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Harvard Law School

As climate change drives more frequent and severe environmental hazards, communities are increasingly forced to reckon with their current and future disaster risk. Disasters threaten the financial stability of households and communities. Low-income households are at greater risk of losing home equity from price deflation, and municipalities that heavily rely on property taxes are vulnerable to budgetary shortfalls. These costs can be compounded by policies that incentivize rebuilding in high-risk areas, leading to repetitive losses and increased burdens on municipal, state, and federal governments responsible for emergency relief and recovery.

Under President Biden, federal agencies have issued millions under the Inflation Reduction Act to incentivize long-term resilience and adaptation efforts. These early efforts are now revealing a host of implementation challenges, including the need for enhanced interagency coordination, technical assistance, and capacity-building. In this panel featuring federal, state, and nonprofit practitioners, we will discuss how communities across the US are navigating these challenges, and where we go from here.