By Ingrid Schroeder
A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report in September put the average annual total of federal disaster spending in recent years at $27.7 billion, spread across 17 departments and agencies that play a role in response or recovery. This report provides a first-of-its-kind comprehensive look at federal disaster expenditures but tells only part of the story. The amount of state and local government investment in disaster relief and mitigation, a key part of the funding picture, remains unknown.
In fact, a complete tally of total public disaster-related spending in the United States does not exist.
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A thorough, nonpartisan analysis of spending across all levels of government is critical as the federal government looks for opportunities to invest more effectively and reduce natural disaster-related costs. Knowledge of what state and local governments bring to the table will help clarify areas where federal policymakers can better incentivize states to invest in mitigation, and thus reduce overall costs.