42 U.S.C. § 5170 — Procedure for declaration

Page 6389 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 5170 (2) Acquisition and maintenance of equip- ment, including interoperable communica- tions and personal protective equipment. (3) Medical monitoring required for re- sponder safety and health in anticipation of and following a major disaster, emergency, or other hazard, as determined by the Adminis- trator. (m) Response cooperative agreements The Administrator shall enter into a response cooperative agreement with each sponsoring agency, as appropriate, under which the Admin- istrator agrees to reimburse the sponsoring agency for costs incurred by the sponsoring agency in responding to a major disaster or emergency. (n) Obligations The Administrator may incur all necessary obligations consistent with this section in order to ensure the effectiveness of the System. (o) Equipment maintenance and replacement Not later than 180 days after December 16, 2016, the Administrator shall submit to the ap- propriate congressional committees (as defined in section 101 of title 6) a report on the develop- ment of a plan, including implementation steps and timeframes, to finance, maintain, and re- place System equipment. (p) Federal employees Nothing in this section shall be construed to mean that a task force may not include Federal employees. In the case of a Federal employee de- tailed to a task force, the sponsoring agency shall enter into an agreement with the relevant employing Federal agency. (Pub. L. 93–288, title III, § 327, as added Pub. L. 114–326, § 2(a), Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1968; amend- ed Pub. L. 116–48, § 1, Aug. 22, 2019, 133 Stat. 1071.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This chapter, referred to in subsec. (f)(3), was in the original ‘‘this Act’’, meaning Pub. L. 93–288, May 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 143. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under sec- tion 5121 of this title and Tables. The Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, referred to in subsec. (h)(4), is Pub. L. 90–351, June 19, 1968, 82 Stat. 197. Part L of title I of the Act was classified generally to part A (§ 3796 et seq.) of sub- chapter XII of chapter 46 of this title, prior to editorial reclassification and renumbering as subchapter XI (§ 10281 et seq.) of chapter 101 of Title 34, Crime Control and Law Enforcement. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title of 1968 Act note set out under section 10101 of Title 34 and Tables. AMENDMENTS 2019—Subsec. (p). Pub. L. 116–48 added subsec. (p). § 5165g. National veterinary emergency teams (a) In general The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency may establish one or more national veterinary emergency teams at accred- ited colleges of veterinary medicine. (b) Responsibilities A national veterinary emergency team shall— (1) deploy with a team of the National Urban Search and Rescue Response System to assist with— (A) veterinary care of canine search teams; (B) locating and treating companion ani- mals, service animals, livestock, and other animals; and (C) surveillance and treatment of zoonotic diseases; (2) recruit, train, and certify veterinary pro- fessionals, including veterinary students, in accordance with an established set of plans and standard operating guidelines to carry out the duties associated with planning for and re- sponding to major disasters and emergencies as described in paragraph (1); (3) assist State governments, Indian tribal governments, local governments, and non- profit organizations in developing emergency management and evacuation plans that ac- count for the care and rescue of animals and in improving local readiness for providing veteri- nary medical response during an emergency or major disaster; and (4) coordinate with the Department of Home- land Security, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agri- culture, State, local, and Indian tribal govern- ments (including departments of animal and human health), veterinary and health care professionals, and volunteers. (Pub. L. 115–254, div. D, § 1218, Oct. 5, 2018, 132 Stat. 3452.) Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Section was enacted as part of the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018 and as part of the FAA Reauthoriza- tion Act of 2018, and not as part of the Robert T. Staf- ford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act which comprises this chapter. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Authorities provided under div. D of Pub. L. 115–254, which enacted this section, applicable to each major disaster and emergency declared by the President under Pub. L. 93–288 on or after Jan. 1, 2016, except as otherwise provided, see section 1202(b) of Pub. L. 115–254, set out in an Effective Date of 2018 Amendment note under section 5121 of this title. DEFINITIONS For definition of ‘‘State’’ as used in this section, see section 1203 of Pub. L. 115–254, set out as a note under section 5122 of this title. SUBCHAPTER IV—MAJOR DISASTER ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS § 5170. Procedure for declaration (a) In general All requests for a declaration by the President that a major disaster exists shall be made by the Governor of the affected State. Such a request shall be based on a finding that the disaster is of such severity and magnitude that effective re- sponse is beyond the capabilities of the State and the affected local governments and that Page 6390 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 5170 Federal assistance is necessary. As part of such request, and as a prerequisite to major disaster assistance under this chapter, the Governor shall take appropriate response action under State law and direct execution of the State’s emergency plan. The Governor shall furnish in- formation on the nature and amount of State and local resources which have been or will be committed to alleviating the results of the dis- aster, and shall certify that, for the current dis- aster, State and local government obligations and expenditures (of which State commitments must be a significant proportion) will comply with all applicable cost-sharing requirements of this chapter. Based on the request of a Governor under this section, the President may declare under this chapter that a major disaster or emergency exists. (b) Indian tribal government requests (1) In general The Chief Executive of an affected Indian tribal government may submit a request for a declaration by the President that a major dis- aster exists consistent with the requirements of subsection (a). (2) References In implementing assistance authorized by the President under this chapter in response to a request of the Chief Executive of an af- fected Indian tribal government for a major disaster declaration, any reference in this sub- chapter or subchapter III (except sections 5153 and 5165d of this title) to a State or the Gov- ernor of a State is deemed to refer to an af- fected Indian tribal government or the Chief Executive of an affected Indian tribal govern- ment, as appropriate. (3) Savings provision Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit an Indian tribal government from receiving as- sistance under this subchapter through a dec- laration made by the President at the request of a State under subsection (a) if the President does not make a declaration under this sub- section for the same incident. (c) Cost share adjustments for Indian tribal gov- ernments (1) In general In providing assistance to an Indian tribal government under this subchapter, the Presi- dent may waive or adjust any payment of a non-Federal contribution with respect to the assistance if— (A) the President has the authority to waive or adjust the payment under another provision of this subchapter; and (B) the President determines that the waiver or adjustment is necessary and ap- propriate. (2) Criteria for making determinations The President shall establish criteria for making determinations under paragraph (1)(B). (Pub. L. 93–288, title IV, § 401, as added Pub. L. 100–707, title I, § 106(a)(3), Nov. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 4696; amended Pub. L. 113–2, div. B, § 1110(a), Jan. 29, 2013, 127 Stat. 47.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This chapter, referred to in subsecs. (a) and (b)(2), was in the original ‘‘this Act’’, meaning Pub. L. 93–288, May 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 143. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under sec- tion 5121 of this title and Tables. PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 401 of Pub. L. 93–288 was renumbered section 405 by Pub. L. 100–707 and is classified to section 5171 of this title. AMENDMENTS 2013—Pub. L. 113–2 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a), inserted heading, and added subsecs. (b) and (c). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries PRELIMINARY DAMAGE ASSESSMENT Pub. L. 117–263, div. E, title LVI, § 5603, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3405, provided that: ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: ‘‘(1) Preliminary damage assessments play a crit- ical role in assessing and validating the impact and magnitude of a disaster. ‘‘(2) Through the preliminary damage assessment process, representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency validate information gathered by State and local officials that serves as the basis for disaster assistance requests. ‘‘(3) Various factors can impact the duration of a preliminary damage assessment and the cor- responding submission of a major disaster request, however, the average time between when a disaster occurs, and the submission of a corresponding dis- aster request has been found to be approximately twenty days longer for flooding disasters. ‘‘(4) With communities across the country facing increased instances of catastrophic flooding and other extreme weather events, accurate and efficient preliminary damage assessments have become criti- cally important to the relief process for impacted States and municipalities. ‘‘(b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 2022], the Ad- ministrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall submit to Congress a report describing the preliminary damage assessment process, as sup- ported by the Federal Emergency Management Agen- cy in the 5 years before the date of enactment of this Act. ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The report described in paragraph (1) shall contain the following: ‘‘(A) The process of the Federal Emergency Man- agement Agency for deploying personnel to support preliminary damage assessments. ‘‘(B) The number of Agency staff participating on disaster assessment teams. ‘‘(C) The training and experience of such staff de- scribed in subparagraph (B). ‘‘(D) A calculation of the average amount of time disaster assessment teams described in subpara- graph (A) are deployed to a disaster area. ‘‘(E) The efforts of the Agency to maintain a con- sistent liaison between the Agency and State, local, tribal, and territorial officials within a disaster area. ‘‘(c) PRELIMINARY DAMAGE ASSESSMENT.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall convene an advisory panel consisting of emergency management personnel employed by State, local, ter- ritorial, or tribal authorities, and the representative organizations of such personnel to assist the Agency Page 6391 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 5170a in improving critical components of the preliminary damage assessment process. ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—This advisory panel shall con- sist of at least 2 representatives from national emergency management organizations and at least 1 representative from each of the 10 regions of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, selected from emergency management personnel employed by State, local, territorial, or tribal authorities within each region. ‘‘(B) INCLUSION ON PANEL.—To the furthest extent practicable, representation on the advisory panel shall include emergency management personnel from both rural and urban jurisdictions. ‘‘(3) CONSIDERATIONS.—The advisory panel convened under paragraph (1) shall— ‘‘(A) consider— ‘‘(i) establishing a training regime to ensure preliminary damage assessments are conducted and reviewed under consistent guidelines; ‘‘(ii) utilizing a common technological platform to integrate data collected by State and local governments with data collected by the Agency; and ‘‘(iii) assessing instruction materials provided by the Agency for omissions of pertinent informa- tion or language that conflicts with other statu- tory requirements; and ‘‘(B) identify opportunities for streamlining the consideration of preliminary damage assessments by the Agency, including eliminating duplicative paperwork requirements and ensuring consistent communication and decision making among Agen- cy staff. ‘‘(4) INTERIM REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis- trator shall submit to Congress a report regarding the findings of the advisory panel, steps that will be undertaken by the Agency to implement the findings of the advisory panel, and additional legislation that may be necessary to implement the findings of the advisory panel. ‘‘(5) RULEMAKING AND FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue such regulations as are nec- essary to implement the recommendations of the ad- visory panel and submit to Congress a report dis- cussing— ‘‘(A) the implementation of recommendations from the advisory panel; ‘‘(B) the identification of any additional chal- lenges to the preliminary damage assessment proc- ess, including whether specific disasters result in longer preliminary damage assessments; and ‘‘(C) any additional legislative recommendations necessary to improve the preliminary damage as- sessment process.’’ LOCAL IMPACT Pub. L. 115–254, div. D, § 1232, Oct. 5, 2018, 132 Stat. 3460, provided that: ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In making recommendations to the President regarding a major disaster declaration, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Manage- ment Agency shall give greater consideration to severe local impact or recent multiple disasters. Further, the Administrator shall make corresponding adjustments to the [Federal Emergency Management] Agency’s poli- cies and regulations regarding such consideration. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section [Oct. 5, 2018], the Administrator shall report to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate on the changes made to regulations and policies and the number of declarations that have been declared based on the new criteria. ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall be effective on the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 5, 2018].’’ COST OF ASSISTANCE ESTIMATES Pub. L. 115–254, div. D, § 1239, Oct. 5, 2018, 132 Stat. 3466, provided that: ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 5, 2018], the Admin- istrator [of the Federal Emergency Management Agen- cy] shall review the factors considered when evaluating a request for a major disaster declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As- sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), specifically the es- timated cost of the assistance, and provide a report and briefing to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. ‘‘(b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall review and initiate a rulemaking to update the factors considered when evaluating a Governor’s request for a major disaster declaration, including reviewing how the [Federal Emergency Management] Agency esti- mates the cost of major disaster assistance, and con- sider other impacts on the capacity of a jurisdiction to respond to disasters. In determining the capacity of a jurisdiction to respond to disasters, and prior to the issuance of such a rule, the Administrator shall engage in meaningful consultation with relevant representa- tives of State, regional, local, and Indian tribal govern- ment stakeholders.’’ [For definition of ‘‘State’’ as used in section 1239 of Pub. L. 115–254, set out above, see section 1203 of Pub. L. 115–254, set out as a note under section 5122 of this title.] INDIVIDUAL ASSISTANCE FACTORS Pub. L. 113–2, div. B, § 1109, Jan. 29, 2013, 127 Stat. 47, provided that: ‘‘In order to provide more objective cri- teria for evaluating the need for assistance to individ- uals, to clarify the threshold for eligibility and to speed a declaration of a major disaster or emergency under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this division [Jan. 29, 2013], the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in cooperation with representa- tives of State, tribal, and local emergency management agencies, shall review, update, and revise through rule- making the factors considered under section 206.48 of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations (including section 206.48(b)(2) of such title relating to trauma and the spe- cific conditions or losses that contribute to trauma), to measure the severity, magnitude, and impact of a dis- aster.’’ § 5170a. General Federal assistance In any major disaster, the President may— (1) direct any Federal agency, with or with- out reimbursement, to utilize its authorities and the resources granted to it under Federal law (including personnel, equipment, supplies, facilities, and managerial, technical, and advi- sory services) in support of State and local as- sistance response or recovery efforts, includ- ing precautionary evacuations; (2) coordinate all disaster relief assistance (including voluntary assistance) provided by Federal agencies, private organizations, and State and local governments, including pre- cautionary evacuations and recovery; (3) provide technical and advisory assistance to affected State and local governments for— (A) the performance of essential commu- nity services; (B) issuance of warnings of risks and haz- ards; (C) public health and safety information, including dissemination of such information;