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Nelson calls for better coordination to address housing needs of hurricane victims

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U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson today joined nearly a dozen other U.S. senators in urging the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development to work together to provide housing assistance to thousands of displaced Puerto Rican and U.S. Virgin Island residents.
In a letter to FEMA Administrator Brock Long and HUD Secretary Ben Carson, the senators called on the agency heads to heed recommendations made in the aftermath of similar disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina, and to establish a disaster housing assistance program to help expedite temporary and long-term assistance for low-income households.
The senators emphasized that the federal government must do everything in its power to assist the victims of these hurricanes.
“We write with deep concern about the federal response to Hurricanes Maria and Irma, particularly as it relates to addressing the housing needs of the multitudes of newly-displaced families in Puerto Rico and the USVI,” the senators wrote. “It remains unclear to what extent FEMA is coordinating with HUD to respond to the disaster. Moreover, we are concerned that a lack of effective coordination will unnecessarily delay assistance and could have disastrous consequences for the families in greatest need. We are prepared to work with you to provide additional resources for unmet needs and to work to ensure that assistance is deployed effectively to help families on the islands.”
In addition to Nelson, the letter was signed by Sens. Chris Murphy (D-CT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Al Franken (D-MN), Bob Menendez, (D-NJ), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Bran Schatz (D-HI) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).
The full text of the letter below and a PDF copy is here.

November 15, 2017

The Honorable Brock Long
Administrator
Federal Emergency Management Agency
500 C Street SW
Washington, DC 20472
The Honorable Ben Carson
Secretary
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
451 Seventh Street SW
Washington, DC 20410
Dear Administrator Long and Secretary Carson:
We write with deep concern about the federal response to Hurricanes Maria and Irma, particularly as it relates to addressing the housing needs of the multitudes of newly-displaced families in Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands (USVI). Among them are some of the over 100,000 families in Puerto Rico who were receiving assistance from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) at the time Maria made landfall. While we were pleased the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released long-awaited guidance on housing resources for hurricane survivors in Puerto Rico on October 30, 2017, it remains unclear to what extent FEMA is coordinating with HUD to respond to the disaster. Moreover, we are concerned that a lack of effective coordination will unnecessarily delay assistance and could have disastrous consequences for the families in greatest need.
The federal government’s responses to previous disasters of similar scale should be instructive. To address temporary housing needs in the wake of Katrina, the Bush Administration initially chose to provide some displaced families with trailers, cash grants, and short-term stays in hotels and motels—solutions that proved inadequate to meet the needs of affected residents. Months later, the Bush Administration conducted a comprehensive review of the federal government’s response to the disaster, identifying lessons learned and furnishing recommendations on how the federal government should respond to future disasters. One of those recommendations was closer coordination between FEMA and HUD.[1] It is crucial for the agency and the department to heed this essential recommendation, especially given the scope of the devastation in Puerto Rico and USVI.
As part of that coordination, we encourage you to consider establishing a disaster housing assistance program (DHAP). Such a program would allow the federal government to leverage its relationships with housing agencies across the country to help respond to the crisis. It would also facilitate improved data sharing among FEMA, HUD, public housing authorities, and other housing providers in the states to expedite temporary and long-term assistance for low-income households. Ultimately, the policies that the department and the agency consider must be informed by federal and local coordination, including: a combination of FEMA’s disaster assessments, data provided by the governments of Puerto Rico and USVI, and the needs of citizens on the islands.
We are prepared to work with you to provide additional resources for unmet needs and to work to ensure that assistance is deployed effectively to help families on the islands. To that end, we request prompt answers to the following questions:
1. What resources are available for the people of Puerto Rico and USVI today to quickly and properly house displaced persons—both for people on the islands and for those who have evacuated to the mainland?
2. How many HUD-assisted households were impacted by Irma and Maria, and to what extent—if any—is FEMA coordinating with HUD to ensure that displaced persons in Puerto Rico and USVI are quickly and properly housed?
3. What are your deadlines for coming up with temporary medium- and long-term housing solutions for the people of Puerto Rico and USVI?
4. Given the initial damage assessments of public housing infrastructure, single-family homes, and rental units for Puerto Rico’s and USVI’s lowest-income residents, what are some options available to the people of Puerto Rico and USVI, housing authorities in Puerto Rico and USVI, and housing authorities and organizations in diaspora states to meet the additional needs of displaced families?
5. Have you identified any data sharing gaps that must be addressed in order for federal disaster benefits to flow efficiently to Puerto Rican and USVI families in need of housing in the wake of Hurricanes Maria and Irma? If so, what is required to improve data sharing at the federal and local levels?
Hurricanes Maria and Irma have presented a housing crisis that the people of Puerto Rico and USVI may face for months or years to come. We must do all to ensure these citizens will be assisted in an adequate and timely manner. We appreciate your prompt attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Nelson files tax-relief bill to help victims of hurricanes

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U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) filed legislation today to provide some much needed tax relief to individuals and small businesses hit hardest by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
One of the groups Nelson’s bill seeks to help are Florida’s citrus growers who suffered devastating losses as a result of Hurricane Irma. In fact, some experts estimate that as much as 70 percent of Florida’s citrus crop was lost due to the storm, with some growers losing as much as 90 percent of their crop.
If approved, Nelson’s bill would, among other things, allow Florida’s growers to immediately deduct post-storm clean-up costs from their taxes, including the costs associated with removing and replanting downed trees.
“Florida’s citrus growers took a devastating hit from Hurricane Irma and we need to do everything we can to help this vital part of Florida’s economy,” Nelson said.
In addition to helping Florida’s citrus growers, Nelson’s bill would help provide some relief to people in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories by extending to them some popular tax breaks already offered to taxpayers living on the mainland – including the Child Tax Credit, which provides families a federal tax credit of up to $1,000 per child.
It would also allow individuals and businesses to create tax-free savings accounts to help cover expenses incurred during future disasters.
The legislation Nelson filed today now heads to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration.
Below is a section-by-section summary of Nelson’s bill. The full text of Nelson’s legislation is available here.

NATIONAL DISASTER TAX RELIEF ACT

TITLE I—TAX RELIEF RELATING TO DISASTERS

Sec. 101. Allows for the immediate deduction of disaster cleanup expenses, including the cost of removing and replanting downed trees. 
Sec. 102. Extends net operating loss carryback from two to three years for disaster losses. 
Sec. 103. Provides an additional $500 million in New Markets Tax Credits per year for community development entities in disaster areas. 
Sec. 104. Allows victims of a disaster to exclude non-business debt forgiveness from their gross income.
Sec. 105. Allows additional tax-exempt advance refunding of municipal bonds for recovery projects in disaster areas, with a cap of $2 billion for each state.
Sec. 106. Increases the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit allocation for states damaged by a disaster, based on the population of qualified disaster areas within the state, and allows disaster areas to retain applicable difficult development area designations for 2 years.

TITLE II—PERMANENT DISASTER TAX RELIEF PROVISIONS

Sec. 201. Excludes State and local government disaster mitigation payments from taxable income. 
Sec. 202. Allows taxpayers to create tax-exempt catastrophe savings accounts to pay expenses related to a major disaster. The account balances are capped at (1) $75,000 (for individuals with homeowner insurance deductibles of not more than $1,000); and (2) $150,000 (for individuals with deductibles of more than $1,000). The accounts can also receive tax-free reimbursements from insurance companies.

TITLE III—OTHER PERMANENT TAX PROVISIONS

Sec. 301. Permanently extends the full cover over program for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, a portion of which expired in 2016. The cover over program provides a remittance to Puerto Rico and USVI for excise taxes on rum shipped to the mainland. 
Sec. 302. Permanently extends the deduction for domestic manufacturing in Puerto Rico, which expired in 2016.
Sec. 303. Makes the Child Tax Credit available to families in U.S. territories—including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands—in the same way it is for mainland families.

TITLE IV – TREATMENT OF CERTAIN POSSESSIONS

Sec. 401. Allows U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories to benefit from some of the tax relief in the bill.

Gov. Scott Thanks WellCare for $1 Million Donation for Hurricane Victims

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Governor Rick Scott and Volunteer Florida today thanked WellCare for its support and generous donation of $1 million to the Florida Disaster Fund, which was activated by Governor Scott to aid those impacted by Hurricane Irma. The Florida Disaster Fund, administered by the Volunteer Florida Foundation, is the State of Florida’s official private fund established to assist Florida’s communities in times of disaster. To make a contribution, visit www.FloridaDisasterFund.org or text DISASTER to 20222 to make a donation of $10.
Governor Scott said, “We are so thankful for WellCare’s support of the Florida Disaster Fund. With this generous donation, Florida’s disaster relief organizations will be able to get Floridians back to their homes and back to work as soon as possible.”
“WellCare’s culture is built around caring for those that are most vulnerable, and there is no one more vulnerable than someone who has experienced a natural disaster the size and magnitude of Hurricane Irma,” said Ken Burdick, WellCare’s chief executive officer. “Almost half of our workforce is based in Florida, with the vast majority in the Tampa area and a sizable portion of our membership resides within the state. It is our duty, as a leading corporate citizen, to help the state, our members, associates and the local communities get back on their feet.”
Volunteer Florida CEO Vivian Myrtetus said, “Volunteer Florida is exceptionally grateful for WellCare’s support of the Florida Disaster Fund. This funding will allow our partners across the state to serve so many more Florida families with clean-up, reconstruction, and other vital services.”
About the Florida Disaster Fund
The Florida Disaster Fund is the State of Florida’s official private fund established to assist Florida’s communities as they respond to and recover during times of emergency or disaster. In partnership with the public sector, private sector and other non-governmental organizations, the Florida Disaster Fund supports response and recovery activities.
How to Donate
Donations to the Florida Disaster Fund are made to the Volunteer Florida Foundation, 501(c)(3) charitable organization, and are tax deductible. Donations may be made by credit card on the secure website www.floridadisasterfund.org or by check to the below address. Checks should be made payable to the Volunteer Florida Foundation and should include “Florida Disaster Fund” in the memo line.
Volunteer Florida Foundation
Attention: Florida Disaster Fund
3800 Esplanade Way, Suite 180
Tallahassee, FL 32311
For additional questions about the Florida Disaster Fund, please contact [email protected] or call (850) 414-7400.