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Inserts a new subsection (d) into 42 U.S.C. 5173 directing the President to issue rules treating removal of debris or wreckage from units within residential common interest communities (including condominium entities, housing cooperative entities, and manufactured home parks) as in the public interest when a State or local government determines in writing such debris poses a threat to life, public health or safety, or the economic recovery of the community; requires the President to be deferential to defined terms in State or local laws and ordinances; and redesignates former subsections (d) and (e) as (e) and (f).
Adds four new definitions (paragraphs (13)–(16)) to section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act defining: 'residential common interest community', 'condominium', 'housing cooperative', and 'manufactured home park'.
Adds clear legal definitions for shared-housing types (common-interest communities, condominiums, housing cooperatives, and manufactured home parks) and directs the President/FEMA to adopt rules that treat debris removal from units in those shared-housing communities as in the public interest when a State or local government finds that the debris threatens life, health, safety, or community economic recovery. The change applies only to major disaster or emergency declarations made on or after the law’s enactment date.
Amends Section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122) by adding new paragraphs (13) through (16) containing definitions.
Adds paragraph (13) defining "residential common interest community" as any mandatory membership organization of owners of real estate created by a declaration or covenant where a person, because they own a unit, must pay for a share of real estate taxes, insurance premiums, maintenance or improvement, services, or other expenses related to common elements, other units, or other real estate besides the owner’s own unit.
Adds paragraph (14) defining "condominium" as a stand-alone condominium project in which each dwelling unit is separately owned, remaining portions of the real estate are for common ownership only by the unit owners, each owner has an undivided interest in the common elements, and the project is represented by an association made up exclusively of all unit owners that is or will be responsible for operation, administration, and management of the project.
Adds paragraph (15) defining "housing cooperative" as a multi-unit housing entity (including an association of manufactured homes) where each dwelling unit is separately used and possessed by one or more cooperative members and the members' interest is shown by membership or share interest in a cooperative association plus a lease or other document of title or possession granted by the cooperative as owner of cooperative property.
Adds paragraph (16) defining "manufactured home park" as a parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two or more lots containing manufactured home structures (regardless of whether they are taxed as real property) that: (A) are transportable in one or more sections; (B) are built on a permanent chassis and designed for use with or without a permanent foundation when attached to required utilities; and (C) are affixed to land.
Primary effects:
Residents and property owners in shared-housing settings (condominium unit owners, co-op members, residents of manufactured home parks) are the most directly affected. The change makes it more likely that debris blocking or damaging individual units in these settings will qualify for Federal debris-removal assistance when a State or local government documents a threat to life, health, safety, or economic recovery.
Condominium associations, cooperative associations, and manufactured-home-park owners/operators will play a larger role in coordinating with local officials and FEMA to document the need for debris removal and to organize access for cleanup.
State and local emergency management and local governments will need to provide written findings (as required) about threats to life, health, safety, or economic recovery; those findings trigger Federal consideration. Because the law instructs FEMA to respect State/local definitions, differences in state law may produce uneven coverage or require local governments to use particular legal terminology.
FEMA must develop implementing rules and internal guidance, which adds an administrative task but clarifies the agency’s authority to include units in shared-housing settings within public-interest debris removal.
Debris-removal contractors and local cleanup operations could see increased work in eligible communities; insurance and liability questions may still arise at the property-association level.
The law does not provide new funding; it changes eligibility/authority under existing Stafford Act programs. That reduces risk of a direct unfunded federal mandate but establishes conditions that states and localities must meet to secure Federal action.
Potential challenges and tradeoffs:
Variation in State/local legal definitions may create inconsistent application across jurisdictions and could produce disputes over which units qualify.
Clarifying Federal authority may accelerate recovery for many shared-housing residents, but coordination among multiple unit owners, associations, and local governments could generate administrative and legal complexity in practice.
Overall, the change is targeted and administrative in nature: it clarifies and expands when FEMA may consider debris removal of units in shared-housing communities to be in the public interest, improving access to Federal cleanup assistance for those living in condos, co-ops, and manufactured home parks after future disasters.
Expand sections to see detailed analysis
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Introduced December 1, 2025 by W. Greg Steube · Last progress December 1, 2025
Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Introduced in House