The new Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018 (DRRA) makes changes to how local governments will fund disaster mitigation and respond in a crisis.
WASHINGTON – The Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018 (DRRA) was signed into law as part of the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2018 late last week.
Agencies and governments receiving FEMA federal assistance will be required to set aside some of their disaster assistance funding for mitigation efforts, such as elevating existing structures, protecting utilities, making buildings more wind resistant, installing fire-resistant roofing. In addition, the executive branch would be able to authorize federal reimbursement of up to 75 percent of state and local hazard mitigation efforts under the law.
According to the FEMA announcement, the reforms “acknowledge the shared responsibility of disaster response and recovery, aim to reduce the complexity of FEMA and build the nation’s capacity for the next catastrophic event.”
“This transformational legislation will allow the emergency management community to continue to improve the way we deliver assistance before, during and after disasters,” said FEMA Administrator Brock Long. “We’ll never be able to eliminate all risks, but this enables us to take action now so that individuals and communities will be better positioned to recover more quickly when disasters do occur. We thank Congress, the administration and our state and local partners in their efforts to move this critical reform package forward.”
Highlights from the DRRA include:
efficientgov.com
by EfficientGov Staff
October 10, 2018