Chairman Hastings Announces Subcommittee Hearing Examining Community Resilience & the Impacts of Natural Disasters on the Budget Process

Statement

Congressman Alcee Hastings (D-FL), Chairman of the Rules Committee's Subcommittee on Legislative and Budget Process, announced a subcommittee hearing discussing ways to increase community resilience and the impacts that natural disasters have on the budget process on Tuesday, September 24th at 2:45PM (EDT) in H-313, the Capitol. As once-in-a-generation hurricanes, wildfires, and superstorms become routine occurrences nationwide, the federal government must take a more proactive approach in helping states prepare for extreme weather without waiting for the next natural disaster to hit.

"Florida knows all too well the impacts of extreme weather. A single hurricane, wildfire, or flood can cause billions of dollars in damage in the blink of an eye, devastating communities and straining budgets. My state is not alone -- natural disasters that used to be once-in-a-generation events have now become the norm. The time to think about building more resilient communities is not in the aftermath of a devastating weather event, it's before the next storm hits. We need to make sure the federal government has a funding process in place that actually helps communities prepare now without being forced to wait for the next disaster," said Chairman Hastings.

While the disaster supplemental process allows communities to rebuild following natural disasters, it cannot take the place of federal government programs specially designed to help increase resiliency before storms hit. There are not enough avenues today for local communities to seek federal assistance to do the planning to be better prepared for the storms of tomorrow.

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