AUSTIN — Following the completion of the 86th Session of the Texas Legislature, Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush is touting passage of several bills improving our state’s disaster recovery process, including many priorities recommended by the Texas General Land Office (GLO) in its after-action report, Hurricane Harvey: Texas at Risk.

“Hurricane Harvey was a storm of historic proportions, devastating thousands of families in Coastal Texas with record rainfall and hurricane-force winds,” said Commissioner Bush. “It is not a matter of if Texas will be devastated by another hurricane. It is a matter of when. The Texas Legislature made tremendous advancements in improving coordination and data sharing, providing property tax relief for affected homeowners, and removing red tape for survivors. I worked closely with Governor Greg Abbott and leaders in both the Senate and House on passage of these bills that will ensure families and communities are better prepared to withstand and recover from the inevitable next storm.”

The GLO report, Hurricane Harvey: Texas at Risk, identified specific deficiencies, such as flood coordination and planning, disclosure of property flood history, data sharing across disaster agencies, and the lack of pre-positioned contracts for emergency services, as well as solutions. Recommendations addressed by the Texas Legislature include:

• Engaging the business community in disaster recovery discussions
• Improving flood coordination and planning
• Enhancing the training of recovery managers
• Disclosure of a property’s flood history for renters and homeowners
• Creation of a public information campaign for hurricane preparedness
• Pre-positioning contracts for emergency services
• Suspension of local rules and regulations after a disaster that slow down recovery