(December 21, 2017) – On December 21st, the House passed H.R. 4667, a disaster relief supplemental spending measure. The bill, which provides additional disaster assistance funding to assist communities recovering from the recent wildfires and Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, also includes important provisions to improve the nation’s disaster preparedness and mitigation efforts.

According to the BuildStrong Coalition, recent hurricanes and wildfires have caused over 260 American deaths and more than $300 billion in projected damages. Research has demonstrated that $1 invested pre-disaster saves $4-8 on post-disaster recovery costs.

H.R. 4667 includes provisions from the Disaster Recovery Reform Act, legislation recently introduced by Congressman Lou Barletta (PA-11). These provisions provide incentives for states to adopt national recognized model building codes and funding for post-disaster code implementation and enforcement.

The Senate is expected to take up the supplemental spending measure after the holiday recess.