04/09/2010 09:00 AM Senate FINANCE

HOUSE BILL NO. 292                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
     "An Act relating to grants to victims of a disaster in                                                                     
     this state; and providing for an effective date."                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
9:37:46 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MCHUGH PIERRE, LIAISON, DEPARTMENT  OF MILITARY AND VETERANS                                                                    
AFFAIRS,  commented  on  HB  292.   He  noted  that  HB  292                                                                    
addresses a need  identified regarding catastrophic disaster                                                                    
and families  are impacted  under the  individual assistance                                                                    
grant. The  individual assistance grant clause  allows for a                                                                    
maximum amount is  $5000. The proposal in HB 292  is to link                                                                    
the  state  individual  assistance   grant  to  the  federal                                                                    
individual  assistance grant  which  is administered  during                                                                    
federally  declared disaster.  He  stated that  half of  the                                                                    
federal  assistance grant  is $14,950  in  2010 because  the                                                                    
federal amount has dropped to $29,900.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MICHAEL O'HARE, DEPUTY  COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF MILITARY                                                                    
AND VETERANS AFFAIRS, commented on  the bill. He agreed that                                                                    
HB 292 increases  a cap established in  1977, which requires                                                                    
modernization  for   today's  economy.  A  task   force  was                                                                    
established after  the recent flooding disasters  this year.                                                                    
The task force established that  the model exemplified in HB
  was a  fair  model.  He added  that  the Department  of                                                                    
Military  and  Veterans  Affairs  does not  cut  checks  for                                                                    
victims without a process  that involves taking applications                                                                    
and  verifying  losses  with  photographs  and  receipts  to                                                                    
verify the loss.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
HB  292  was  HEARD  and   HELD  in  Committee  for  further                                                                    
consideration.