Ounce of Prevention Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9557 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9557

  To amend the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to allow
 certain grantees to use Community Development Block Grant amounts for
    natural disaster mitigation activities, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 30, 2026

 Mr. Liccardo (for himself, Mr. Timmons, Ms. Tokuda, and Ms. Salazar)
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
                           Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

  To amend the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to allow
 certain grantees to use Community Development Block Grant amounts for
    natural disaster mitigation activities, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Ounce of Prevention Act''.

SEC. 2. USE OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT AMOUNTS FOR NATURAL
              DISASTER MITIGATION ACTIVITIES.

    (a) In General.--The Housing and Community Development Act of 1974
(42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 101(c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at the
                end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(10) the mitigation of threats to the health and welfare
        of a community posed by weather-related disaster and hazard
        events.'';
            (2) in section 102(a), by adding at the end the following:
            ``(25) The term `mitigation activities' means activities
        that increase resilience to disasters and reduce or eliminate
        the long-term risk of loss of life, injury, damage to and loss
        of property, and suffering and hardship, by lessening the
        impact of future disasters.'';
            (3) in section 104(b)(3), by inserting ``support mitigation
        of threats to the health and welfare of a community posed by
        weather-related disaster and hazard events,'' after
        ``blight,''; and
            (4) in section 105--
                    (A) in subsection (a)--
                            (i) in paragraph (26), by striking the
                        period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (ii) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(27) natural disaster mitigation activities, including
        new construction and rehabilitation of structures, if the
        grantee--
                    ``(A) includes within the consolidated plan
                submitted under part 91 of title 24, Code of Federal
                Regulations, or any successor regulation, that the
                grantee is in a high risk area, and the Secretary
                certifies such risk, according to--
                            ``(i) the National Risk Index developed by
                        the Federal Emergency Management Agency; or
                            ``(ii) a natural hazard risk index
                        maintained by the State in which the grantee is
                        located; and
                    ``(B) describes in such consolidated plan how such
                activities will address natural disaster mitigation
                needs.''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(i) Use of Grants for Natural Disaster Mitigation.--
            ``(1) Effect on aggregation standards.--A grantee that uses
        grant amounts for natural disaster mitigation activities as
        described in subsection (a)(27) may treat housing units
        assisted under that activity--
                    ``(A) as a single structure with respect to meeting
                criteria for national objects as described in section
                570.208 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, or
                any successor regulation; and
                    ``(B) as exempted from any aggregate standards for
                public benefit as described in section 570.209 of title
                24, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor
                regulation.
            ``(2) Technical assistance.--The Secretary shall provide
        technical assistance to grantees that use grant amounts for
        natural disaster mitigation activities as described in
        subsection (a)(27).''.
    (b) Rulemaking.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
shall issue rules to include--
            (1) mitigation efforts in areas with potential for natural
        disaster risk--
                    (A) as an activity designed to meet community
                development needs having a particular urgency, as
                described in section 570.208(c) of title 24, Code of
                Federal Regulations; and
                    (B) as criteria for national objects as described
                in section 570.483 of title 24, Code of Federal
                Regulations; and
            (2) threats posed by documented weather-related disaster or
        hazard risks as a serious and immediate threat to the health or
        welfare of the community, as described in such section.
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