Many Lawmakers Doubt Warming but Are Bullish on Resilience

There is a mounting belief among lawmakers from both sides of the aisle that federal mitigation for and response to extreme weather events requires updating.

And while many Republicans are reluctant to discuss the role of climate change in fueling recent natural disasters, there's nonetheless growing consensus that long-term recovery plans should address "future risks."

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee this week held a hearing to discuss emergency response to the recent spate of hurricanes, during which Republican Chairman Ron Johnson of Wisconsin called the situation "unprecedented."

"Starting back in late August with Harvey, then Irma and Maria within, literally, a span of 30 days, we just have not seen anything like this," he said at the hearing.

"I think it's appropriate for this committee, long term, to really take a look at what is the proper balance between state and local response and the federal response in these situations."

Returning from a trip to Puerto Rico last month, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said the island's electric grid should be rebuilt to withstand hurricane-force winds.

Following his own bipartisan visit to hurricane-ravaged areas of Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands over the weekend, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) noted the role of improved Florida building codes imposed after Hurricane Andrew in 1992 in preserving structures.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who was also on that trip, said this week that the contrast between pre- and post-Andrew construction in the Florida Keys was striking.

He said there was general agreement among the members of the congressional delegation — which included House Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) — that the requirements of the Stafford Act to rebuild to "what was" are "foolish."

"I think there was a bipartisan conclusion by the delegation that ... we need to do more, we need to do it more quickly and that we needed to restore to a place where the vulnerability that existed, which is the reason for the extensive damage, ought not to be replicated but ought to be made, in effect, hardened," Hoyer said.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who in the last Congress chaired a Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing questioning climate science, agreed future risks must be addressed as Texas rebuilds from record-setting flooding from Harvey.

"There's no doubt that part of the process of rebuilding will be assessing flood prevention," Cruz told E&E News in September.  He noted that existing flood plain maps were out of sync with the intensity of the storm, which dumped 50 inches of rain in parts of east Texas.

"And so of course that will be part of the discussion of rebuilding, how to rebuild to minimize the risk of subsequent flooding and disasters."

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