Location: 114th

(June 15, 2016) – On May 10, 2016, Congressman Carlos Curbelo (FL-26) and Congressman Albio Sires (NJ-08) introduced H.R. 5177, the National Mitigation Investment Act.  The legislation works to alleviate losses to residential and commercial property following a natural disaster through pre-disaster preventative measures.  Specifically, the legislation —

• Provides a federal incentive (not a mandate) to encourage states to build more resiliently ahead of disasters and rewards those that do with an additional 4% in post-disaster mitigation funds awarded through the Stafford Act.
• Creates a first-of-its-kind program within the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that provides states and localities the opportunity to apply for grants to defray the cost of implementing and enforcing strong building codes.
• Authorizes a study to examine costs and losses from natural disasters, identify how disaster assistance is being used, and determine ways to best mitigate ahead of catastrophes.

H.R. 5177 has been referred to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.