Moskowitz, Florida Colleagues Introduce READY Account Act to Bolster Disaster Preparedness Among Florida Homeowners
WASHINGTON, DC — Congressman Jared Moskowitz recently joined colleagues in Florida’s congressional delegation to introduce the Residential Emergency Asset Accumulation Deferred Taxation Yield (READY) Account Act, bipartisan legislation to empower Florida homeowners to create tax-free savings accounts for disaster preparedness.
“Disaster preparedness saves lives, and it can help reduce recovery costs when disasters hit the homes of hardworking Florida families,” said Congressman Moskowitz. “As Florida’s former Emergency Management Director, I’m proud to lead the READY Account Act in the U.S. House, because we should provide Florida families as many tools as possible to better prepare their homes for disaster and quickly recover when the unthinkable happens. For families in Florida and across the nation, this commonsense bill will lower sky-high insurance costs, help them stay ready, and keep their hard-earned money in their pockets.”
“In the midst of devastating California wildfires and after catastrophic hurricanes in Florida, the American people have seen the terrible destruction caused by severe weather events and how critical it is to prepare before disaster strikes. I am proud to introduce the READY Account Act to help American families invest in resilience and to mitigate the costs of disaster recovery projects,” said Congresswoman Laurel Lee. “This bill will create a tax-free savings account for investing in storm mitigation home improvements and disaster response costs, similar to a Health Savings Account. I always encourage my constituents to prepare before a disaster strikes, and a READY account will make it easier for families to strengthen their homes against damage from a storm or natural disaster.”
Under this bill, families would be able to establish a “READY” account, similar to a Health Savings Account (HSA), for at least twelve disaster mitigation measures used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). These include strengthening the connection of the roof to the home; installing impact-resistant windows and doors; and elevating the structure or constructing floodwalls to mitigate against flooding, among other measures.
The bipartisan READY Account Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Moskowitz and Congresswoman Laurel Lee (FL-15) and has support from Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, the Florida Insurance Council, the American Property Casualty Insurance Association, and the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies.
In Congress, Moskowitz has been a leading voice for nonpartisan emergency response and a fully-funded FEMA. Before FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund became depleted, Moskowitz led legislation in 2023 and 2024 that would have proactively replenished the fund, and he has been outspoken about the need to improve disaster response and invest in programs like FEMA’s Fire Management Assistance Grant in the wake of ongoing wildfires in California. Moskowitz is also an advocate of moving FEMA out of the Department of Homeland Security and returning it to its original status as an independent agency. He is co-chair of the Bipartisan Congressional Disaster Preparedness and Recovery Caucus, and he served as Florida’s Emergency Management Director under Gov. Ron DeSantis before joining Congress.