Skip to main content

Thompson and Rooney Announce Reintroduction of Bipartisan PHONE Act

February 20, 2019

Bill allows residents in disaster-impacted areas to keep phone number during rebuilding process

Washington – Today Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-05) and Rep. Francis Rooney (FL-19) announced they have reintroduced the PHONE Act, bipartisan legislation that allows residents who lost their homes to natural disasters to retain their phone numbers at no cost to them during the rebuilding process. Thompson's district was impacted by the Atlas and Tubbs fires in October 2017 and the Mendocino Complex fires in August 2018. Rooney's district was impacted by Hurricane Irma in September 2017.

"Survivors of natural disasters deserve to know that the Federal government is doing everything possible to assist them during the recovery process. Preserving landline phone numbers during the rebuilding process is one piece of normalcy that we help offer our constituents who have suffered these terrible disasters," said Thompson. "After the October 2017 wildfires, I heard from constituents whose homes were destroyed and wanted to preserve the phone numbers that had been theirs for decades. I am proud to have this legislative solution for them and other survivors like them and will continue working to bring every federal dollar and resource to bear for my constituents and all survivors as they work to rebuild."

"The PHONE Act is common sense bipartisan legislation and will ensure that as victims of natural disasters go through the long and painful process of rebuilding following loss of property, they will have one less burden to bear," said Rooney. "The most recent hurricanes that left portions of Florida severely damaged are a stark reminder of the need to find every way possible to assist these victims."

You can click here to learn more about H.R. 1289.

Congressman Mike Thompson is proud to represent California's 5th Congressional District, which includes all or part of Contra Costa, Lake, Napa, Solano and Sonoma Counties. He is a senior member of the House Committee on Ways and Means where he chairs the Subcommittee on Tax Policy. Rep. Thompson is Chairman of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force. He is also Co-Chair of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Wine Caucus and a member of the fiscally-conservative Blue Dog Coalition.