FEMA and Disaster Relief (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
March 6, 1998 |
| Report Number |
97-159 |
| Authors |
Keith Bea, and JoAnn O’Bryant, Government Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) helps states and localities prepare for and cope with disasters that overwhelm their own capabilities. FEMA administers policies related to emergency management and planning, disaster relief, fire prevention, earthquake hazard reduction, emergency broadcasting services, flood insurance, mitigation programs, and dam safety. President Clinton has requested $3.1 billion for FEMA in FY1999. The majority of the funds ($2.3 billion, or 75%) are requested as disaster relief funding that would only be available should the President and Congress designate it as emergency funding under the Balanced Budget Act. The remaining 25% ($844 million) would fund agency salaries, grants to state and local governments, and training activities, and would replenish the Disaster Relief Fund with $308 million. For the past 14 years, annual appropriations for FEMA have ranged from as little as $600 million to a high of approximately $5.9 billion, including supplemental measures. For FY1998, a total of $842 million is available, as appropriated in P.L. 105-65. In FY1997 a total of $5.1 billion was appropriated--$1.8 billion in the FY1997 appropriations legislation (P.L. 104-204) and $3.3 billion in supplemental appropriations (P.L. 105-18). The principal federal authority for the provision of disaster relief is the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (the Stafford Act). The act authorizes the President to issue major disaster or emergency declarations (the latter provide considerably less federal assistance than the former), sets out eligibility criteria, and specifies the types of assistance the President may authorize.
