After struggling to reach a compromise on the “National Defense Authorization Act” (NDAA) – viewed by many in the U.S. Congress as a “must-pass” piece of annual legislation – the final text of a negotiated bill was released on December 6. The package, which authorizes defense spending, typically attracts a wide range of additional non-defense measures, which members of Congress hope to include due to the virtual certainty of the overall package passing. The U.S. House of Representatives passed its version of the NDAA over the past summer. However, Senate leadership decided not to pass its own version of the bill but instead directly negotiate a compromise bill with members of the House. A number of disaster recovery and housing-related provisions – several of which survived the negotiation process – were included in the bill passed by the House, which now awaits a vote in the Senate.
Disaster Recovery Provisions
While the House included the “Reforming Disaster Recovery Act” (RDRA) and several provisions implementing equity measures within FEMA in earlier versions of the bill, the disaster recovery-related language incorporated into the final bill was sparser, though still significant. (The RDRA permanently authorizes HUD’s long-term disaster recovery program, speeding assistance to disaster survivors.)
Included in the final version of the bill is language requiring FEMA to submit reports on how it conducts damage assessments and that directs the agency to create a task force to review reforms on the subject, require the Office of the Comptroller to review approvals of Individual Assistance by FEMA, and review the use of collapsible shelters during disaster recovery. Most notably, the bill includes language allowing FEMA to waive debts owed to the U.S. government by disaster survivors if a debt is the result of disaster assistance provided in error or if repayment of the disaster assistance constitutes a hardship for the survivor. The language is potentially impactful, given ongoing recoupment efforts by FEMA in disaster impacted areas, and gives additional tools to legal advocates working to defend disaster survivors required to repay assistance that was disbursed by FEMA but subsequently deemed by the agency to have been provided in error.
Housing Provisions
The House included several housing-related bills in its initial version of the NDAA, including language expanding the type of organization that can provide technical and capacity support to community development organizations, permitting permanent housing construction under the Community Development Block Grant program, prohibiting consumer reports from including adverse information on student loans, and more.
Only one provision survived the negotiation process: a version of the “Flexibility in Addressing Rural Homelessness Act of 2022,” sponsored by Representative Cindy Axne (D-IA) and Representative Frank Lucas (R-OK). The language authorizes homeless service providers in rural communities to use funds from HUD’s Continuum of Care program for additional activities to increase their capacity and address the unique challenges they face when serving people experiencing homelessness in rural areas, including the use of funds for short-term emergency housing, unit repair, and unit rehabilitation.
Read the text of the NDAA at: https://bit.ly/3uDhG9u
Read a comparison of the House version and final version of the NDAA at: https://bit.ly/3Y79YSu