GENERAL STATEMENT OF THE DIRECTOR

Mr. LINCOLN. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, it is a pleasure to meet with this subcommittee for the first time and I look forward to working with you in the future and to receiving your counsel on our plans and problems, not only formally in the committee meetings but informally at other times. We do, in our organization, invite the counsel of the committees to which we are responsible.

The supplemental we are requesting for the President's disaster relief fund is $25 million. This fiscal year 1971 supplemental request is necessary to continue effectively the President's disaster assistance

program.

Two major reasons have made this request necessary: the first is the recent changes in the basic statute authorizing disaster assistance and the second is the recent occurrence of costly and widespread natural disasters.

The Federal disaster program has been in existence since enabling legislation was enacted in 1950. This law, Public Law 81-875, was the basic authority until December 31, 1970, when a comprehensive, omnibus law, Public Law 91-606, was signed by the President.

I have put on a chart here, showing a summary on the left of the major provisions in the previous legislation, and then, on the right, the provisions that were added in the new law. All of the significant provisions in the previous legislation were continued; some of them in a changed and usually more costly form.

Mr. STEED. Without objection, the chart will be made a part of the record at this point.

(The chart follows:)

Mr. EDWARDS. Are you saying that all of the law that is applicable is now in Public Law 91-606?

Mr. LINCOLN. I am saying that all of the provisions, substantially all of the provisions of the previous acts were incorporated in Public Law 91-606, and in addition there are certain additional measures shown on the right.

If your question is directed to all laws applicable to disaster, there is other legislation applying to other departments of the Government, applicable to disasters. As an example, for the Corps of Engineers, Public Law 84-99 gives them authorization for preventive flood measures, and in fact they have just invoked that recently. We are conducting a flood fight in the northern Midwest which we have termed Operation Foresight.

While the 1950 and subsequent statutes authorized most of the more expensive assistance activities, these activities were carried forward, and expanded, in the 1970 law. There are other provisions new in this law with which we have little experience and which may in the future require substantial outlays. Revenue maintenance to municipalities due to a damaged tax base is an example. The new law also provides for more assistance for individuals, such as emergency transportation and legal services.

Another point is that some of the major provisions in the more recent laws are retroactive. Public Law 91-79 of 1969, which was operative in the first half of fiscal year 1971, for the first time authorized Federal assistance in debris removal from private as well as public properties when in the public interest. Enacted in October of 1969 shortly after the devastating Camille hurricane, it was designed to give needed additional relief to the victims of that catastrophe.

In the current 1970 law, Public Law 91-606, assistance is retroactive for 17 months, to August of 1969, in some forms of housing assistance, grants to local governments for losses in tax revenue (revenue maintenance), repair of State and local facilities and relocation assistance. Not only has the scope of relief activities increased, but the way the program is administered has recently been greatly improved. To mention two examples, a Federal coordinating officer, required by law, supported by a fully staffed disaster field office coordinates all Federal disaster relief work in the field and insures that these activities fit into the effort by State and private organizations. Disaster field office and assistance centers, with representation from Federal agencies offering relief help, and often private organizations, as well, are established at the scene of large-scale disasters. These centers are set up in locations and numbers such that all victims of a disaster can be appraised of what is available to them and given this help as rapidly as possible.

I do not want to leave the impression that disaster relief has begun just in the very recent past. I do note that the recent trend has been to give more assistance to both individuals and communities, in more areas and for longer periods of time.

This shows the unpredictable occurrences of disasters. It look like a business cycle, doesn't it?

Requests for Presidential declarations of major disasters, and the number of major disasters actually declared over the years shows the unpredictable occurrence of disasters. This inability to prophesy has budgetary implications in terms of supplemental requests. Notice 1970; while not a record year in requests for declarations and for presidentially declared major disasters, obligations exceeded $180 million, more than twice the amount obigated in the ysear with the most numerous disasters, 1965.