{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://kennedy.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1178", "Congressman Kennedy Unveils SNOW Act, Legislation to Help Communities Prepare for and Recover from Extreme Snowstorms", "2024-12-30", "2024", "2024-12", "Republican", "Senate", "LA", "John Kennedy", "K000393", "kennedy.house.gov", "kennedy", "https://kennedy.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "Legislation Would Help Communities In Western New York, And Other Snow Impacted Regions, Prepare For And Recover From Extreme Snowstorms By Updating FEMA\u2019s Guidelines For Winter Storm Assistance\n\nKennedy: \u201cWe can\u2019t afford to do nothing. The cost is too great.\u201d\n\nToday, Congressman Tim Kennedy (NY-26) announced legislation, the Support Neighborhoods Offset Winter Damage (SNOW) Act, to update the Federal Emergency Management Agency\u2019s (FEMA) disaster assistance policies to better help communities prepare for and recover from snowstorms.\n\n\u201cTime and again, our communities in Western New York have faced severe snowstorms without the federal support needed to respond. The Christmas Blizzard of 2022 is the latest example of how damaging and deadly snowstorms can be and it\u2019s time for the federal government to step up,\u201d said Congressman Kennedy. \u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019ve written the SNOW Act, legislation requiring FEMA to treat catastrophic blizzards the same as any other natural disaster. This bill will help local governments across the country prepare for, respond to, and recover from extreme snowstorms. We can\u2019t afford to do nothing. The cost is too great.\u201d\n\n\"This legislation is crucial for updating FEMA's policies to allow for important federal support to be readily available to local governments impacted by significant winter weather events,\" said Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. \"We know here in Erie County the importance of being able to access federal funding before, during and after a major snowstorm or blizzard. I thank Congressman Kennedy for his leadership and vision in providing protection against future catastrophic weather events.\"\n\nThe Buffalo Blizzard of 2022, the deadliest on record, showed that FEMA\u2019s snow assistance policy is outdated, limited in scope, and prevents communities from adequately preparing for, responding to, and recovering from catastrophic snowstorms. Congressman Kennedy\u2019s SNOW Act would bring extreme snowstorms on par with other emergencies and natural disasters in order to access federal assistance. Specifically, the legislation would:\n\nUpdate storm severity threshold to unlock federal funding: FEMA requires record snowfall to qualify for disaster assistance. This bill would update FEMA\u2019s guidelines for approving assistance by incorporating damages, wind speed, wind chill, and the affected area\u2019s real median household income.\n\nProvide access to snow removal equipment: This bill would add snow removal equipment to FEMA\u2019s Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program which provides proactive investment in resilience for communities.\n\nHelp state and local governments recover from storms: FEMA only provides snow assistance for emergency protective measures. This bill would provide assistance to include debris removal, and work on roads, bridges, water control facilities, public buildings, public utilities, public parks, and other facilities.\n\nProvide financial assistance to impacted individuals: This bill would expand assistance to individuals when the cost of a snowstorm exceeds the ability of the state to respond or recover.\n\nIncrease the federal cost share: To better support disadvantaged and rural communities, this bill would increase the federal cost share from 75% federal and 25% state/local to 90% federal and 10% state/local. This would include all communities in New York\u2019s 26th Congressional District, including\n\nSupport for the SNOW Act:\n\n\"As a city and region that has endured some of the most severe snowstorms in recent memory, including the devastating Christmas Blizzard of 2022, we know all too well the significant challenges these events bring,\" said City of Buffalo Mayor Christopher P. Scanlon. \"Congressman Kennedy\u2019s SNOW Act addresses the need for FEMA policies that recognize the increasing frequency and impact of extreme winter weather that targets our city and region. By elevating devastating snowstorms that affect Western New York into the same response framework as other natural disasters across the country, the SNOW Act ensures our region will receive the support it needs and deserves.\"\n\n\u201cThis region must do all it can to support efforts by Congressman Kennedy and our other federal elected officials to obtain federal resources for local municipalities following winter weather events, that, if those concerned about climate change are correct, will become more frequent,\u201d said Town of Tonawanda Supervisor Joe Emminger. \u201cThe 2022 Christmas storm that hammered this region and stole more than 40 lives, left ruin in its wake for families, homeowners, renters and businesses. Winter Storm events need to be recognized similar to how Atlantic Hurricane events are recognized; not by record snowfalls but rather by the financial impact that they have on our local communities.\u201d\n\n\"The SNOW Act would help towns like Cheektowaga deal with the impacts of unpredictable snow disasters that dump feet of snow, cause power outages, downed trees, and the need for help to make roads passable in a timely manner,\u201d said Cheektowaga Town Supervisor Brian Nowak. \u201cWe cannot afford to have the vehicles of first responders stuck in the roads preventing police, fire, and EMS responding to scenes.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T22:13:55Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://kennedy.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1178"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0085497051477432, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}