Several members of Congress -- from Florida, Virginia, Texas, Colorado and Louisiana -- have introduced legislation to help those recovering from natural disasters.
U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Florida), Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Virginia), Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colorado) and Rep. Garret Graves (R-Louisiana) introduced House Resolution 4215, the bipartisan Rebuilding Communities After Disasters Act, to assist homeowners after devastating natural disasters.
"We must do everything possible so that our coastal communities have access to the all resources provided by the SBA (Small Business Administration) to safely rebuild their homes in the event of a disaster. The Disaster Assistance Loans must be modernized to reflect the rising costs of homes across our communities," Salazar said, according to her Congressional website. "We are in the midst of hurricane season, and in South Florida, we know all too well how these storms can absolutely devastate our homes."
The Rebuilding Communities After Disasters Act aims to make sure that homeowners have the resources needed to recover from natural disasters by increasing the maximum loan amount for SBA physical damage disaster loans from $200,000 to $400,000 for home repair, and from $40,000 to $75,000 to replace household and personal belongings.
The limits on these loans have not been increased since 1994.
The SBA, through the Office of Disaster Assistance, has helped with the restoration of commerce and households in areas stricken by natural and human-caused disasters since it was created in 1953. The SBA offers low-interest, long-term loans for physical and economic damages to businesses to help "repair, rebuild and recover from economic losses" after a declared disaster.
Eighty percent of the agency's loans for disasters are paid to individuals and households (renters and property owners) for repair and to replace homes and personal property, according to Salazar's website.
"I recently cosponsored the Rebuilding Communities After Disasters Act. This will provide more funds for homes that have been impacted by natural disasters, which would help residents of our islands, especially during hurricane season," U.S. Rep. Ed Case (D-Kaneohe) wrote in a July 6 Facebook post.