NLIHC and its Disaster Housing Recovery Coalition (DHRC) of more than 850 local, state, and national organizations support the bipartisan “Reforming Disaster Recovery Act” that would formally authorize the Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program. Permanent authorization would ensure CDBG-DR more quickly reaches disaster survivors and their communities after a disaster and that this critical resource is better targeted to those with the greatest needs. The bill was introduced by Senators Brian Schatz (D-HI), Susan Collins (R-ME), Patty Murray (D-WA), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Jon Tester (D-MT), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Todd Young (R-IN), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Alex Padilla (D-CA).
Organizations are invited to join NLIHC, the National Association of Counties, the National League of Cities, and Enterprise Community Partners by signing onto a letter urging Congress to swiftly enact the Reforming Disaster Act.
CDBG-DR is a vital tool that provides flexible, long-term resources needed to rebuild after a disaster and to prepare for future harm. The lack of formal authorization and consequential congressional inaction, however, leads to unnecessary delays that harm survivors and communities. Also, without additional safeguards and transparency provisions in the bill, recovery and mitigation efforts can be inconsistent and steer funds away from those most in need. Households with low incomes are the most impacted by disasters but receive the least amount of assistance. As climate change continues to create longer, more intense wildfire and hurricane seasons, the importance of ensuring low-income households can fully recover will only grow. The Reforming Disaster Recovery Act can help make that happen.
The 2019 version of the bill introduced by Representative Al Green (D-TX) was unanimously passed out of the House Financial Services Committee and approved by the full House of Representatives through a bipartisan vote. HUD and the Government Accountability Office under the past two administrations have agreed that permanently authorizing the CDBG-DR program would vastly improve how the most important long-term disaster recovery program operates.
Additional disaster recovery updates below.
Congressional and National Updates
Legislation introduced in the Senate by Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Tim Scott (R-FL), and in the House by Representative Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) and Delegate James Moylan (R-GU), would fund FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund – its source for operational and assistance funding - at $11.5 billion dollars. The fund is expected to be empty later this summer.
The inaugural meeting of the Congressional Disaster Equity and Building Resilience caucus was held on June 23rd. The meeting featured a panel of experts that included a representative from DHRC member Hispanic Federation.
During opening remarks for a hearing on HUD Oversight held by the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance, Subcommittee Chairman Warren Davidson commented on the permanent authorization of HUD’s long-term disaster recovery program, the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program (CDBG-DR): “CDBG-DR, as it’s known, is now HUD’s single-largest grant, and believe it or not, it is a program that has never been formally authorized by Congress. In fact, most of HUD’s programs are funded each year but remain unauthorized. These include programs for the nation’s most vulnerable populations, such as public housing, Section 8, and health-and-safety programs. It’s a problem that I believe this Subcommittee must address to ensure that HUD receives proper oversight. A lapse in authorization is also a lapse by Congress in providing the scrutiny that HUD – of all agencies – needs.”
The National Governors Association Public Health and Disaster Response Task Force sent recommendations to the Hill regarding FY24 appropriations priorities – these included statements of support for existing disaster preparedness grant programs like FEMA’s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program and calling for greater action on cybersecurity.
Introduced by Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Representatives Brittany Petterson (D-CO), Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), Scott Peters (D-CA), Carlos Gimenez (R-FL), and Greg Steube (R-FL), the Shelter Act would create tax credits for households and small businesses to invest in disaster mitigation improvements to their homes and properties prior to disasters.
New Mexico’s Congressional Delegation is pushing for HUD to quickly release additional recovery funds to the state to assist in wildfire recovery. The agency is currently waiting for delayed FEMA assistance to be disbursed to match the funding with apparent need.
State and Local
Arkansas
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued an executive order to make it easier for FEMA to transport temporary housing units to areas impacted by tornados earlier this year. Victims of those tornados have until July 3 to apply for recovery funds.
California
6 rental homes in Paradise, CA – largely destroyed by the catastrophic Camp Fire in 2018 – are now available for rent to individuals between 60-80% area median income and are managed by DHRC member the Community Housing Improvement Project.
Florida
Areas of Florida are utilizing FEMA funding to build flood mitigation products in areas impacted by Hurricane Ian – while many communities are working to submit applications for projects.
Guam
An article in Forbes heralded the U.S. Coast Guard’s actions during and after Typhoon Mawar in Guam.
Kentucky
Out of all loans offered to victims of the East Kentucky floods by the SBA, less than half have been accepted. The reason is a combination of administrative rules attached to the receipt of the funds, a desire to not take on additional debt, or are unable to afford flood insurance for their rebuilt homes as required. With FEMA housing assistance capped at $37,000, for most, that loan is their last chance for assistance until the arrival of HUD long-term recovery funds.
Louisiana
With the state’s Hurricane Ida temporary housing program shutting down due to lack of funds, residents are worried about the lack of alternative housing available in coastal Louisiana. While the state has stated that nobody would be removed from the travel trailers individuals have lived in since 2021, and requested FEMA provide assistance to keep individuals in their temporary homes, many don’t see a way to ever move out of them given the significant rent increases seen following the storm.
Officials in Saint John the Baptist Parish in Louisiana are asking that residents take a housing resilience survey to determine how their home would fare during a hurricane. The survey is part of a process to create a Resilient Housing Plan for the area.
Missouri
St. Charles County, impacted by severe flooding in 2019, has received HUD long-term recovery funding that will compensate 100 homeowners who live in flood prone areas. Allowing them to sell their home and relocate to safer areas of the county.
Mississippi
Utility providers and the state department of emergency management continue to work to restore power to areas significantly impacted by tornados in the eastern region of Mississippi earlier this year.
Oregon
118 modular homes designated for survivors of the 2020 Almeda fire were recently found to be uninhabitable, delaying the provision of housing and leaving the state scrambling to find alternative housing. The defects were alleged to be from the manufacturer by the state, however the homes were sitting untouched for over a month before they could begin being sited.
Texas
HUD long-term recovery funds provided to Houston after Hurricane Harvey have been used to construct a 170 unit permanent supportive housing project in Houston’s Sharpstown neighborhood. The Housing First development primarily serves people who have experienced or are at risk of experiencing homelessness. The Sharpstown neighborhood had 40% of its housing units damaged by Hurricane Harvey.