Sponsors (9)
The bill streamlines applications, increases transparency, and expands repair/mitigation support—especially for vulnerable groups—while raising privacy risks, administrative burdens, and likely federal costs that may shift fiscal pressure onto taxpayers or require tradeoffs elsewhere.
Disaster survivors (renters, homeowners, low-income households) get a single, standardized federal application and improved interagency coordination so applying for and receiving multiple forms of federal aid is simpler and more consistent.
Congress, the public, and local officials gain much more transparency and accountability (denial rates by income, GAO studies, public dashboards, program reviews), which can expose disparities, drive reforms, and improve FEMA oversight.
Homeowners and renters can access expanded direct repair and mitigation assistance (including post-damage mitigation) to reduce future harm, speed recovery, and protect life and property.
Expanded eligibility, reimbursements, and new direct-assistance authorities will likely raise FEMA spending and federal fiscal exposure, meaning higher costs for taxpayers or tradeoffs elsewhere in the federal budget.
Centralizing and sharing sensitive disaster applicant data across agencies and partners increases privacy and security risks (breaches, legal ambiguity, imperfect de-identification), potentially exposing vulnerable applicants.
New reporting requirements, studies, dashboards, and a universal application impose significant administrative and IT costs on FEMA, GAO, and state/local agencies that could divert staff/time from immediate disaster response and recovery.
Based on analysis of 28 sections of legislative text.
Introduced February 12, 2025 by Chuck Edwards · Last progress February 12, 2025
Creates a single, universal application and a unified electronic system to streamline direct federal disaster assistance, requires new public reporting and dashboards on FEMA individual assistance decisions, expands and clarifies types of aid available to individuals (including repair and hazard mitigation funding), and directs multiple GAO studies and transparency measures. The bill also limits certain grantee administrative reimbursements, sets minimum federal cost shares for some assistance, authorizes short-term reimbursement for sheltering emergency response personnel, and requires state web resources and other coordination to improve disaster recovery delivery.