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Updated June 15, 2022
Calculation and Use of the Disaster Relief Allowable Adjustment
The Budget Control Act (P.L. 112-25, hereinafter the BCA)
carryover that was available in FY2015 and FY2016
established mechanisms to limit federal spending, as well as
expired unused.
ways to adjust those limits to accommodate certain priority
Figure 1. Calculating the Allowable Adjustment
spending. One of these mechanisms—a limited “allowable
(in billions of nominal dollars of budget authority)
adjustment” to discretionary spending limits to pay for the
congressionally designated costs of major disasters under
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act—represented a new approach to paying for
disaster relief. In the past, while some funding for disaster
costs had been included in annual appropriations measures
as part of the regular funding process, many of these costs
had been designated as emergency requirements and were
included in supplemental appropriations measures on an ad
hoc basis. This disaster relief designation allowed a limited
amount of additional appropriations for disaster costs into
the annual appropriations process, instead of relying on
emergency designations and supplemental appropriations
bills. The formula to calculate the size of the adjustment
was revised in 2018. Although the statutory authority for
the adjustment has expired, the FY2022 budget resolution
included an adjustment for disaster relief that continues to
effectively exempt such funding from spending limits
within the congressional budget process.
Calculating the Maximum Adjustment
The maximum size of the allowable adjustment, as defined
in 2 U.S.C. §901(b)(2)(D), was based on a modified 10-
year rolling average of disaster relief appropriations
annually reviewed and calculated by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB). To establish amounts for
the calculation prior to FY2012, OMB identified
appropriations associated with major disaster declarations.
For FY2012 and later years, OMB relied on explicit
congressional designations of appropriations as disaster
relief pursuant to the BCA. The top of Figure 1 shows the
appropriations amounts used for FY2001-FY2020 and the
allowable adjustments calculated for FY2012-FY2021.
The calculated average disregarded the high and low
funding years in the 10-year data set. If Congress did not
fully exercise the allowable adjustment, the unused portion
could be rolled forward into the next fiscal year—however,
in calculations for FY2012-FY2017, this “carryover”
expired if unused in the next fiscal year. The second part of
Figure 1 shows the calculation of the adjustment for
FY2017. Annual disaster relief budget authority totals used
for the FY2017 allowable adjustment are darkened.
The Effect of One-Year Carryover
A more detailed look at FY2012-FY2018 in the third part of
Figure 1 shows the impact of this one-year carryover.
While carryover allowed for slightly greater use of the
Source: CRS analysis of data from OMB sequestration reports.
allowable adjustment than the rolling average alone in
Notes: DRBA=Disaster Relief Budget Authority. Red arrows
indicate the value is beyond the scale. Total DRBA and emergency-
FY2013 and FY2017, the roughly $12 billion of additional
designated disaster relief in FY2018=$96.2 billion; FY2020=$57.5
billion; and FY2021=$69.3 billion.
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Calculation and Use of the Disaster Relief Allowable Adjustment
Changes to the Calculation
has gone to FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) as part of
The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, Division O, Section
the appropriations process.
102, modified the calculation of the maximum size of the
allowable adjustment in two ways: unused adjustment from
As Figure 2 shows, aside from the DRF (included as DHS),
prior fiscal years would no longer expire; and 5% of the
the disaster relief designation has been applied to
amount of emergency-designated disaster-related funding
appropriations for five other federal departments with roles
without a disaster relief designation would be added to the
in disaster response and recovery. Three appropriations to
allowable adjustment, starting with a revision of the
the Department of Agriculture have received such funding.
existing FY2018 calculation.
The Department of Defense funding listed includes three
separate accounts in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’
Originally, OMB’s allowable adjustment calculations did
Civil Works Program. Other recipients include Economic
not include the funding for major disasters after FY2012
Development Assistance programs at the Department of
that was designated as an emergency requirement. The red
Commerce, the Federal Highway Administration’s
markers in the first part of Figure 1 show the total disaster
Emergency Relief Program at the Department of
relief funding level had the emergency-designated relief
Transportation; and the Community Development Fund at
been included. For example, Division B of P.L. 115-56 (the
the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
FY2017 supplemental appropriation after Hurricane
Harvey) included $15.25 billion in emergency-designated
Figure 2. Appropriations with Disaster Relief
funding, $14.8 billion of which was specifically for the
Designations by Departments, FY2012-FY2021
costs of major disasters. Yet the $14.8 billion of funding
(billions of nominal dollars of discretionary budget authority)
would not have contributed to the calculation of future
allowable adjustments because it carried an emergency
designation, rather than the disaster relief designation.
This was not an isolated occurrence: in 6 of the 10 fiscal
years covered by the BCA, more than $173 billion in
emergency-designated spending pursuant to major disasters
was appropriated above the allowable adjustment for
disaster relief. Section 102 allowed 5% of emergency-
designated disaster relief provided after FY2011 to be
added to the allowable adjustment.
Due to these changes, FY2018’s allowable adjustment was
revised upward by $1.855 billion (5% of the $37.101 billion
in emergency-designated disaster relief after FY2011 to that
point). This new factor, coupled with high levels of disaster
relief associated with catastrophic disasters and COVID-19,
Source: CRS analysis of data from appropriations legislation.
reversed a declining trend in the allowable adjustment.
OMB calculated the final FY2021 allowable adjustment to
Did the Allowable Adjustment Work?
be $17.385 billion (summing $8.691 billion from the 10-
If the intent was to reduce the level of spending on
year average with $8.594 billion from emergency-
disasters, it can be argued that it was not successful—
designated disaster relief).
disaster spending is largely linked to the relief statutes in
place and the level of disaster activity. There is little
After the Budget Control Act
evidence that in the post-WWII era any type of budget
The statutory adjustment ended with the expiration of the
controls significantly constrained U.S. disaster relief
BCA discretionary budget caps in FY2021. In its FY2022
spending. If the intent was to bring disaster spending into
budget request, however, the Biden Administration
the annual appropriations process for greater inclusion in
proposed extending special budgetary treatment for disaster
the debate and to reduce the demand for supplemental
relief. Subsequently, the FY2022 budget resolution
appropriations, it can be argued that it was a success.
included an adjustment for disaster relief that continues to
Should the Calculation Use Different Data?
effectively exempt such funding from spending limits
Accounting for federal spending on disasters with precision
within the congressional budget process. OMB released
is difficult due to a lack of data. If Congress seeks to link a
estimates of the adjustment’s allowable size for FY2022
future adjustment more closely to the actual costs of major
and FY2023 as part of the budget requests ($18.9 billion
disasters, it may require more authoritative agency
and $20.1 billion, respectively) but did not release detailed
reporting on disaster-related spending.
calculations or final amounts.
For More Information
Frequent Adjustment Questions
For more information on the DRF and the history of U.S.
disaster relief, see CRS Report R45484, The Disaster Relief
How Has the Adjustment Been Used?
Fund: Overview and Issues, by William L. Painter.
Of the more than $104 billion in discretionary spending
covered by the disaster relief allowable adjustment, 93%
William L. Painter, Specialist in Homeland Security and
Appropriations
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Calculation and Use of the Disaster Relief Allowable Adjustment
IF10720
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