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Read. Follow. Verify.Senate Hearing on Improving Disaster Recovery and Resiliency
Record date · January 1, 2021
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What This Bill Does
The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee held a hearing to discuss the effectiveness of the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery () program. Senators and officials discussed the need for permanent of the program to reduce delays in aid delivery and improve long-term community resilience against climate-related disasters.
The committee is working on bipartisan legislation to permanently authorize the program, which has distributed nearly $90 billion over 30 years, to speed up how federal disaster aid reaches homeowners, renters, and small businesses.
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
State and local governments
These entities administer CDBG-DR grants and must navigate complex, varying rules for each supplemental appropriation.
Disaster-affected residents (homeowners and renters)
These individuals rely on the speed and availability of federal recovery funds to rebuild housing and infrastructure.
Small business owners
These individuals are eligible for recovery assistance through HUD programs to address economic losses from disasters.
Key Facts
- The CDBG-DR program has never been permanently authorized by Congress and currently relies on individual Supplemental Appropriations Acts.
- Since 1993, there have been 39 separate supplemental appropriations for the CDBG-DR program.
- The program has provided nearly $90 billion in recovery funding over the last 30 years.
- There are currently 62 grantees managing 130 active grants worth a total of $67 billion.
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- The U.S. experienced 22 extreme weather and climate-related disaster events in 2020, each causing over $1 billion in losses.
- The American Jobs Plan proposes $50 billion specifically for resiliency activities.
- The current ad hoc funding approach often forces grantees to manage multiple grants simultaneously with conflicting rules, leading to delays in aid delivery.
- The subcommittee is actively drafting bipartisan legislation to authorize the program and streamline assistance.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the CDBG-DR program?
Why is the committee considering new legislation for this program?
How does this differ from FEMA or SBA assistance?
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News Coverage
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Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Move toward permanent authorization
The committee is signaling a shift away from the 30-year reliance on ad hoc supplemental funding toward a permanent statutory framework for disaster recovery.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.govinfo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance85How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy20Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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