{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://neguse.house.gov/media/press-releases/house-passes-neguse-led-bill-better-equip-communities-access-federal-disaster", "House Passes Neguse-Led Bill to Better Equip Communities with Access to Federal Disaster Assistance", "2024-12-11", "2024", "2024-12", "Democrat", "House", "CO", "Joe Neguse", "N000191", "neguse.house.gov", "neguse", "https://neguse.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "December 11, 2024\n\nWashington, D.C. \u2014 This week, the House passed Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse\u2019s bipartisan, bicameral Disaster Management Costs Modernization Act. This legislation enhances communities\u2019 capacity for long-term disaster recovery by allowing Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster management funds awarded for one disaster to be applied to other open disasters.\n\n\u201cAs we continue to face increasing numbers of natural disasters across our country\u2014wildfires, floods, hurricanes, and more\u2014it\u2019s critically important that we work to equip our communities with the resources that they need. My home state of Colorado has seen firsthand the devastating impacts of these disasters, Mr. Speaker, as we\u2019ve unfortunately experienced record-breaking and deadly wildfires, drought, and flood conditions\u2013all over just the last few years. This bill would strengthen our efforts to prepare for and mitigate the impacts of future disasters across our country,\u201d Assistant Leader Neguse stated while speaking in support of his legislation during House consideration of the bill.\n\nNeguse\u2019s full remarks can be found HERE.\n\nFor communities in Colorado and beyond that are experiencing an increase in natural disasters such as wildfires, floods, and droughts, the Disaster Management Costs Modernization Act streamlines unnecessary red tape to enable state and local governments to utilize FEMA-allocated management costs across multiple disasters and build future disaster recovery capacity. Under current law, management costs awarded for one disaster may only be used for that disaster, which creates additional administrative burdens for communities who may be managing multiple open disasters.\n\nAdditional information on the legislation can be located HERE.\n\nBackground\n\nHouse Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse has been steadfast in his efforts to expand access to critical federal disaster assistance for communities impacted by natural disaster. In July, when the Alexander Mountain Fire and Stone Canyon Fire threatened parts of his congressional district, Neguse acted swiftly to secure federal funds authorized by FEMA to fight the fires.\n\nEarlier this year, Rep. Neguse was successful in enacting the Disaster Assistance Deadlines Alignment Act, which merges the application deadlines for the Federal Emergency Management Agency\u2019s (FEMA) Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) program and Individuals and Households Program (IHP). He is also the sponsor of a legislative package aimed at streamlining federal assistance under the Small Business Administration for families and communities impacted by natural disasters.\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://neguse.house.gov/media/press-releases/house-passes-neguse-led-bill-better-equip-communities-access-federal-disaster"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3611926697194576, "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"}