Author Archives: wsgribble

HR 5429: SIREN Act of 2018

HR 5429: SIREN Act of 2018

The SIREN Act of 2018 was introduced on April 5, 2018 in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The Supporting and Improving Rural EMS Needs (“SIREN”) Act of 2018 was introduced the the U.S. House of Representatives on April 5, 2018 with the aim to reauthorize the Rural Emergency Medical Service Training and Equipment Assistance Program with some modifications. HR 5429 includes a provision for $10 Million in appropriations to be authorized each fiscal year between 2018 and 2022.

This grant program has been in existence for several years. The grant was originally introduced as part of the Health Care Safety Net Amendments of 2002 that authorized several different grant programs.

Click here to read the full bill.

2018-2022 FEMA Strategic Plan

2018-2022 FEMA Strategic Plan

FEMA Released its 2018-2022 strategic plan in March 2018. The plan takes into account many of the lessons learned from the landmark year of disasters in 2017.

FEMA released the 2018-2022 strategic plan last month. The new plan focuses on three goals: (1) Building a culture of preparedness; (2) making the nation ready for catastrophic disasters; and (3) reduce the complexity of FEMA. Throughout the document, FEMA acknowledges many of the issues it learned while responding to many disasters in 2018. Appendix 1 of the Strategic plan will showcase FEMA’s progress along it’s measures of performance (“MOP’s”) through 2022.

GOAL 1: The first goal of building a culture of preparedness acknowledges the issues that many Americans face with not having enough resources to react to a disaster. It’s not as much of being aware (something the profession has focused in the past), as it is having a “real” plan and the resources to back it up. For example, Goal 1, Objective 3 not only includes training and
planning measures of performance, but also to “increase the percentage of people with savings set aside for an emergency.” It would be interesting to see if this question is included on the census scheduled for 2020.

GOAL 2: The second goal focuses on building the readiness of the federal government to answer the call of state and local governments when needed. This comes not only from building a ready on-call incident workforce, but also by improving the logistics tail that supports that workforce and impacted communities. One of Goal 2, Objective 4’s three performance measures includes to increase the number of states with comprehensive continuity plans and
programs that comply with the Continuity of Guidance Circular. (Keep in mind, CGC 1 and 2 were combined this past February into a single document). There was talk in 2017 that FEMA would begin soliciting input from the field to better develop these grant conditions. Inclusion as a performance measure in the strategic plan could mean that FEMA could planning to follow through on its interest in making CGC planning a condition of future grant funding.

GOAL 3: Goal three focuses on reducing the complexity of FEMA, something many will probably celebrate. Much of this goal sounds like there is a good departure from Classical Public Administration with an embrace of New Public Administration (and some aspects of New Public Service). In short, this is a shift from focusing on the process to one that is responsive to customer/citizen needs, transparent, and focuses on the outcomes. Something to keep an eye out for is feedback solicitations in the Federal Register. FEMA will likely seek feedback from the field as it looks at the impacts of process and program changes to make sure they have their intended effect.

Read the full strategic plan by clicking here.

HR 4930: Disaster Assistance Rental Fairness Act

HR 4930: Disaster Assistance Rental Fairness Act

Disaster Rental Fairness Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on February 5, 2018.

On February 5, 2018 the U.S. House of Representatives introduced and referred the Disaster Assistance Rental Fairness Act to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The bill was sponsored by Representative John Culberson of Texas. The bill seeks to add a subsection to the Stafford Act by prohibiting the consideration of “income of an individual or household in determining whether to provide, or continue to provide, to that individual or household rental assistance under this section.”

42 USC §5174(j) allows for the president to promulgate rules on determining eligibility. 44 CFR §206.113 speaks in generalities and doesn’t have a specific provision requiring the use of income in determining rental assistance eligibility. See also 44 CFR §206.117 (Referring to §206.113 when determining eligibility for rental assistance). However, the Individuals and Households Program Unified Guidance details exactly how the amount of rental assistance is determined by using the monthly adjusted gross income of adults in the household receiving rental assistance. This bill seeks to change that.

Click Here to Read the Full Text of the Bill

Texas Extends State Disaster Declaration for Harvey

Texas Extends State Disaster Declaration for Harvey

Governor Abbott extended the disaster declaration for 60 counties in Texas to aid in the response and recovery for Hurricane Harvey.

On February 16, 2018 Governor Abbott extended the disaster declaration for 60 counties in Texas. This is the sixth renewal of a disaster declaration for the counties in the declaration. To view the full extension of the disaster declaration, click here.

HR 4995: Due Diligence for FEMA Disaster Contractors Act of 2018

HR 4995: Due Diligence for FEMA Disaster Contractors Act of 2018

HR 4995 was introduced in February seeking more scrutiny when selecting contractors for disaster response/recovery work.

HR 4995 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on February 8th and seeks to bring more scrutiny to the selection of contractors to perform disaster response and recovery work. The bill is styled as the “Due Diligence for FEMA Disaster Contractors Act of 2018”. This bill comes just months after public controversy over contractors tasked with supporting the Puerto Rico recovery efforts.

Click Here to Read the Full Text of the Bill

Texas AG Issues Notifications Following Price Gouging During Harvey

Texas AG Issues Formal Demands Following Price Gouging During Harvey

The Texas Attorney General has notified 127 gas stations of price gouging during Hurricane Harvey.

During Hurricane Harvey, there was a lot of alleged price gouging of necessities. This not only impacted the costal area, but also more interior areas that never saw a direct impact from the storm. On October 30, 2017, The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division sent notices to 127 gas-stations in Texas that charged in excess of $3.99 per gallon of gasoline. The notice provided to each business gives the individuals a chance to resolve the issue before proceeding to the litigation stage. This aren’t the only business likely to receive notices though. The AG’s Office is still investigating complaints received from consumers during this timeframe.

The Texas Attorney General’s Office is using the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (or “DTPA” for short) to go after price gouging. The DTPA is what consumers and the state often use to control unscrupulous businesses in Texas. The DTPA allows for stiff civil penalties and injunctive relief to prevent business from maintaining deceptive or unfair trade practices. Price Gouging is only one of many practices prohibited. Often, this list of prohibited practices is called simply “the laundry list,” because there are so many things.

Read the Full AG’s Press Release Here

Emergency Management Law’s Post on the AG’s Established Price Gouging Hotline

Photo courtesy of the Department of Defense.

Disaster Declaration Renewed for Portions of Texas

Disaster Declaration Renewed for Portions of Texas

Friday, Governor Abbott extended the state disaster declaration for 60 Texas Counties.

On Friday, the Governor Greg Abbott renewed the state level Disaster Declaration for 60-counties in the Gulf Coast region. Generally, disaster declarations have a 30-day shelf life–or earlier if the state legislature decides the state of disaster should be terminated. [1] After that, it requires a renewal to ensure the disaster conditions still exist. [2] It is unclear though whether more than one renewal is required.

The current language of Tex. Gov’t Code §418.014(c) is somewhat vague though. The section states that “A state of disaster may not continue for more than 30-days unless renewed by the governor.”

Though it may sound specific at first, the code seems to leave the issue of subsequent renewals open for interpretation. There are two ways this could be potentially read: (a) the 30-day rule is for the initial declaration, with the first renewal having potentially perpetual duration; or (b) declaration must be renewed every 30-days, or risk expiring.

There is essentially no case law to help determine what the section really intends to convey. It’s likely that the legislature didn’t foresee a disaster striking that would require more than 30-days of response & initial recovery.

Read the Renewed Declaration & Proclamation by clicking here.

References:

[1] Tex. Gov’t Code §418.014(c)

[2] Tex. Gov’t Code §418.014(b), (c).

Forthcoming Publication: The Preparedness Piñata

Forthcoming Publication: The Preparedness Piñata

The South Texas Law Review has selected The Preparedness Piñata for inclusion in its Spring 2018 publication cycle.

The South Texas College of Law’s South Texas Law Review has selected our Editor-in-Cheif’s work “The Preparedness Piñata: Knocking the Problems out of Texas’ Emergency Management Legal Framework to Enhance Performance at the Local Level” for inclusion in the Spring 2018 edition.

The Preparedness Piñata takes an in depth look at the Texas Division of Emergency Management’ informal guidance for Emergency Management and whether they violate the Texas Administrative Procedures Act as “ad hoc rulemaking.” The article concludes with a discussion on the potential issues and methods for rectifying the issues that could stem from illegal ad hoc rulemaking.

For more information on subscriptions to receive the article once complete, contact us on the contact tab or by reaching out to the South Texas Law Review directly.

Texas AG Establishes Price Gouging Hotline

Texas AG Establishes Price Gouging Hotline

Price gouging is illegal in Texas. Texas are encouraged to report suspected price gouging to the Texas AG’s Office.

After a disaster, price gouging can occur by unscrupulous people attempting to take advantage of others in the midst of crisis. Texas has codified that price gouging during a disaster violates the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act [1]. In fact, many cities and counties have plans that provide ways to ensure prices are controlled during the disaster. [2] Specifically, selling “fuel food, medicine, or another necessity” at an excessive price or demanding such in connection with the necessity is illegal. [3] Though consumers may take action on their own, the County or District Attorney is allowed to prosecute those suspected of price gouging during a disaster. [4] Texas also has the Consumer Protection Division under the umbrella of the Texas Attorney General’s Office. That office helps to investigate and prosecute claims of price gouging.

The Texas AG Consumer Protection Division has established a hotline and email address to support consumers who suspect price gouging. [5]

The AG’s hotline is: 1 (800) 621-0508

The AG’s email is: consumeremergency@oag.texas.gov

Price gouging doesn’t just happen in a disaster zone. There have been cases where states have prosecuted companies that were hundreds of miles away from where the disaster impacted. [6] Everyone is encouraged to remain vigilant.

References:

[1] Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 17.46(b)(27) (2017).

[2] Tex. Gov. Code §418.106(b)(1) (2017).

[3] Id. 

[4] Tex. Bus. & Com Code § 17.48 (2017).

[5] AG Paxton Announces Consumer Protection Hotline, August 25, 2017, Full Article Here.

[6] See People ex rel. Spitzer v. Weaver Petroleum, Inc., 827 N.Y.S.2d 813 (2006) (evidence of price gouging found at gasoline retailer in New York following Hurricane Katrina). But see White v. R.M. Packer Co., Inc., 635 F.3d 571 (1st Cir. Feb. 18, 2011) (evidence supported a conclusion of “conscious parallelism, but not price gouging).

CBP & ICE Statement on Hurricane Harvey

CBP & ICE Statement on Hurricane Harvey

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) & U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) will not be conducting routine non-criminal immigration enforcement operations at evacuations sites or assistance centers such as food banks or shelters. The intent is to ensure everyone is focused on the safety and security during the response efforts. However, the agencies will remain vigilant to any criminal activity that seeks to take advantage of the disruption caused by Hurricane Harvey.

Read the full statement from CBP & ICE by clicking here.