Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee unanimously passed Eastern Washington Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers’ (WA-05) Making Aid for Local Disasters Equal Now (MALDEN) Act. This legislation, which is named after the town of Malden, Wash. that was devastated by the Babb Road Fire in 2020, would improve coordination between federal, state, and local agencies to better deploy resources to rural communities impacted by a natural disaster.

The MALDEN Act will now advance to the full House of Representatives.

“I’m grateful to my colleagues on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for understanding the importance of the MALDEN Act to rural communities in Eastern Washington,” said Rodgers. “Today’s decisive vote sends a clear message to those impacted by devastating wildfires that they will not be left behind, no matter where they live. Improving coordination at every level of government to efficiently deploy recovery resources is an idea whose time has come, and I look forward to it getting a vote in the full House of Representatives as soon as possible.”

BACKGROUND:
The MALDEN Act would amend the Stafford Act to ensure rural communities receive recovery assistance by requiring FEMA to work in coordination with state leadership to provide guidance to local emergency managers on developing a recovery team. They must also assist in identifying short and long-term recovery resources, including resources to prevent secondary natural disasters like flooding, mudslides and rockslides.

The bill also instructs FEMA to work with the state emergency management agency to make disaster case workers available for rural communities in the event that a request for Individual Assistance is made and denied.

CLICK HERE to read the full bill text.

CLICK HERE for a one pager on the MALDEN Act.

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