Sponsors (4)
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The bill expands and eases access to FEMA housing assistance for more disaster-affected households and reduces documentation barriers, but does so at the cost of higher federal spending, increased fraud and administrative risk, potential unevenness in access, and concentration of certain budgetary controls.
Homeowners and renters affected by a major disaster (including those with damage short of being ‘uninhabitable’) will be eligible for more FEMA disaster housing assistance, increasing the number of households who can get temporary or transitional housing support.
People who occupied a damaged residence but lack formal title or lost records (often low-income households) can qualify for Stafford Act assistance using a broader set of acceptable documents or a signed declaration under penalty of perjury, and applicants are not required to obtain notarization.
FEMA gains greater operational flexibility by replacing rigid statutory 2‑year deadlines with agency timing set by the Administrator, allowing implementation schedules and program requirements to be adjusted to disaster realities.
Taxpayers may face higher federal costs because broader housing eligibility and cost‑effective determinations are likely to increase FEMA spending on housing assistance.
Relaxed evidence standards and allowance of sworn declarations raise the risk of fraudulent or ineligible claims, which could divert funds from eligible survivors and impose costs on taxpayers.
Giving the President discretion to authorize assistance as a ‘cost‑effective’ alternative risks inconsistent or unequal application across disasters or regions, producing uneven access for affected households.
Treats claims of “constructive ownership” as acceptable proof of ownership for FEMA housing assistance when people lack formal title but evidence makes it more likely than not they occupied the destroyed pre-disaster primary residence. Expands the kinds of documents FEMA must consider, allows a signed declaration under penalty of perjury (but not requiring notarization), and limits the new rule to funds appropriated on or after enactment. Also updates the Stafford Act housing assistance rules to allow housing assistance when the President finds it a cost-effective alternative (including temporary housing costs), replaces certain two-year timing deadlines with Administrator-determined timing, and limits these changes to applications and funds on or after enactment. The act directs PAYGO scoring to the House Budget Committee statement submitted before passage.
Introduced January 15, 2025 by Adriano J. Espaillat · Last progress January 15, 2025