Emergency Management Law Discussion 5 Replies

Respond to the following 2 discussion posts on the Stafford Act, 1 page each.

1. Rebecca

The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. §§ 5121 et. seq.) is arguably one of the most important pieces of legislation regarding emergency management. Within the Stafford Act are the federal laws pertaining to disaster preparedness and federal mitigation assistance, formally established federal emergency response teams, established insurance regulations regarding federally declared emergencies or major disasters, and formally put into law the procedures for those federal declarations. The Stafford Act also established and set forth the rules and regulations regarding the various grants now available for emergency management.
As noted in the Stafford Act (§401), presidential declaration requests can only be submitted by the Governor of the affected state or territory. Typically, prior to submission, a preliminary damage assessment (PDA) is completed to provide estimations on the disaster’s impact to individuals and public facilities (FEMA, n.d.). However, when it is obvious that disaster response and recovery is beyond the capabilities of the state, FEMA will accept the declaration request prior to PDA completion. Here in Tennessee, FEMA field offices will send representatives to the EOC. Aside from the PDA, presidential declarations requests are also required to include “information on the nature and amount of States and local resources that have been or will be committed” and be specific on the type of assistance being requested (FEMA, n.d.).
Review of the Stafford Act easily illustrates the dynamics of federalism. Within the first section of the Act (§ 101) it states, “It is the intent of the Congress…to provide an orderly and continuing means of assistance…to State and Local governments in carrying out their responsibilities…” This balance between federal and state can also be observed throughout the grant processes, particularly the cost-share requirements.
Regarding the hypothetical FEMA employment portion of this week’s discussion, the factors I would utilize are conveniently provided in 44 CFR § 206.48, Factors considered when evaluating a Governor’s request for a major disaster declaration. The considerations within this code provide the perfect guidance if faced with responsibility of providing a presidential declaration recommendation to the Governor. This code is broken down into public assistance and individual assistance considerations. Some considerations vary dependent upon the location of the disaster, however each consideration is highly detailed and provides guidance regarding minimum levels that I would set.
Factors considered when evaluating a Governor’s request for a major disaster declaration. (n.d.). Retrieved from 44 CFR 206: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/44/206.48
FEMA. (n.d.). A Guide to the Disaster Declaration Process and Federal Disaster Assistance. Retrieved from FEMA.gov: https://www.fema.gov/pdf/rrr/dec_proc.pdf
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as amended. (2019). Retrieved from 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.: https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/2020-03/stafford-act_2019.pdf

2. Bryan

When the President makes a declaration under the Stafford Act for an emergency, FEMA will prepare a document known as “the FEMA state agreement” that specifies the details of the declaration (Find Law, 2020). The agreement specifies several important attributes of the declaration. It includes the geographic area that it applies to. It will cover the period that the declaration is active for, it covers the type of assistance that is covered, and the cost sharing provisions. It may also include any other additional restrictions. The type of activities are determined by the type of declaration, and the scope of the incident (Lindsay, 2012). The main types of assistance a major disaster may provide are the Public Assistance Grant Program, the Individual Assistance Program, and the Hazard Mitigation Program (to prevent future disasters or reduce the impact of disasters). Cost sharing is specified in the act as 100% federal share for housing and 75% for other needs (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2016). The conditions of the declaration may be changed if there are further justified requests (Robinson, 2017).
According to the ideas of federalism, and the US Constitution and in particular through the tenth amendment, the states have tremendous discretion in governing themselves. Typically, the Stafford Act requires that a request is made by the governor, and part of this request requires that the governor states that the disaster is beyond the capabilities of state and local resources to handle it (National Governor’s Association, 2019). Although the President can initiate a declaration unilaterally, this has only happened in a very small number of situations (Lindsay, 2012). By having the governor request help, it helps assure that the state retains autonomy.
FEMA has published information and guidelines on declarations under the Stafford Act (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2021). The first thing to consider or perform is the Preliminary Damage Assessment (PDA). The PDA may start at the local level but for larger incidents where it is expected that local and state resources will be overwhelmed, the state may request a joint PDA with FEMA. The PDA will document the degree and quantity of damage to properties. The PDA also includes ownership information, cost estimates, and insurance information.
The Stafford Act requires that the state’s emergency plan has been followed, the actions taken, and the resources requested as well as state resources being overwhelmed (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2021). To determine whether state resources are overwhelmed, some of the factors to be considered are the estimated cost of assistance to determine a per-capita amount, localized impacts, insurance coverage, any mitigation factors that have reduced the impact of the incident, if there have been recent emergencies that have drained resources, special populations that have been impacted. The per capita amounts are updated annually (https://www.fema.gov/assistance/public/applicants/per-capita-impact-indicator) so for 2021 the statewide per-capita assistance amount is $1.55 or more and at the county level it is $3.89. The combination of these factors are then weighed to form a recommendation on whether to approve or reject a request. The more of these thresholds that are met combined with the demonstration of all available state resources being deployed (Mutual Aid Compacts enacted, National Guard deployed, state agencies activated, volunteer organizations employed etc.) the more likely the request would be approved.
References
Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2016). Stafford Act, as amended, and related authorities.
Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2021). How a Disaster Gets Declared. https://www.fema.gov/disaster/how-declared
Find Law. (2020, March 31). The Stafford Act Explained. https://www.findlaw.com/consumer/insurance/the-stafford-act-explained.html
Lindsay, B. R. (2012). Federal emergency management : a brief introduction. Congressional Research Service. http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R42845.pdf
National Governor’s Association. (2019). A governor’s guide to Homeland Security. https://www.nga.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/NGA_HomelandSecurityGuide_2.19_update.pdf
Robinson, G. (2017, September 13). FEMA-State Agreement Signing in Alabama for Hurricane Irma. Alabama Emergency Management Agency. https://ema.alabama.gov/2017/09/13/tropical-storm-irma-in-alabama/

Original Post Instructions:

1) What are the essential elements of the content of a Stafford Act declaration?

2) How do the procedures required under the Stafford Act illustrate the dynamics of federalism?

3)Imagine you are a FEMA staffer responsible for recommending whether an incident should qualify as a disaster. What factors would you consider? How would you set minimum levels for what would qualify?
To maximize points:
Use the literature i.e., cite and reference.
Incorporate examples

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