Federal Government's Spending and Tax Actions in Response to the 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes

摘要

As requested by the House Budget Committee, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reviewed the resources provided by the federal government in response to Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. Such resources have been made available mainly through supplemental appropriations, but also through mandatory spending for flood insurance as well as tax relief and preferences. A precise accounting of expenditures is not readily available; nevertheless, this report analyzes spending and effects on revenues to date and estimates future outlays on the basis of the available data. As of July 2007, the Congress and the President had provided $94.8 billion in supplemental appropriations for the immediate relief and long-term recovery of the Gulf Coast region following the 2005 hurricanes. In addition, policymakers had increased the borrowing authority of the National Flood Insurance Program, enabling it to pay $17 billion in claims related to the three storms. Furthermore, in CBOs and the Joint Committee on Taxations (JCTs) estimation, provisions affecting the tax code have reduced revenues between 2006 and 2015 by $16 billion.