Smith on House Floor: Bill to Expedite Wildfire Disaster Assistance Heads to President’s Desk

Today, Congressman Adrian Smith (NE-03) took to the House Floor to celebrate the House passage of the Emergency Conservation Program Improvement Act (S.629)and it being sent to President Trump's desk.

As Nebraska's agriculture producers work to rebuild following this year's devastating wildfires, this legislation would help expedite access to critical federal disaster assistance when it is needed most. With Smith's support, the bill is led by Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Congresswoman Julia Letlow (LA-05).

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Following is a transcript of Smith's remarks as prepared for delivery:

M. Speaker,

I rise today to celebrate the House passage of the Emergency Conservation Program Improvement Actand to thank Congresswoman Letlow and Senator Fischer for their leadership in sending this important legislation to the president's desk.

Wildfires have wreaked havoc across Nebraska's Third District, with more than 860,000 acres burned this year alone. Now more than ever, Nebraskans deserve relief, not additional burdens.

I was proud to cosponsor this commonsense piece of legislation, which will ensure that the Emergency Conservation Program eligibility can be triggered faster in response to a natural disaster-like the wildfires in my district-and provide much-needed flexibility for producers as they begin to rebuild.

Nebraskans are resilient, but they shouldn't have to navigate unnecessary red tape while recovering from disaster.

Today, with the final passage of this bill we took a meaningful step towards providing producers with the timely support they need to rebuild, restore, and recover. I look forward to seeing President Trump sign it into law.