Post-Disaster Protection Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 8409
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 2
- Policy Area
- Emergency Management
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2026-04-21: Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
- Last Updated
- 2026-04-29T08:07:07Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The Post-Disaster Protection Act (H.R. 8409) aims to amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act) to create equal timelines—known as "parity"—for submitting appeals of disaster assistance decisions and for the government to decide on those appeals.
Key Provisions
- Amends Section 423(a) of the Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. 5189a(a)).
- Changes a specific "60 days" timeline to 90 days.
Note: This appears to extend the time allowed for one part of the appeals process, likely the period for applicants to submit appeals, to match another timeline already set at 90 days.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Extends a 60-day deadline to 90 days in the appeals provision of the Stafford Act.
- Establishes matching timelines for appeal submission (by applicants) and decision-making (by federal agencies), promoting fairness and consistency.
Potential Impacts
- On citizens: Disaster survivors and assistance applicants gain 30 extra days to file appeals for denied aid, reducing rushed decisions and improving access to federal disaster relief.
- On government agencies: Agencies like FEMA may see a slight increase in appeals volume and need to adjust processing, but the parity could streamline overall operations by aligning deadlines.
- No direct impacts on international relations.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Disaster victims and applicants: Primary beneficiaries with more time to challenge denied assistance.
- Federal agencies (e.g., FEMA): Must handle appeals under the new timeline.
- State and local governments: Indirectly affected as they coordinate disaster relief with federal partners.
- Members of Congress (introduced by Reps. Frost, Ezell, King-Hinds, and Moskowitz): Focused on post-disaster equity.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens procedural fairness in administrative appeals under the Stafford Act without creating new rights or liabilities; aligns with due process principles by providing adequate time for response.
- Constitutional: No apparent challenges; supports equal protection by standardizing timelines.
- Political: Bipartisan sponsorship signals broad support for disaster policy improvements; could set precedent for timeline adjustments in other federal aid programs. Referred to House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure for further review.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (4)
Rep. Ezell, Mike [R-MS-4], Del. King-Hinds, Kimberlyn [R-MP-At Large], Rep. Moskowitz, Jared [D-FL-23], Rep. Donalds, Byron [R-FL-19]
Recent Actions
- 2026-04-21: Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
- 2026-04-21: Introduced in House
- 2026-04-21: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Post-Disaster Protection Act — issued 2026-04-21 — PDF (2 pages)