount spent on disaster-related
assistance. Section 101 of the Budget Control Act of 2011 (Pub.
L. 112-25) requires OMB to set an annual cap for disaster
relief spending by calculating an adjusted 10-year rolling
average of disaster-related expenditures. This calculation
includes spending by 29 individual accounts managed by 11
different agencies and departments. However, only a limited
subset of this information is made available to the public or
released in an accessible format.
H.R. 1984 would address this issue by requiring the
Director of OMB to submit an annual report to Congress
detailing the estimated disaster spending for the fiscal year.
The report must include all federal obligations related to
disaster response, recovery, mitigation efforts, and
administrative costs associated with these activities for
specified agencies and programs.
Hearings
For the purposes of section 103(i) of H. Res. 6 of the
116th Congress--
The following hearing was used to develop or consider H.R.
1984:
On February 26, 2019, the Committee on Transportation
and Infrastructure held a hearing entitled, ``Examining
How Federal Infrastructure Policy Could Help Mitigate
and Adapt to Climate Change.'' Witnesses included: Dr.
Daniel Sperling, Board Member, California Air Resources
Board; Mr. Ben Prochazka, Vice President,
Electrification Coalition; Ms. Vicki Arroyo, Executive
Director, Georgetown Climate Center; Mr. James M.
Proctor, II, Senior Vice President and General Counsel,
McWane, Inc., testifying on behalf of the Build Strong
Coalition; Mr. Kevin DeGood, Director, Infrastructure
Policy, Center for American Progress; Ms. Lynn
Scarlett, Vice President, Policy and Government
Affairs, The Nature Conservancy; and Dr. Whitley J.
Saumweber, Director, Stephenson Ocean Security (SOS)
Project, Center for Strategic and International
Studies. Topics discussed included impacts of severe
weather events and rising costs of federal response and
recovery operations.
Legislative History and Consideration
H.R. 1984 was introduced in the House on March 28, 2019, by
Mr. Peters and referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure. Within the Committee, H.R. 1984 was referred to
the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and
Emergency Management.
The Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings,
and Emergency Management was discharged from further
consideration of H.R. 1984 on May 8, 2019.
The Full Committee met in open session to consider H.R.
1984 on May 8, 2019, and ordered the measure to be reported to
the House with a favorable recommendation, without amendment,
by voice vote with a quorum present.
Committee Votes
Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives requires each committee report to include the
total number of votes cast for and against on each record vote
on a motion to report and on any amendment offered to the
measure or matter, and the names of those members voting for
and against.
There were no recorded votes taken in connection with
consideration of H.R. 1984.
Committee Oversight Findings
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(1) of rule
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee's oversight findings and recommendations are
reflected in this report.
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures
Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives does not apply where a cost estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974 has been timely submitted prior to the filing of the
report and is included in the report. Such a cost estimate is
included in this report.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(3) of rule
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section
402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has
received the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1984 from the
Director of the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, May 14, 2019.
Hon. Peter A. DeFazio,
Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1984, the DISASTER
Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew
Pickford.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall,
Director.
Enclosure.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
H.R. 1984 would require the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) to prepare an annual report on federal disaster-related
assistance for the Congress and to post it online. The report
would include budgetary information such as obligations by
agency and account; spending for each disaster; assistance for
each type of disaster; spending for response, recovery, and
mitigation; and how much spending was for loans and grants.
Under current law, OMB reports annually on disaster
spending pursuant to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985. H.R. 1984 would expand that report. Using
information from OMB, CBO estimates that preparing the more
comprehensive report would cost less than $500,000 annually.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew
Pickford. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss,
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
Performance Goals and Objectives
With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(4) of rule
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
performance goal and objective of this legislation is to
improve transparency with respect to federal disaster relief
spending and to provide an accurate accounting of such spending
for federal budgeting calculations.
Duplication of Federal Programs
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the Committee finds that no provision
of H.R. 1984 establishes or reauthorizes a program of the
federal government known to be duplicative of another federal
program, a program that was included in any report from the
Government Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to
section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program related to a
program identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal
Domestic Assistance.
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff
Benefits
In compliance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of the rule
XXI.
Federal Mandates Statement
The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of federal
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform
Act (Public Law 104-4).
Preemption Clarification
Section 423 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974
requires the report of any Committee on a bill or joint
resolution to include a statement on the extent to which the
bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt state, local,
or tribal law. The Committee finds that H.R. 1984 does not
preempt any state, local, or tribal law.
Advisory Committee Statement
No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b)
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this
legislation.
Applicability to Legislative Branch
The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public
services or accommodations within the meaning of section
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act (Public Law
104-1).
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation
Section 1. Short title
This section provides that the bill may be cited as the
``Disclosing Aid Spent to Ensure Relief Act'' or the ``DISASTER
Act''.
Sec. 2. Findings
This section briefly describes the underlying
justifications for the bill and states that the Federal
Government does not currently provide an estimate of the amount
spent on disaster-related assistance to the public. The section
also emphasizes the importance of understanding the role of the
Federal Government in providing disaster assistance in the
context of fiscal responsibility.
Sec. 3. Purpose
This section states that the purpose of H.R. 1984 is to
require the OMB Director to submit to Congress an annual report
on all disaster-related assistance provided by the Federal
Government.
Sec. 4. Reporting of disaster-related assistance
This section states the duty of the OMB Director to submit
to Congress a report detailing the Federal disaster-related
assistance for the fiscal year immediately preceding the
calendar year in which the annual budget submission is made.
The section defines ``disaster-related assistance'' as
including federal obligations related to disaster response,
recovery, mitigation efforts, and administrative costs for
approximately twenty federal agencies.
Sec. 5. Effective date
This section states that the reporting requirement in
Section 4 shall take effect with the budget submission of the
President for fiscal year 2022.
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is
printed in italic and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
TITLE 31, UNITED STATES CODE
* * * * * * *
SUBTITLE II--THE BUDGET PROCESS
* * * * * * *
CHAPTER 11--THE BUDGET AND FISCAL, BUDGET, AND PROGRAM INFORMATION
Sec.
1101. Definitions.
* * * * * * *
1127. Reporting of disaster-related assistance.
* * * * * * *
Sec. 1127. Reporting of disaster-related assistance
(a) In General.--On the same day that the President makes the
annual budget submission to the Congress under section 1105(a)
for a fiscal year, the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall submit to Congress a report on Federal disaster-
related assistance for the fiscal year ending in the calendar
year immediately preceding the calendar year in which the
annual budget submission is made. Disaster-related assistance
encompasses Federal obligations related to disaster response,
recovery, and mitigation efforts, as well as administrative
costs associated with these activities, including spending by
the following agencies and programs:
(1) Department of Agriculture:
(A) Agriculture Research Service.
(B) Farm Service Agency.
(C) Food and Nutrition Service.
(D) Natural Resource Conservation Service.
(E) Forest Service.
(F) Rural Housing Service.
(G) Rural Utilities Service.
(2) Department of Commerce:
(A) National Marine Fisheries Service of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration.
(B) Economic Development Administration
Economic Adjustment Assistance.
(3) Army Corps of Engineers of the Department of
Defense (Civil).
(4) Department of Defense (Military):
(A) Military Personnel.
(B) Operations and Maintenance.
(C) Procurement.
(D) Research, Development, Test, and
Evaluation.
(E) Military Construction (MILCON) and Family
Housing.
(F) Management Funds.
(G) Other Department of Defense Programs.
(5) Department of Education:
(A) Elementary and Secondary Education.
(B) Higher Education.
(6) Department of Health and Human Services:
(A) Administration for Children and Families.
(B) Public Health and Medical Assistance.
(C) Public Health Emergency Fund.
(7) Department of Homeland Security:
(A) Federal Emergency Management Agency:
(i) Emergency Declarations.
(ii) Fire Management Assistance
Grants.
(iii) Major Disaster Declarations.
(iv) Administrative Assistance.
(B) FEMA Missions Assignments by Federal
Agency.
(C) Community Disaster Loan Program.
(8) Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD):
(A) Community Development Block Grants.
(B) Rental Assistance/Section 8 Vouchers.
(C) Supportive Housing.
(D) Public Housing Repair.
(E) Inspector General.
(9) Department of the Interior:
(A) Bureau of Indian Affairs.
(B) United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
(C) National Park Service.
(D) Wildland Fire Management.
(10) Department of Justice:
(A) Legal Activities.
(B) United States Marshals Service.
(C) Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(D) Drug Enforcement Administration.
(E) Bureau of Tobacco, Firearms, and
Explosives.
(F) Federal Prison System (Bureau of
Prisons).
(G) Office of Justice Programs.
(11) Department of Labor:
(A) National Emergency Grants for Dislocation
Events.
(B) Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Dislocated
Worker Program.
(12) Department of Transportation:
(A) Federal Highway Administration: Emergency
Relief Program (ER).
(B) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
(C) Federal Transit Administration (FTA).
(13) Department of the Treasury: Internal Revenue
Service.
(14) Department of Veterans Affairs.
(15) Corporation for National and Community Service.
(16) Environmental Protection Agency:
(A) Hurricane Emergency Response Authorities.
(B) EPA Hurricane Response.
(C) EPA Regular Appropriations.
(17) The Federal Judiciary.
(18) Disaster Assistance Program of the Small
Business Administration.
(19) Department of Energy:
(A) Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security,
and Emergency Response.
(B) Office of Petroleum Services.
(20) General Services Administration.
(21) Other authorities as appropriate.
(b) Content.--The report shall detail the following:
(1) Overall amount of disaster-related assistance
obligations during the fiscal year.
(2) Disaster-related assistance obligations by agency
and account.
(3) Disaster for which the spending was obligated.
(4) Obligations by disaster.
(5) Disaster-related assistance by disaster type.
(6) Response and recovery spending.
(7) Mitigation spending.
(8) Spending in the form of loans.
(9) Spending in the form of grants.
(c) Availability of Report.--The report shall be made
publicly available on the website of the Office of Management
and Budget and should be searchable, sortable and downloadable.
* * * * * * *
[all]