Federal Disaster Assistance Coordination Act

Floor Speech

Ms. VAN DUYNE. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of my colleagues' bill, H.R. 2016, the Federal Disaster Assistance Coordination Act.

When I was Regional Secretary for HUD during Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Maria, and Hurricane Irma, I saw firsthand the bureaucratic web of red tape and inefficiencies that prevented getting help to those who needed it the most in a timely manner.

I spoke with several of you in this body on both sides of the aisle, who came to me fighting for your constituents, asking why it was taking so long to get aid. I felt and understood your frustration, but had to explain the long list of policies, procedures, and red tape that our regulations demanded. And, boy, I never felt like more of a bureaucrat than when I spoke with you.

It is a very difficult position for our folks to be in. These inefficiencies have serious costs.

This is a bipartisan piece of commonsense legislation to establish procedures to streamline and consolidate processes. When we allocate dollars, they need to get to those who are suffering the most. And the last thing we need is for them to be caught up in a bureaucracy of the government's making.

The faster FEMA is able to help get to communities of need, the faster they can recover. It is critically important that these agencies all work together.

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.

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