HR0402 LRB099 11915 GRL 34113 r
1		HOUSE RESOLUTION
2		WHEREAS, The November 17, 2013 tornado outbreak was the
3		deadliest and costliest in Illinois to occur in the month of
4		November and fourth largest for the State overall; and
5		WHEREAS, Severe weather during the tornado outbreak caused
6		over 100 injuries and 11 fatalities, 8 of which were tornado
7		related; and
8		WHEREAS, With damage estimated at approximately $1.6
9		billion, the tornado outbreak became the seventh weather event
10		and fifth tornado outbreak in the United States to accrue over
11		$1 billion in damage that year; and
12		WHEREAS, Tornadoes alone were responsible for $1.067
13		billion in damage, with the EF4 tornado that struck Washington,
14		Illinois accounting for $935 million of the total; and
15		WHEREAS, On January 9, 2014, the Federal Emergency
16		Management Agency notified the State that it was denying a $6.1
17		million request for local governments on the grounds that the
18		damage wasn't severe enough; this decision impacted Champaign,
19		Douglas, Grundy, Massac, Tazewell, Vermilion, Washington,
20		Wayne, and Woodford counties; and

HR0402 - 2 - LRB099 11915 GRL 34113 r
1		WHEREAS, The Federal Emergency Management Agency twice
2		denied disaster funding to Harrisburg after it was demolished
3		by tornadoes in 2012; and
4		WHEREAS, Illinois Senators Dick Durbin and Mark Kirk have
5		introduced the Fairness in Federal Disaster Declarations Act;
6		both senators say that the current system for delivering
7		federal disaster assistance funds discriminates against
8		smaller communities in states with large population centers;
9		therefore, be it
10		RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
11		NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
12		urge Congress to pass the Fairness in Federal Disaster
13		Declarations Act to ensure that Illinois residents who are
14		impacted by deadly and destructive weather receive the level of
15		assistance that they require; and be it further
16		RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
17		delivered to the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United
18		States House of Representatives, the Majority and Minority
19		Leaders of the United States Senate, and the members of the
20		Illinois congressional delegation.