Friday, March 8, 2019 | 2 a.m.
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For immediate and long-term reasons, a new investigation by National Public Radio on the distribution of disaster relief funds deserves attention from Nevada’s congressional delegates and other national lawmakers.
In a story published Tuesday, NPR reported that white and higher-income communities are receiving a disproportionate share of Federal Emergency Management Agency funds, to the disadvantage of areas with high minority populations and those with less wealth.
“Put another way, after a disaster, rich people get richer and poor people get poorer,” the story says. “And federal disaster appears to exacerbate that wealth inequality.”
That’s not fair on its face, and the worse news is that the problem is growing due to the increase in hurricanes, wildfires and other disasters fueled by climate change.
With no relief in sight from extreme weather, Congress should examine the findings of the investigation with an eye toward ensuring that funding is going to people who need it most.
A number of factors are combining to create the inequity, say advocates for low-income communities.
Among them are that low-income disaster victims might not have access to a computer, can’t afford to take a day off work to meet with a FEMA representative and might not have all of the documents they need to make a claim for assistance, making it more difficult for them to apply. Those are major impediments, because the application and approval process is stringent — it’s designed that way to guard against fraudulent claims and improper payouts.
Meanwhile, poorer Americans who struggle with their credit scores aren’t as likely as wealthier individuals to obtain low-income loans made available to disaster victims.
Another key factor involves buyouts of properties in disaster-prone areas.
The buyouts are funded mostly by FEMA and are offered to homeowners to incentivize them to relocate, which allows their homes to be leveled and their properties turned into permanent green space. The approach is designed to save taxpayers in the long run, and FEMA says it’s working — every $1 in tax funding offered for buyouts saves $6 in disaster losses down the road, the agency says.
But in analyzing 40,000 buyouts, NPR found that most of them had gone to neighborhoods that were 85 percent white and non-Hispanic. That’s occurred despite about 62 percent of the nation as a whole being white and non-Hispanic.
Again, several factors were involved, but a key one is the rate of homeownership, which tends to be higher for whites than for people of color.
Another hit for lower-income communities comes in the form of funding for mitigation projects, like flood control systems. That funding is awarded under a cost-benefit calculation that takes into account the value of properties that would be protected. The approach is designed to limit taxpayers’ risks, but NPR pointed out that it resulted in a major flood control project being scotched in Manville, N.Y., because it would have protected only 40 cents of property for every $1 invested into it.
None of this is to say that whites shouldn’t receive disaster assistance, or should be forced to get less than their fair share.
But the NPR investigation raises serious concerns about how the money is being distributed.
The story illustrated that point by focusing on two Houston residents whose homes were flooded during Hurricane Harvey. A white family who owned their home received $30,000 from FEMA, a $100,000 tax refund from the IRS and a low-interest loan from the Small Business Administration. A black mother of three, who lived in a rental home, received $2,500 that she spent on a car so she could get to work and her kids could get to school. Federal officials determined she had incorrectly used that money, and she hasn’t received assistance since.
The situation isn’t necessarily an an indictment of FEMA, either. Regarding the buyouts, for instance, the agency points out that state and local officials determine which properties are available for them — not the feds.
But even if the processes behind the buyouts, mitigation and other forms of disaster aid aren’t designed to exacerbate the growing wealth gap between whites and minorities, the NPR investigation shows they’re contributing to it.
This begs examination by Congress.
Lower-income Americans already face challenges in moving up the income ladder. When they’re struck by random misfortune, they shouldn’t be pushed further down it.
