2017-00467: Establishing a Deductible for FEMA's Public Assistance Program

Summary

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is considering implementing a Public Assistance deductible that would condition States' receipt of FEMA reimbursement for the repair and replacement of public infrastructure damaged by a disaster event. The primary intent of the deductible concept is to incentivize greater State resilience to future disasters, thereby reducing future disaster costs nationally. On January 20, 2016, FEMA (the Agency) published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking comment on a Public Assistance deductible concept. The ANPRM provided a general description of the concept that many commenters found insufficient to provide meaningful comment. In an effort to offer the public a more detailed deductible concept upon which to provide additional feedback, the Agency is issuing a supplemental ANPRM (SANPRM) that presents a conceptual deductible program, including a methodology for calculating deductible amounts based on a combination of each State's fiscal capacity and disaster risk, a proposed credit structure to reward States for undertaking resilience-building activities, and a description of how FEMA could consider implementing the program. At this stage of the rulemaking process, the deductible remains only something that FEMA is considering. The policy conceived of in this document is not a proposal. In this document, FEMA is providing what is merely a description of a direction FEMA could take in future rulemaking in an effort to solicit further feedback from the public. After considering the comments it receives, or as a result of other factors, FEMA may expand on or redevelop this concept.

The agency’s own summary, as published.

What this changes

Amends 1 part of the Code of Federal Regulations — the standing rules this notice rewrites.

• 44 CFR 206 Federal Disaster Assistance