Sponsors (3)
The bill expands FEMA flexibility and clarifies wildfire recovery and mitigation guidance—helping communities respond faster and prioritize nature‑based mitigation—while raising federal costs, adding administrative burdens, and creating potential funding shifts or gaps for some local projects.
Local governments, firefighters, and communities can get federal funds for safety assessments and emergency stabilization even when work occurs outside the declared incident period, speeding protective actions and reducing local fiscal burden.
Local governments and emergency managers gain clearer FEMA guidance on wildfire debris removal, emergency protective measures, and drinking-water toxicity, which speeds recovery, reduces uncertainty, and helps protect public health.
Homeowners and communities will see wildfire mitigation projects prioritized using updated, wildfire-specific cost‑benefit criteria (favoring defensible-space and nature-based projects), likely increasing funding for mitigation and broader adoption of conservation approaches.
Taxpayers could face higher federal spending and costs because eligibility for FEMA assistance is expanded to cover more pre- and post-incident activities.
FEMA and state/local agencies will incur additional administrative, planning, and implementation costs and complexity, which could slow rollouts, create delays, and increase overhead.
Guidance updates do not guarantee new funding for debris removal or water remediation, so homeowners and communities may still face significant out-of-pocket costs.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Directs FEMA to expand FMAP eligibility for safety assessments outside declared incident periods, add wildfire recovery guidance to Public Assistance, and update mitigation cost-effectiveness criteria within one year.
Official title: To direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to conduct a review of the criteria for evaluating the cost-effectiveness of certain mitigation projects, and for other purposes.
Introduced February 14, 2025 by Greg Stanton · Last progress February 14, 2025
Requires FEMA to change how it treats wildfire response and recovery: allow certain safety assessments and emergency stabilization activities to qualify for Fire Management Assistance Program support even if they occur outside a declared incident period; update FEMA Public Assistance guidance to address wildfire-specific recovery needs like debris removal and drinking-water toxicity; and revise cost-effectiveness criteria for pre-disaster mitigation projects so common defensible-space, nature-based, vegetation management, smoke reduction, and water-infrastructure benefits are better captured. FEMA must complete required recommendations and guidance updates within one year of enactment.