Sponsors (2)
The bill gives disaster-affected jurisdictions flexible, extended federal support to staff up and complete resilience and building-code work faster, at the cost of higher federal spending, potential uneven oversight, and some worker job-duration uncertainty.
State and local governments and nonprofit recovery organizations can hire and retain additional staff for up to two years to implement and enforce adopted building codes and finish resilience and permitting work after disasters, speeding local recovery and strengthening community resilience.
State, local, and nonprofit recipients can choose the start date for the federally supported hiring period, letting them align staffing with local recovery timelines and reducing administrative burden to improve program delivery.
All federal taxpayers could face higher FEMA program costs because longer federally funded hiring periods increase federal spending.
Allowing recipients to set start dates and extend staffing periods risks uneven oversight and inconsistent use of funds across jurisdictions, creating potential inefficiencies or unnecessary staffing in some areas.
Construction and recovery workers hired with FEMA-contributed funds may face uncertainty about job duration and benefits if recipients time start dates strategically, complicating employment stability and planning for these workers.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Extends the allowable pay period for FEMA-funded extra hires doing building code implementation/enforcement from 180 days to up to 2 years, while keeping a 180‑day cap for substantial damage determinations.
Official title: Amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to adjust the time period for the eligibility of certain base and overtime wages associated with the repair, restoration, and replacement of damaged facilities.
Introduced August 6, 2026 by Adam Schiff · Last progress August 6, 2026
Changes how long FEMA grant recipients may pay base and overtime wages for extra hires under Stafford Act assistance for rebuilding and code implementation. It keeps a 180‑day cap for extra hires who do substantial damage determinations but lets recipients set a period of up to 2 years for extra hires engaged in other activities to implement or enforce adopted building codes. Applies to contributions to State, local, and private nonprofit entities for eligible expenses; it is a targeted technical change to the timing rules for personnel costs in certain FEMA assistance grants.