PRINTER'S NO. 1136
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No. 145
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY WEBSTER, GIRAL, FREEMAN, MADDEN, VITALI, PROBST,
HILL-EVANS, MALAGARI, SANCHEZ, KHAN AND CEPEDA-FREYTIZ,
MARCH 25, 2025
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY
PREPAREDNESS, MARCH 25, 2025
A RESOLUTION
1 Directing the Joint State Government Commission to conduct a
2 study on the economic costs of flooding on residential homes
3 and businesses in this Commonwealth.
4 WHEREAS, Flooding causes billions of dollars of damage and
5 destroys thousands of homes all over the United States; and
6 WHEREAS, Flooding is the most common natural disaster in this
7 Commonwealth; and
8 WHEREAS, According to the Federal Emergency Management
9 Agency, just one inch of water can cause approximately $25,000
10 in damage to a home or business; and
11 WHEREAS, This Commonwealth has experienced at least three
12 major flooding events in the past 20 years, including Hurricane
13 Ivan in 2004, Tropical Storm Lee in 2011 and Hurricane Ida in
14 2021; and
15 WHEREAS, Hurricanes Ivan and Ida, along with Tropical Storm
16 Lee, caused a combined total of more than $600 million in
17 property damage; and
 1 WHEREAS, In this Commonwealth, 24 counties have an average of
2 one flood event per year; and
3 WHEREAS, There is no singular agency or entity that tracks
4 and logs property damage done to residential homes and
5 businesses as a result of flood damage; and
6 WHEREAS, It is important to know how much flooding-related
7 damage has been done and where the damage has typically occurred
8 so that the Commonwealth may better target future prevention and
9 relief efforts; therefore be it
10 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives direct the Joint
11 State Government Commission to conduct a study on the economic
12 costs of flooding on residential homes and businesses in this
13 Commonwealth; and be it further
14 RESOLVED, That the study:
15 (1) Focus primarily on data available for the past 20
16 years.
17 (2) Identify trends in the costs, locations and types of
18 damage flooding causes.
19 (3) Include recommendations on how the Commonwealth can
20 better track and log property damage from flooding.
21 (4) Include recommendations on how the Commonwealth can
22 better target future flooding-related prevention and relief
23 efforts;
24 and be it further
25 RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission issue a
26 report of its findings and recommendations and submit the report
27 to the General Assembly no later than 12 months after the
28 adoption of this resolution.
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