Policy Unwrapped
Flooding legislation from November and December 2019
Before we turn the page on 2019, we wanted to highlight recent legislative developments on Capitol Hill. November and December were busy months — NFIP authorization is expected to be extended through September 2020, national defense policy was set to be reauthorized with several key resilience provisions included, and both the House and Senate advanced legislative priorities to help coastal communities and communities affected by severe weather disasters rebuild smarter and stronger.
National Defense Authorization Act: The conference report for the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act was passed by the U.S. House on December 11th and the U.S. Senate on December 17. The legislation is expected to be signed into law by the President before the end of December. The bill sets policy for the military, authorizes funding, and includes several provisions related to resilience.
Two of our Federal Champions — Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-SC) and Rep. Charlie Crist (D-FL) — had amendments related to flooding and sea level rise included as part of this final legislation. Rep. Cunningham’s amendment strengthened the Defense Access Roads program by expanding funding eligibility to include roads that lead to air or sea ports necessary for the deployment or sustainment of troops, equipment, or supplies. While Rep. Crist’s amendment would direct the U.S. Department of Defense to incorporate flooding and sea level rise projections into plans for building and fortifying military installations.
Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act: On December 10th, the U.S. House passed a package of 10 bills that provides resources to coastal and Great Lakes communities. This legislation, H.R. 729, would authorize new grant programs to increase resilience in coastal communities and incorporate greater scientific data in efforts to preserve and stabilize coastal shorelines. In particular, H.R. 729 would establish grant programs to support living shoreline projects, enhance working waterfronts, and help states adapt to climate impacts. This legislation would also codify NOAA’s Digital Coasts program which provides data, visualization tools, and training to coastal management officials.
A number of amendments sponsored by our Federal Champions were introduced and included during debate of the legislation on the House floor. Rep. Joseph Morelle (D-NY) offered an amendment to direct that up to 5 percent of funds appropriated for a new grant program to benefit working waterfronts is available for technical assistance to accelerate early-stage resources and planning assistance for communities. This would ensure that local governments and states have access to assistance in obtaining federal funds, developing and implementing working waterfront plans, and integrating resilience into waterfront planning efforts.
Amendments by Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) and Rep. Donald McEachin (D-VA) would make improvements to a new grant program for living shoreline projects by considering the resiliency of military communities in the application criteria and including communities with fewer resources on the list of priority areas for projects to receive grants, respectively. An amendment by Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) and Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) would improve communication and information sharing between higher education institutions and Federal agencies regarding digital data on coastal management. Finally, an amendment by Reps. Charlie Crist (D-FL), Francis Rooney (R-FL) and others would make projects to address harmful algal blooms eligible for grant funding under a new program created in the legislation.
Reforming Disaster Recovery Act: On November 18, the U.S. House passed H.R. 3702, legislation that would permanently authorize the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to administer the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program (CDBG-DR). Since this recovery grant program is not currently codified in law, the CDBG-DR program needs to be reauthorized after a major disaster strikes, causing delays in the recovery process. H.R. 3702 would also codify HUD’s elevation requirement for projects using program funds for new construction in flood prone areas and require that certain projects comply with the latest published editions of relevant national consensus-based codes.
Hazard Eligibility and Local Projects Act: The House passed H.R. 2548, the Hazard Eligibility and Local Projects Act on December 17. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX), would expedite the process for certain eligible disaster mitigation projects — allowing such projects to begin without the risk of losing potential federal funds. Under current law, local and state agencies applying for federal money under FEMA’s hazard mitigation assistance programs must wait until they receive formal approval from FEMA before purchasing land or starting construction on their project. H.R. 2548 would take a positive step towards streamlining the process by allowing projects already in progress to receive assistance.
Rebuilding Small Businesses After Disasters Act: On November 22, legislation to aid small businesses recovering from disasters became law, as S. 862 was passed in the U.S. House and signed by the President. The Rebuilding Small Businesses After Disasters Act, sponsored by Senator John Kennedy (R-LA), which passed the U.S. Senate earlier this year in August, allows the Small Business Administration to continue to use a higher threshold for disaster recovery loans that require collateral, lessening requirements for those seeking loans.
NFIP Reauthorization: As part of a year-end legislative package to fund the federal government, Congress has agreed to extend the authorization for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through the end of the 2020 Fiscal Year (September 30, 2020). This legislation passed the U.S. House on December 17th, with the U.S. Senate expected to pass the legislation this week, and the President expected to sign it into law, before the current authorization lapses on December 21st.
Looking ahead to 2020
Congress will continue to work on major pieces of legislation to reauthorize critical infrastructure programs that are set to expire in 2020:
Surface Transportation: The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act of 2015, which authorizes our nation’s surface transportation infrastructure and programs, is set to expire on September 30, 2020. To ensure continued funding and avoid potential disruption of ongoing projects, Congress must advance and agree to a new reauthorization package or “Highway Bill” by this deadline. Earlier this year, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee released and approved a five-year, $287 billion reauthorization proposal, which included important provisions that would improve the resiliency of our surface transportation infrastructure. To learn more about some of the key themes around this issue, please view our Medium post on the highway bill reauthorization.
Water Resources Development Acts: In addition to a new highway bill, Congress must also pass legislation to reauthorize U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) civil works water resource programs and projects, as well as authorize new USACE studies and projects. Congress reauthorizes these programs biennially with the most recent effort, America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, set to lapse in 2020. Here is our Medium post on the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA).
Risk Rating 2.0, See you in 2021!
Risk Rating 2.0: FEMA announced on November 7th that the agency will delay the implementation of Risk Rating 2.0 by one year to October 1, 2021. FEMA’s Risk Rating 2.0 initiative, which we covered in our Medium post here, would change the way the agency rates a property’s flood risk and prices insurance, aiming to simplify the process and deliver rates that better reflect the unique risk of each property. The additional year to implement will allow FEMA to conduct an analysis of the proposed rating structure in order to protect policyholders and minimize unintentional negative effects of the transition. While FEMA originally intended to implement Risk Rating 2.0 with a phased approach, the extension will allow for all types of NFIP policies to transition to the new system at the same time.
We look forward to providing more policy updates in the New Year. Happy holidays!
This post was authored by Victoria Sclafani, Policy Associate.
