H.R. 5641 would codify a final rule issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in August 2022 that allows more disaster relief projects to qualify as small projects and thus be approved for federal assistance under a simplified review process. That rule increased the upper monetary threshold for small projects from $139,800 to $1 million. Projects under the threshold are approved for assistance based on estimated costs rather than on the actual costs of projects and are typically approved for assistance more quickly.
Because H.R. 5641 would codify an existing regulation, CBO estimates that enacting the provision related to a higher threshold for small projects would not affect the budget, relative to current law.
In addition, within three years of enactment, H.R. 5641 would require the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security to audit projects that have received assistance under the higher threshold for the simplified review process to determine whether there has been waste or abuse. Using information from FEMA and the Government Accountability Office about the cost of similar audits, CBO estimates that implementing that requirement would cost about $1 million over the 2022-2027 period. Any spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
