,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hidi ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,december #aj1 #bjbj,mr4 ,rouzer introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,transportation and ,infrastructure ,a ,,bill ,to authorize the ,president to provide disaster assistance to ,states and ,indian ,tribes under a major disaster recovery program1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,natural ,disaster ,recovery ,program ,act of #bjbj4 #b4 ,natural ,disaster ,recovery ,program ,the ,robert ,t4 ,stafford ,disaster ,relief and ,emergency ,assistance ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #eaba et seq47 is amended by adding at the end of title ,,iv the following3 #dca4 ,natural ,disaster ,recovery ,program 7a7 ,authority2 use ,the ,president may provide assistance under this section to ,states and ,indian ,tribes for unmet need1 including necessary expenses for activities related to disaster relief1 resiliency1 long-term recovery1 restoration of infrastructure and housing1 mitigation1 and economic revitalization after a major disaster is declared under section #dja4 7b7 ,coordination of disaster benefits and data with other federal agencies 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,president shall coordinate with other agencies to obtain data on recovery needs and unmet need1 including the ,administrator of the ,small ,business ,administration and other agencies when necessary regarding disaster benefits4 ,not later than #ij days after a major disaster is declared1 the ,president shall make publicly available all data collected1 possessed1 or analyzed during the course of a disaster recovery for which assistance is provided under this section1 including-- 7,a7 all data on damage caused by the disaster2 7,b7 information on how any ,federal assistance provided in connection with the disaster is expended2 7,c7 information regarding the effect of the disaster on education1 transportation capabilities and dependence1 housing needs1 health care capacity1 and displacement of persons2 and 7,d7 the extent of the unmet need4 7#b7 ,protection of personally identifiable information ,in carrying out this subsection1 the ,president and the grantee shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure that personally identifiable information regarding recipients of assistance provided under this section is not made publicly available by any agency with which information is shared pursuant to this subsection4 7c7 ,use of funds 7#a7 ,administrative costs 7,a7 ,in general ,a ,state or ,indian ,tribe receiving a grant under this section may use not more than #ac percent of the amount of grant funds received1 or within such other percentage as may be established pursuant to subparagraph 7,b71 for administrative costs1 including costs related to audits1 reviews1 oversight1 evaluation1 and investigations4 7,b7 ,discretion to establish sliding scale ,the ,president may establish a series of percentage limitations on the amount of grant funds received that may be used by a grantee for administrative costs1 but only if-- 7i7 such percentage limitations are based on the amount of grant funds received by a grantee2 and 7ii7 such series provides that the percentage that may be used is lower for grantees receiving a greater amount of grant funds and such percentage that may be used is higher for grantees receiving a lesser amount of grant funds4 7#b7 ,capacity building ,from funds made available for use under this section1 the ,president shall provide necessary technical assistance to grantees to ensure grantees are compliant with ,federal law1 and capacity building and technical assistance1 including assistance regarding contracting and procurement processes1 including providing solicitation and contractual templates that conform to ,federal requirements for use by grantees4 7d7 ,allocation1 process1 and procedures2 coordination 7#a7 ,allocation 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,president shall allocate funds under this section proportionally to grantees based on their level of unmet need as determined pursuant to subsection 7b74 7,b7 ,grantee use of funds ,each grantee1 not the ,president1 shall be responsible for determining how funds provided under this section are prioritized and spent and a grantee shall not be required to provide an action or spending plan before or after funds are allocated1 except that the grantee shall use a portion of these funds for cleaning and removing debris from rivers1 creeks1 streams1 and ditches4 7,c7 ,limitation ,notwithstanding section #cab1 a loan shall not be considered a duplication of benefits or otherwise impact the level of unmet need under this section4 7#b7 ,grantee processes and procedures 7,a7 ,initial grant funds ,initially1 grantees shall be awarded #ej percent of their total allocation under paragraph 7#a74 ,after expenditure of such amount1 a grantee shall submit a report1 detailing how such grant funds were spent1 to the ,committees on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,senate1 the ,committee on ,transportation and ,infrastructure of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,environment and ,public ,works of the ,senate4 ,such report shall include a certification from the ,state ,auditor that none of the funds were wasted or used inappropriately4 7,b7 ,congressional approval 7i7 ,approval ,not later than #fj days after receipt of the report under subparagraph 7,a71 ,congress shall approve or disapprove the report4 ,if the report is approved1 or if #fj days has lapsed and ,congress has not commented on the report1 the remaining #ej percent of the allocation under paragraph 7#a7 shall be released to the grantee4 7ii7 ,disapproval ,if ,congress disapproves the report1 the grantee shall work with ,congress to address any and all concerns regarding how the initial #ej percent of the grant money was expended4 ,once these concerns are resolved1 the remaining funds shall be released to the grantee4 7iii7 ,fraud or abuse ,if ,congress determines that a grantee committed fraud or abuse1 ,congress shall require the ,president to recover all funds provided to the grantee under this section4 ,any amount recovered under this clause shall be redistributed to other grantees with approved reports pursuant to clause 7i74 7#c7 ,requirements ,each ,state and ,indian ,tribe that receives funds under this section shall establish or adhere to existing guidelines for procurement processes and procedures and require that subgrantees-- 7,a7 provide for full and open competition and require cost or price analysis2 7,b7 specify methods of procurement and their applicability1 but not allow cost-plus-a-percentage-of cost or percentage-of-construction-cost methods of procurement2 7,c7 include standards of conduct governing employees engaged in the award or administration of contracts2 and 7,d7 ensure that all purchase orders and contracts include any clauses required by ,federal statute1 ,executive order1 or implementing regulation4 7e7 ,environmental review ,recipients of funds received under this section that use funds to supplement funds provided under section #djb1 #djc1 #djd1 #djf1 #djg1 #djh7;c77#d71 #dbh1 or #ejb may adopt1 without review or public comment1 any environmental review1 approval1 or permit performed by a ,federal agency4 7f7 ,best practices ,the ,president shall identify best practices for grantees on issues including developing action plans1 establishing financial controls1 building grantee technical and administrative capacity1 procurement1 and use of grant funds as local match for other sources of ,federal funding4 ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this section1 the ,president shall publish a compilation of such identified best practices and share with all relevant grantees to facilitate a more efficient and effective disaster recovery process4 7g7 ,natural disaster recovery reserve fund 7#a7 ,in general ,there is established in the ,treasury of the ,united ,states an account to be known as the ,natural ,disaster ,recovery ,reserve ,fund 7in this section referred to as the ,fund74 7#b7 ,amounts ,the ,fund shall consist of any amounts appropriated to or deposited into the ,fund1 including amounts deposited into the ,fund pursuant to paragraph 7#d74 7#c7 ,use of funds ,amounts in the ,fund shall be available1 pursuant to a declaration of a major disaster1 only for providing technical assistance and capacity building in connection with subsection 7c77#d7 for grantees that have been allocated assistance under this section in connection with such disaster to facilitate planning and increase capacity to administer assistance under this section4 7#d7 ,unused amounts ,if any amounts made available for assistance under this section to grantees remain unexpended on the earlier of-- 7,a7 the date that the grantee of such amounts notifies the ,president that the grantee has completed all activities2 or 7,b7 except as provided in paragraph 7#e71 the expiration of the #f-year period beginning when the ,president obligates such amounts to the grantee1 the ,president shall transfer such unexpended amounts to the ,secretary of the ,treasury for deposit into the ,fund1 except that the ,president may permit the grantee to retain amounts needed to close out the grant4 7#e7 ,extension of period for use of funds ,the period under paragraph 7#d77;,b7 may be extended by not more than #d years if1 before the expiration of such #f-year period1 the ,president waives this requirement and submits a written justification for such waiver to the ,committees on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,senate that specifies the period of such extension4 7h7 ,waiver authority ,until such time as the ,president issues regulations to implement this section1 the ,president may-- 7#a7 waive notice and comment rulemaking1 if the ,president determines the waiver is necessary to expeditiously implement the provisions of this section2 and 7#b7 carry out the grant program under this section as a pilot program4 7i7 ,definitions ,for purposes of this section1 the following terms shall apply3 7#a7 ,state auditor ,the term ,state auditor means the individual selected by each ,state or the ,chief ,executive to submit information pursuant to subsection 7c77#c7 and a certification in accordance with subsection 7d77#b77;,a74 7#b7 ,unmet need ,the term unmet need means any un-resourced item1 support1 or assistance that has been assessed and verified as necessary for a survivor to recover from a major disaster1 including food1 clothing1 shelter1 first aid1 emotional and spiritual care1 household items1 home repair1 or rebuilding4 4