Public Agency Disaster Assistance Program

The Public Assistance Program enables local and state governments, special purpose districts, private nonprofit organizations, and Indian tribes to recover from the immediate and longterm impacts of disasters. The program provides state and federal funds to eligible applicants for a portion of the costs for the repair and restoration of damaged public facilities, as well as to reimburse the agencies for a portion of the costs associated with emergency work and debris removal due to the disaster.

As soon as possible after the disaster declaration, the state conducts meetings for government agencies, special purpose districts, private nonprofit organizations, and Indian Tribes that suffered damage. At the meetings, information is presented about the reimbursement of local costs for debris removal, emergency protective measures, and the repair to damaged public facilities such as roads, bridges, buildings and utilities. Public disaster assistance applications must be submitted to the state within 30 days of the declaration of a Presidential Disaster. Public disaster assistance regulations are found in 44 CFR 206 and Public Law 93288, as amended.

Following the Public Assistance information meetings, applicants work with state and federal staff to prepare repair worksheets for each damaged facility. The worksheets describe, in detail, needed repairs to return the facility back to its predisaster condition and provide a cost estimate.

After the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved repair projects for funding, repairs may be started. It is the responsibility of the agency that owns the damaged public facility to make the repairs. Funding is provided through the Emergency Management Division with the federal government reimbursing 75 percent of the eligible costs and typically the state and affected agency equally sharing the remaining 25 percent.

Federal and state officials prepared over 7,200 project estimates on public facilities damaged in the 1995 winter storms, February 1996 flood, 1996 winter storms, March 1997 flood, May 1998 flood, and the Kelso Landslide. Federal and state funding to restore or repair damaged facilities in these disasters exceeded $238.4 million. The Nisqually Earthquake has involved more than 1,900 projects with an estimated cost of $83 million. Currently, state and local staff are working on 500 projects for the October 2003 floods, 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuees, and the Winter Storms 2006 events with estimated eligible damages of approximately $21.5 million.

For more information, please contact the Public Assistance Administrator, at (253) 5127078, or email d.voss@emd.wa.gov.