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I’m testifying Tuesday on need for comprehensive reform to nation’s disaster housing recovery & rebuilding. Finishing up written testimony today and outraged again at all the ways we fail low-income and marginalized people before/during/after disasters.
So many examples of the failures. FEMA refused to activate the Disaster Housing Assistance Program after Maria so PR evacuees went from short-term FEMA- funded hotels to homeless shelters. Homelessness increased by 17% in communities w/PR evacuees.
FEMA programs are designed to assist higher income people. After Hurricane Harvey, nearly half of lowest-income disaster survivors were denied assistance. The vast majority of higher-income households received assistance.
FEMA’s disaster response system reinforces racial inequities. After Harvey, the average white family in higher-income neighborhoods received about $60k/person. Black families in poorer neighborhoods received, on average, $84/person. No, that’s not a typo.
Due to lack of housing assistance after Harvey, homelessness increased in Houston by 18%, a colossal failure of the federal gov’t’s disaster recovery efforts.
I’ve written about the failures again and again. Here: https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/361546-hurricane-victims-are-headed-for-homelessness
And here: https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/418175-disaster-housing-recovery-time-for-congress-to-act
And here. https://nlihc.org/resource/point-view-disaster-disparities-diane-yentel-nlihc-president-and-ceo
I appreciate the opportunity to share these lessons learned and recommendations for reform and redesign with the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Looking forward to Tuesday’s hearing.
