NIBS-led Congressional Briefing highlights urgent need for resilient infrastructure investment, showing $13 savings per $1 spent on resilience measures.
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| Experts highlight the FIREWALL Act and evidence-based retrofitting policies as key to protecting communities from costly disasters in a 2025 Congressional Briefing. Image: CH |
Washington, USA — June 27, 2025:
On Thursday, the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) led a critical Congressional Briefing hosted by The High-Performance Building Coalition, focusing on the urgent need to invest in resilient infrastructure to safeguard communities nationwide. The event featured the release of the NIBS Consultative Council’s 2025 Moving Forward report, which reveals that every dollar invested in resilience yields up to $13 in savings from avoided disaster losses.
The report underscores how aligning incentives, investments, and benefits can create improved outcomes for lives, livelihoods, and communities. Experts on the panel shared evidence-based strategies for retrofitting buildings and public infrastructure to withstand future shocks, discussed policy pathways to strengthen community resilience, and highlighted bipartisan legislative efforts.
Among the legislation spotlighted was the FIREWALL Act (S. 1323), championed by Senators Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Tim Sheehy (R-MT), which proposes a new federal tax credit to promote community resilience efforts. The bipartisan bill was hailed as a key opportunity to reduce long-term disaster costs and enhance preparedness.
The panel brought together leaders from across the built environment, including George Guszcza, President and CEO of NIBS; Tom Smith, Executive Director of the American Society of Civil Engineers; Lisa Washington, Executive Director of the Design Build Institute of America; Aaron Davis, Deputy Executive Director of BuildStrong America; Aaron Levy, Vice President of the International Code Council; and Christina Beros, Legislative Aide to Senator Schiff.
With 27 billion-dollar disasters recorded in 2024 alone, the briefing highlighted a growing national imperative to proactively protect lives and property through resilience-focused legislation and investments. The experts emphasized that proactive measures could significantly reduce the staggering costs and damages caused by extreme weather and other disasters, positioning resilience as not only a safety issue but an economic imperative for the country’s future.