WASHINGTON—The American Insurance Assn. has praised a U.S. House committee for approving a bill to help fund state and local efforts to avoid catastrophes and recover from disasters.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved H.R. 3377, the Disaster Response, Recovery, and Mitigation Enhancement Act of 2009, this week.

The AIA said Thursday that the bill would give states incentives to abide by modern building codes and mitigate losses caused by a catastrophe.

The legislation would grant predisaster mitigation funding to local and state authorities to enact and enforce statewide building codes and increase post-event aid for states that adopt such codes.

“By taking action before the catastrophe, homeowners and federal and state governments can mitigate losses with the adoption and enforcement of building codes,” Leigh Ann Pusey, president of Washington-based AIA, said in a statement. “This bill not only promotes public safety but also prevents needless losses as a result of natural catastrophes.”