Edwards, Titus introduce bill to streamline FEMA application process for disaster victims

U.S. Congressman Chuck Edwards (NC-11) today introduced the Disaster Survivors Fairness Act to streamline the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) application process and improve coordination among federal agencies to more effectively aid disaster victims. Congresswoman Dina Titus (NV-01) is co-leading this bipartisan bill.

Edwards said, “After Helene hit Western North Carolina, I saw firsthand how complicated and difficult the disaster recovery assistance applications were. Many folks had to apply to multiple agencies, including FEMA, the SBA, and USDA, for disaster assistance, each of which had their own extensive applications. Creating a universal application so disaster victims only need to submit one application to be eligible for all federal aid is an important step toward making sure we are prioritizing the people and not the bureaucracy after disaster strikes.”

Congresswoman Titus said, "Because of climate change, today’s disasters are becoming more severe, more destructive, and more costly, as we saw in last year’s Hurricane Helene that devastated whole communities. This legislation cuts red tape and streamlines the delivery of FEMA resources to individuals and neighborhoods. It gives FEMA more authority to direct repair assistance to homeowners and helps families rebuild homes that are more resilient to disasters. This legislation makes the most of FEMA resources so people can rebuild their lives after a major disaster.”'

DISASTER SURVIVORS FAIRNESS ACT

This bill:

• Directs the FEMA administrator to develop a universal application for federal disaster assistance to be used across agencies and authorizes information sharing across these agencies.
• Streamlines the ability of the president to provide direct assistance to individuals and households for repairs to homes that were damaged by a major disaster.
• Requires the FEMA administrator to:
  • Study disaster housing assistance.
  • Publish and maintain an online tool that shows the number of individual assistance applications, a ranked list of reasons for application denials, and total amount of assistance provided for each major disaster declared by the president.
  • Submit a report to Congress on the average amount of individual assistance received by households at different income levels.
• Allows the FEMA administrator to reimburse states for the cost of sheltering emergency response and law enforcement personnel.

ENDORSEMENTS

• American Flood Coalition Action
• National Association of Counties
• National Association of Emergency Managers

Click here for bill text.