By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Northern Missouri Congressman Sam Graves is proposing reforms to Federal Emergency Management Agency. And it appears he is getting support in Congress.
Graves’ proposal to redefine what FEMA considers a small project has passed out of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and now will be considered by the full House.
“Right now, the limit on what’s considered a small project is just way too low,” Graves tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “And with inflation that’s taken place over the last decade or so, projects have grown outside of the scope of what the original intent was.”
Graves’ legislation, entitled the Small Project and Effective Disaster (SPEED) Recovery Act would increase the threshold of a small project from $35,000 to $1 million. That definition is important, because small projects do not have to go through the time-consuming, elaborate process larger projects are subjected to.
Graves says it is well past time to change the definition.
“And that was to allow a much speedier process, a much easier process; when it comes to just small projects, things that communities need when it comes to getting back on their feet,” according to Graves.
Graves says he’s not surprised the proposal easily passed through the committee and on to the full House.
“Natural disasters touch just about every district out there,” Graves says. “So, many members have had trouble or struggled with the definition of a small project. The support for it is overwhelming.”
A companion piece proposed by Graves would give communities greater access to federal funds to prepare for disasters. The legislation, called the Resilient AMERICA Act, would capture unspent grant money and allow communities use it to not only prepare for disasters, but mitigate their impact. It would double funding for the FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation program. Private non-projects could apply for the money. A pilot program would test whether money should be extended to individuals to assist in mitigation measures for homes.