Sponsors (6)
The bill provides federally supported air-cleaning equipment and transitional shelter options to protect vulnerable Americans during multi-day unhealthy air events, improving public health while increasing federal costs and imposing administrative burdens on local agencies, with potential protection gaps for larger or multi-family households.
Low-income and medically vulnerable people (children, pregnant people, seniors, and those with chronic respiratory or cardiovascular conditions) gain access to air filtration units, masks, and home-sealing supplies during multi-day unhealthy air events, and can access transitional sheltering when in-home protection is inadequate.
Qualified state and local entities can receive federal assistance to procure and distribute equipment and support sheltering, reducing local fiscal burden and enabling broader response capacity.
When portable equipment cannot adequately protect health, affected individuals can use cost-efficient transitional sheltering instead of remaining in unhealthy homes, providing an alternative that limits exposure.
Taxpayers may face increased federal spending to supply filtration equipment and transitional sheltering during wildfire events.
Local and state agencies will need to manage distribution logistics and program operations, which can strain limited staff and operational budgets during disasters.
Limiting portable air conditioning units to one per household may leave larger or multi-family households underprotected from smoke infiltration, creating uneven protection within households.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires FEMA to fund qualified state/local entities to provide smoke-prevention equipment to at-risk people during multi-day unhealthy wildfire smoke and to offer shelter if equipment is insufficient.
Requires FEMA, through its Transitional Sheltering Assistance program, to fund qualified state and local entities so they can buy and give smoke-prevention equipment (like high-efficiency masks or air cleaners) to people at risk of illness from wildfire smoke when air quality is "unhealthy" for at least three straight days because of wildfire; if equipment is not enough, FEMA must provide cost-efficient transitional shelter assistance. Defines who counts as "at risk," which entities can receive funds, and how "low-income" is measured (up to 200% of the Census poverty level).
Introduced September 18, 2025 by Joseph Neguse · Last progress September 18, 2025