Support Disaster Recovery Efforts 

Updated July 10, 2025

The Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program provides critical funding to hard-hit States, cities, and counties but the process for gaining access to those funds can be cumbersome and varied from disaster to disaster. PHAs and their local government partners are instrumental to the economic revitalization and long-term recovery through the redevelopment of housing infrastructure. CDBG-DR funds are used to mitigate future damage and make the community’s infrastructure more resilient. The process to determine eligibility and distribution of the CDBG-DR program funds must not be complicated and complex but rather clear and concise. 

Recommendation: The Administration must request streamlined and focused statutes, regulations, and guidance on the CDBG-DR programs so that these funds can quickly reach the local communities in need. 

Recommendation: HUD should work with Congress to pass the Reforming Disaster Recovery Act. The bill would permanently authorize the CDBG-DR program, offering states, tribes, and communities flexible, long-term recovery resources for rebuilding housing and infrastructure after disasters. It would also include safeguards to ensure federal recovery efforts reach all impacted households, especially the lowest-income and most marginalized survivors.