The bill creates the Commission on Federal Natural Disaster Resilience and Recovery, housed within the Office of Management and Budget, to examine and recommend reforms that improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and budget funding of federal disaster resilience and recovery programs. It directs the Commission to identify administrative and legislative changes and to produce concrete recommendations for Congress and executive agencies.
The Commission will be composed of 15 members, with broad representation from federal, state, local, and tribal governments, the private sector, and NGOs. It must complete a final report within two years of its first meeting and provide interim updates every 180 days, outlining specific policy options and potential administrative changes, including consideration of prior GAO findings.
Funding comes from existing Office appropriations, with no new funds authorized, and the Commission terminates after delivering its final report.
At a Glance
What It Does
Establishes a Commission on Federal Natural Disaster Resilience and Recovery within the Office to examine federal resilience and recovery programs and to recommend administrative and legislative reforms aimed at improving efficiency, effectiveness, and budgeting for these programs.
Who It Affects
Federal agencies (and the offices and programs they run), state/local/Tribal governments, emergency management personnel, the private sector, infrastructure and health professionals, and organizations involved in disaster preparedness and response.
Why It Matters
Provides a structured, data-driven review of how federal resilience and recovery programs are funded and managed—seeking to reduce duplication, improve outcomes for impacted communities, and align agency activities with measurable goals.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The bill would create a new Commission within the Office of Management and Budget to examine how the federal government handles natural disaster resilience and recovery. Its purpose is to recommend reforms that make these programs more efficient, effective, and properly funded.
The Commission’s work is designed to look across agencies, identify gaps, and propose concrete changes to policy and administration that could improve outcomes for communities hit by disasters.
Membership is deliberately diverse: 15 members appointed by the Director, including one Office employee and a mix of emergency managers, health professionals, infrastructure and cyber experts, state/local/Tribal officials, and private-sector or NGO representatives. Appointments must be completed within 120 days of enactment, and the Chair is elected by a majority of the Commission while the Vice Chair must be an Office employee.
The Commission can conduct its work in person or remotely and may request information from any federal agency as needed.Key duties center on examining federal resilience and recovery programs and recommending changes to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and budgeting. The Commission will publish interim findings every 180 days and, within two years of its first meeting, deliver a final report that includes practical policy recommendations and a comprehensive inventory of federally funded resilience activities.
The report also considers GAO’s prior recommendations and other potential administrative changes. Funding for the Commission comes from existing Office appropriations; no new funds are authorized, and the Commission will terminate 60 days after its final report is submitted.
The Five Things You Need to Know
The Commission will consist of 15 members, with one Office employee; all appointments must be made within 120 days of enactment.
The Chair is chosen by an affirmative vote of at least eight members, and the Vice Chair is an Office employee.
A final report is due within two years after the first Commission meeting, with actionable recommendations and a cross-agency inventory of resilience programs.
Interim reports are due every 180 days, informing Congress on progress and interim findings.
Funding comes solely from appropriations already provided to the Office; no new funds are authorized, and the Commission terminates 60 days after delivering the final report.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
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Definitions and Establishment
The bill defines the Commission, the Director, natural disasters, and the Office (OMB). It establishes within the Office a Commission on Federal Natural Disaster Resilience and Recovery to oversee reform efforts. This establishes the legal locus and scope for interagency coordination and authoritative review.
Duties
The Commission is tasked with examining administrative and legislative reforms to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and budgeting of federal resilience and recovery programs. Its work centers on identifying practical reforms and recommending actions to enhance program performance across agencies.
Membership
The Commission will have 15 members, including one Office employee. It should be broadly representative of state, local, and Tribal governments, the private sector, and NGOs, and include experts from emergency management, health, infrastructure, cyber security, and other relevant fields. Appointments must be completed within 120 days of enactment, and the Director must consider geographic and sectoral balance.
Administration
The Commission can meet in person or virtually, with initial meetings occurring within 240 days of enactment. Executive branch departments will advise the Commission on matters within their responsibilities. The Commission can request information from any federal agency, and it may use postal services to conduct business. The Chair and Vice Chair will establish procedures, including a quorum requirement, and the Commission may hire staff and an executive director, subject to a vote by at least eight members.
Reports
Not later than two years after the first meeting, the Commission must submit a final report detailing actionable policy and administrative recommendations, including consideration of GAO’s prior findings on disaster recovery. The final report should include a comprehensive inventory of federally funded resilience programs and an assessment of administrative changes across agencies, with the aim of improving efficiency and effectiveness.
Termination and Funding
The Commission terminates 60 days after delivering the final report. Funds used to carry out this section must come from appropriations already provided to the Office; no new funds are authorized for this act. The Executive Director and staff may be detailed from other federal agencies without loss of status, and compensation must conform to applicable limits.
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Explore Government in Codify Search →Who Benefits and Who Bears the Cost
Every bill creates winners and losers. Here's who stands to gain and who bears the cost.
Who Benefits
- Federal agencies overseeing resilience and recovery programs gain a consolidated, data-driven framework for evaluating effectiveness and efficiency, enabling clearer reform paths.
- State, local, and Tribal emergency management officials benefit from consistent standards, better alignment of federal funding, and more transparent program goals.
- Private-sector infrastructure operators and critical services providers benefit from streamlined programs and improved coordination across agencies.
- Public health and disability communities gain from inclusive representation and consideration of accessibility in resilience planning.
- Congress and oversight bodies gain structured, evidence-based analyses and actionable recommendations to improve federal resilience and recovery investments.
Who Bears the Cost
- Federal agencies may incur administrative burdens to share data and harmonize programs with the Commission’s recommendations.
- Taxpayers could see shifts in funding priorities as programs are restructured or consolidated under reform proposals.
- Private contractors and NGOs involved in federal resilience programs may face new reporting requirements and alignment costs.
- State and local governments may need to adapt to updated eligibility criteria or reporting standards tied to revised federal programs.
- Agency staff time and resources diverted to support the Commission’s data gathering and analysis.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central tension is between creating a centralized, evidence-based reform process that can align federal resilience activities and budgets, and preserving the autonomy and complexity of diverse federal programs with varying statutory authorities and funding streams.
The bill centralizes a broad cross-cutting review of natural disaster resilience and recovery programs, which could yield significant efficiency gains but also risks duplicating or disrupting existing governance structures. Relying on information from many different federal agencies to produce a unified inventory and assessment may be challenging, given agency-specific data systems and reporting cultures.
While the Commission is empowered to request information, the effectiveness of its findings will depend on the quality and timeliness of data provided by agencies and the political will to translate recommendations into action. The absence of new appropriations places pressure on the Commission to operate within existing resources, potentially constraining its ability to hire staff or invest in necessary data infrastructure.
The timing of interim and final reports also raises questions about how quickly reforms could be operationalized across agencies with entrenched processes.
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