A bill promises to cut the red tape to receiving federal funds after a natural disaster for condominiums and homeowners associations, potentially shortening the path to recovery.
On Tuesday, Rep. Greg Steube, Republican of Florida, presented the Clean Up Disasters and Emergencies with Better Recovery and Immediate Support Act, or the Clean Up DEBRIS Act. The bill intends to modify the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, which funnels resources from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to municipalities after a natural disaster. This would allow condominium and homeowners associations to bypass local governments and accept federal dollars directly. While this adds pressure for the government to direct more money for natural disasters and increase its distribution pool by thousands of new recipients, stakeholders say it could save months on recovery efforts.
The key issue lies in how FEMA deems street ownership. Condominiums and homeowners associations often own streets within their gated communities or surrounding the property. When a natural disaster occurs, these communities have to wait in line at local government offices to apply for limited federal dollars and sign off on municipalities clearing the roads so that emergency vehicles and others can move through.
The process is inadequate at a time when thousands of more people call one of these associations home, said Dawn Bauman, CEO of the Community Associations Institute. The Falls Church, Virginia-based international nonprofit organization conducts condo research and advocates for policy on behalf of such developments and HOA members. Today, the United States has 369,000 community associations, up from 10,000 in 1970, Bauman said.
"This came to light in Superstorm Sandy on the East Coast. In New Jersey, a lot of communities were left stranded," Bauman said. "With the growth of the industry and the growth of these bigger storms, it’s when it came to light, and we’ve been trying to make changes ever since."
The bill could be a tough sell, given the presidential administration is adamant on cutting federal spending and reducing the deficit. FEMA lost 200 of its approximately 20,000 staffers earlier this year due to cuts made by the Department of Government Efficiency.
Steube did not respond to a request for comment.
South Carolina resident Peter Kristian said he believes this would be critical to the thousands of people nationwide who live in a condominium or homeowners association. He oversees Hilton Head Plantation as its general manager, a community of 4,300 condominiums and single-family homes. He remembers the devastation Hurricane Matthew left behind in 2016. It took nine months just to clear the streets of debris. He credits a good relationship with the Town of Hilton Head Island for moving the recovery along but said the cleanup would have been faster had the association gained direct access to funding.
"We’re unique," Kristian said. "I'm thinking of my brothers and sisters across the country who do not have the relationship that we have with the Town of Hilton Head. They are on their own with special assessments and raising the money to just live in their homes and restart building."
The bill has to first move through the House of Representatives and then the Senate. The timeline on this proposal remains uncertain. Bauman said it could be a matter of months or years for this to pass.