FEMA News

FEMA to Texans with Post-Harvey Group Flood Insurance: Plan for Standard Coverage

Following Hurricane Harvey in late August 2017, the Federal Emergency Management Agency issued three-year group flood insurance policies (GFIPs) to nearly 7,000 households in Texas that were impacted by the storm. FEMA says those policyholders need to plan now for …

FEMA Administrator: We Want California Wildfire Costs From PG&E, Not Victims

A regional director for the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Monday said FEMA is going after California utility giant Pacific Gas & Electric for $3.9 billion owed the government due to wildfires that PG&E was found to have caused in …

Aid Request for 6 South Dakota Counties Rejected by FEMA

South Dakota has lost an appeal for federal funding to rebuild from tornadoes and floods that hit six counties in August. The Federal Emergency Management Agency ruled that the damage was not severe enough to qualify for federal funding and …

Vermont Seeks Storm Damage Assessment of Private Property

Vermont is asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assess damage to private property from a storm beginning on Halloween to determine if the state qualifies for federal aid for homeowners and renters. The state says 323 Vermont homeowners and …

FEMA Envisions High-Tech Flood Insurance Program Using Parametrics, Blockchain

Blockchain technology and parametric insurance should be included in the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s toolbox as it strives to close the nation’s flood insurance coverage gap, according to a draft report by an advisory committee that makes recommendations to the …

Florida Woman Found Guilty of Hurricane Irma Relief Fraud

A Florida woman has been convicted of fraudulently obtaining Hurricane Irma disaster relief money. Court records show that 37-year-old Karen Latrice Houston was convicted by a jury in Tampa federal court this week of three counts of theft of government …

Feds Say Florida Officials Bilked FEMA Out of Hurricane Money

Two former officials of a Florida city are charged with conspiring with two businesses to bilk the federal government out of $5 million in Hurricane Michael cleanup money, the U.S. attorney’s office announced Tuesday. U.S. Attorney Lawrence Keefe said the …

Hurricane Michael: One Year Later, Federal Aid for Recovery Totals Nearly $2B

Since Hurricane Michael made landfall Oct. 10, 2018, federal assistance for recovery in the 18 affected counties is nearly $1.9 billion, including FEMA grants, National Flood Insurance Program payments and U.S. Small Business Administration loans, according to a statement from …

$20M in Flood Work Still Not Funded in Colorado

The federal government hasn’t funded $20 million in work to fix roads damaged by flooding in a northern Colorado county nearly six years ago. The Fort Collins Coloradoan reports that a 2018 law that changed how the Federal Emergency Management …

FEMA Chief Urges New Culture of More Individual Responsibility for Disaster Mitigation

Americans must assume more responsibility for protecting themselves from the rising toll of natural disasters, the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency warned. “Most people think, ‘I see it on TV, it’ll never happen to me — I’m not …