Proposed legislation regarding FEMA and weather-related environmental issues: July 17, 2025 – August 22, 2025

S.2331 – Extreme Heat Emergency Act of 2025. To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to include extreme temperature in the definition of a major disaster.
Introduced July 17, 2025 by Jacky Rosen (D-NV). Cosponsored by Ruben Gallego (D-AZ). No Republican cosponsors. Referred to Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs the same day.

S.2349 – INSURE Act (Incorporating National Support for Unprecedented Risks and Emergencies Act). To require the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a catastrophic property loss reinsurance program.
Introduced July 17, 2025 by Adam Schiff (D-CA). Cosponsored by Mazie Hirono (D-HI). No Republican cosponsors. Referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs the same day.

H.R.4494 – Flood Insurance Relief Act. To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide an above-the-line deduction for flood insurance premiums.
Introduced July 17, 2025 by Byron Donalds (R-FL). No cosponsors from either party. Referred to Ways and Means the same day.
Snarky comment: Hey, Byron! How about amending the tax code to provide an above-the-line deduction for all homeowners insurance premiums. Why are people who live in flood-prone areas special?!

July 17, 2025 alert: S. Rept. 119-40 – “Modernizing Access to our Public Oceans Act.” Accompanies Bill: S.759.

July 17, 2025 alert: S. Rept. 119-42 – “Fire Ready Nation Act of 2025.” Accompanies Bill: S.306.

H.R.4749 - Texas Flood Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2025. To provide emergency supplemental appropriations to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the Disaster Relief Fund in response to the severe flooding events in Texas.
Introduced July 23, 2025 by Marc Veasey (D-TX). Cosponsored by eleven Democratic representatives from Texas. NO REPUBLICAN COSPONSORS, NOT EVEN FROM TEXAS. Referred to the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on the Budget the same day.
Comment: Neither Budget nor Appropriations moved on this proposed bill. It has sat in committees since July 23, 2025. If anyone from Texas gripes about lack of assistance from FEMA, point them here.

S.2430 - Wildfire Insurance Coverage Study Act of 2025. To require the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study regarding insurance coverage for damages from wildfires.
Introduced July 24, 2025 by Martin Heinrich (D-NM). Cosponsored by Tim Sheehy (R-MT). Referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs the same day.
Comment: Fairly simple. The bill asks for a study and report on risk assessment, current state of coverage, regulatory responses to wildfires, challenges in underwriting wildfire risk, along with the effects of construction in areas prone to wildfire.
It’s crazy that this was not cosponsored by all senators in Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado (for western Colorado)—Republican and Democratic alike. California is hardly the only state subject to wildfire risk.

July 24, 2025 alert: July 30, 2025 meeting. 10:00AM(EDT), 342 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. Business meeting to consider: … S.861, to streamline the sharing of information among Federal disaster assistance agencies, to expedite the delivery of life-saving assistance to disaster survivors, to speed the recovery of communities from disasters, to protect the security and privacy of information provided by disaster survivors, … S.594, to amend the Post-Katrina Management Reform Act of 2006 to repeal certain obsolete requirements, … To be immediately followed by a business meeting to consider … the nominations of Pedro Allende, of Florida, to be Under Secretary for Science and Technology, and Sean Plankey, of Pennsylvania, to be Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, both of the Department of Homeland Security …

S.2473 - Federal Firefighters Families First Act. To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for pay equality and the more accurate computation of retirement benefits for certain firefighters employed by the Federal Government.
Introduced July 28, 2025 by Ruben Gallego (D-AZ). Cosponsored by Bernie Moreno (R-OH). Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs the same day.
Comment: If anyone is a firefighter or has family or friends who are firefighters, this is a critical bill. The Office of Personnel Management calculated most (all?) other payrolls assuming standard 2087 working hours per year. Therefore if $50,000 were allocated to a position, hourly pay rate would equal $23.95. Overtime would therefore be calculated at a base rate of $23.95 x 1.5 or 2, depending on position.
See 5 U.S. Code § 5545b - Pay for firefighters: Firefighters’ payroll is treated differently. Instead of 2087 working hours per year, Office of Personnel Management used 2756 hours to derive hourly pay. So still using $50,000, $18.14 per hour. This impacts not only overtime calculation, but also annuity.
S.2473 additionally established a maximum regular workweek for firefighters. Under S.2473, firefighters could not work more than sixty hours per week.

S.2492 - Fiscal Contingency Preparedness Act. To require the Secretary of the Treasury, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, to examine the ability of the Federal Government to respond to potential fiscal shocks.
Introduced July 29, 2025 by Mark Warner (D-VA). Cosponsored by Todd Young (R-IN). Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs the same day.
Comment: Can we please get this done in some positive form or fashion? S.2492 requires the Secretary of the Treasury to do his or her job and carry out an annual economic risk assessment for the United States. Risks to be evaluated would include: Possibility of economic recession or depression; domestic energy crisis; catastrophic natural disaster; health crisis or global pandemic; significant armed conflict; significant cyberattack; or, a financial crisis.
Presidents Biden and Obama required this of their Treasury secretaries. Here is link to the 2024 risk assessment. This should be a no-brainer. If there are still adults in the room at Treasury, that is.

S.2569 - Mortgage Relief for Disaster Survivors Act. To provide forbearance assistance during a major disaster or emergency.
Introduced July 31, 2025 by Adam Schiff (D-CA). Cosponsored by Michael Bennet (D-CO). Referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs the same day.

S.2583 - NOAA Weather Radio Modernization Act. To require the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to expand and modernize the weather radio system of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Introduced July 31, 2025 by Ted Cruz (R-TX). Cosponsored by three Democrats and two Republicans. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Snarky comment: Hey, Ted! Are we keeping NOAA or aren’t we? You’re budgeting a lot of money to keep it going and to upgrade its equipment. Which is it?

S.2586 - MARA Act of 2025 (Marine Aquaculture Research for America Act of 2025). To require the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to establish an assessment program for commercial-scale offshore aquaculture through demonstration projects, to establish Aquaculture Centers of Excellence, to support aquaculture workforce development and working waterfronts.
Introduced July 31, 2025 by Roger Wicker (R-MS). Cosponsored by Brian Schatz (D-HI). Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation the same day.

S.2633 - Saving NOAA’s Workforce Act. To institute a reduction in force moratorium at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Introduced July 31, 2025 by Mazie Hirono (D-HI). Cosponsored by Chris Van Hollen (D-MD). Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation the same day.
Snarky comment: Hey Ted, where are you?

August 1, 2025 nomination: PN462-4: Timothy Petty, of Indiana, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, vice Jainey Kumar Bavishi, resigned. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

S.2675 - Preventing HEAT Illness and Deaths Act of 2025 (Preventing Health Emergencies And Temperature-related Illness and Deaths Act of 2025). To reduce the health risks of heat by establishing the National Integrated Heat Health Information System within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Integrated Heat Health Information System Interagency Committee to improve extreme heat preparedness, planning, and response, requiring a study, and establishing financial assistance programs to address heat effects.
Introduced August 1, 2025 by Ed Markey (D-MA). Cosponsored by eight Democrats, one Independent (Bernie Sanders), and no Republicans. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation the same day.

S.2676 - Cloud LAB Act of 2025 (Cloud Labs to Advance Biotechnology Act of 2025). To require the Director of the National Science Foundation to carry out a cloud laboratory network program.
Introduced August 1, 2025 by Todd Young (R-IN). Cosponsored by Andy Kim (D-NJ). Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation the same day.
Comment: When I saw NSF, I was initially pleased, especially since a Democrat is also involved in the legislation. But this bill would combine artificial intelligence, research into biotechnology, and the cloud. Not a fan. The bill includes as good as no risk management. And the risks with that combination are enormous.

S.Res.366 - A resolution commemorating the 69th anniversary of the continuous operations of the Mauna Loa Observatory.
Introduced August 1, 2025 by Mazie Hirono (D-HI). No cosponsors. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation the same day.

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