Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher’s (TX-07) Hazard Eligibility and Local Projects (HELP) Act, H.R. 1917, which eliminates unnecessary bureaucratic delays to starting recovery projects by allowing certain eligible disaster mitigation projects to begin without the risk of losing potential federal funds, passed the House of Representatives for a second time, following minor modifications in the Senate.  The HELP Act now heads to President Biden’s desk for signature. 

“The HELP Act is the very first original bill I introduced in Congress, based on the hard lessons we learned in Houston after Hurricane Harvey,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “I am thrilled to see this bill head to the President’s desk for signature after four years of advocating for these common-sense and important modifications to the disaster recovery process.  I am so proud of this bill and all it represents—bipartisan, common-sense, meaningful legislation that was born out of a partnership with Houstonians that will benefit all Americans.  I am grateful to my partners in the House and Senate for their work to make this improvement to the disaster recovery process, and I look forward to seeing President Biden sign the bill into law.”

The HELP Act is the first original bill Congresswoman Fletcher filed as a Member of Congress.  It allows certain disaster mitigation and recovery projects to begin more quickly without jeopardizing potential federal funding.  The House passed the bill in the 116th Congress, but the Senate did not move the bill forward.  Congresswoman Fletcher re-introduced the legislation in the 117th Congress, and in November of last year, the House passed the bill.  The Senate then amended the bill and returned it to the House for final passage.  It now heads to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. 

To watch the Congresswoman’s floor speech on the bill, click here.  To view full text of the bill, click here.