The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Sept. 3 approved H.R. 4669, the Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025.
APPA in August 2025 sent a letter to the committee voicing strong support for the FEMA Act’s “goals of streamlining the process for claiming public assistance in the wake of an emergency or major natural disaster.”
The measure could be taken up by the full House later this month. A Senate version of the bill has not yet been introduced.
A discussion draft of the bill was released earlier this year and the bill itself was introduced on July 24.
APPA noted that it has been working with committee staff on the bill, which is cosponsored by committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO), committee Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-WA); committee member Daniel Webster (R-FL); and Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Ranking Member Greg Stanton (D-AZ).
The text of the FEMA Act of 2025 is available here. A section-by-section summary of the FEMA Act is available here. An Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute offered by Chairman Graves can be found here.
The text of a final manager’s amendment to the Amendment in a Nature of a Substitute was adopted Sept. 3 by the committee by voice vote, but the text is not yet available, APPA said.
APPA Applauds Committee Action
APPA said it applauds the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on passing H.R. 4669.
"The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) plays a critical role in disaster preparation, response, and recovery. It helps state and local entities by coordinating federal response before, during, and after an event, and by providing public assistance grants when local resources are overwhelmed," it said.
"Knowing that there is a federal backstop in times of disaster also allows state and local governments to focus on saving lives and protecting property, including through maintenance and timely restoration of power. Unfortunately, disaster mitigation, response, and recovery are hindered as communities are forced to navigate a maze of complicated rules, conflicting timelines, and mountains of burdensome paperwork," APPA said.
"As a result, APPA strongly supports the FEMA Act’s goals of streamlining the process for claiming public assistance in the wake of an emergency or major natural disaster. Specifically, we support the move from the cost-based reimbursement model provided for permanent work under Stafford Act section 406 to an estimate-based method provided under proposed section 409."
The bill would also accelerate the delivery of payments for emergency work and provide greater consistency in procurement requirements for state, local, and tribal entities.
"APPA appreciates the work of Chairman Sam Graves and Ranking Member Rick Larsen on advancing this important legislation, as well as Representatives Neal Dunn and Darren Soto, who folded critical language from H.R. 2836, the FEMA Loan Interest Payment Relief Act, into the bill," it said.
"Public power utilities stand ready to respond to disasters and are encouraged to see the federal government working to make the process more efficient," APPA said.
