Press Release, ERA Initiative

ERA Endorses PREPARE Act – Bill Would Improve Preparedness for Extreme Weather Events

December 19, 2019
Louisa Hart
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The EPDM Roofing Association (ERA), the trade association representing the manufacturers of EPDM single-ply roofing products and their suppliers, has joined 50 other leading public and private organizations to support passage of the PREPARE Act. This legislation is designed to incorporate resilience into the built environment by focusing Federal efforts on pre disaster mitigation before a devastating event occurs.

“ERA endorses this legislation as an essential initiative to ensure prioritization of federal initiatives in dealing with our changing climate,” said Jared Blum, Executive Director of ERA.
“Our members stand ready to participate in the construction of resilient buildings that can withstand frequent cataclysmic natural events, and quickly recover from their impact. The specific attributes of EPDM make it uniquely valuable in attaining resilience in a structure, and the availability of EPDM in both white and black provides energy efficiency in every climate.”

The PREPARE Act, introduced by U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright (D-PA), authorizes an interagency council

to provide recommendations on the best means of planning and preparing for extreme weather incidents. Additionally, according to Rep. Cartwright’s staff, the bill also strengthens each individual agency’s resiliency efforts and would provide state and local stakeholders with the best information available and best practices to help them formulate emergency preparation plans tailored to their local needs.

The PREPARE Act passed the House last Congress. It passed out of Committee this Congress and is expected to be head to the floor later this month or early next year.

Responding to the heightened interest in and concern over the resilience of the built environment, ERA last year launched its microsite, EpdmTheResilientRoof.org. The site details the need for resilience in roofing systems, and the specific attributes of EPDM that make it uniquely valuable in attaining resilience in a
structure. In addition, to add context to the information about EPDM products, the website provides a clearinghouse of sources about resilience, as well as an up-to-date roster of recent articles, blog posts, statements of professional organizations and other pertinent information about resilience.