FEMA disaster assistance may provide funds for basic home repairs, rental of temporary housing and other uninsured expenses resulting from the storms and flooding that began April 26 in Texas. FEMA assistance is not a replacement for insurance.

Housing assistance

· Home repair or replacement: Money to help you repair or replace your home damaged by the disaster. For example, this may include addressing mold caused by the disaster, or money for hazard mitigation measures. Mitigation measures are actions you can take when making repairs that will help reduce the amount of damage to your home in future disasters. The money can also help with pre-existing damage to parts of your home where the disaster caused further damage.

· Accessibility needs: Money to help survivors with a disability with specific repairs to make sure their home is accessible, such as an exterior ramp, grab bars, and paved path to the home entrance. Repairs can be made when these items are damaged. Improvements can be made when those features were not present prior to the disaster, and they are needed due to a pre-existing disability, or a disability caused by the disaster.

· Privately-owned roads, bridges, docks: Money for survivors whose only access to their home has been damaged by the disaster.

· Rental assistance: Money you can use to rent housing if you are displaced from your home because of the disaster.

Sheltering assistance

· Transitional sheltering assistance (TSA): FEMA pays the cost of room, taxes and non-refundable pet fees directly to participating hotels and motels. Pet fees will only be paid up to the approved limit of assistance for individual rooms. TSA may be available if you cannot return to your disaster-damaged home and your housing needs cannot be met by insurance, shelters or rental assistance provided by FEMA or another agency.

Other needs assistance

· Serious needs: Money to help you pay for lifesaving and life-sustaining items, including water, food, first aid, prescriptions, infant formula, breastfeeding supplies, diapers, consumable medical supplies, durable medical equipment, personal hygiene items and fuel for transportation.

· Displacement: Money to help with immediate housing needs if you cannot return to your home because of the disaster. The money can be used to stay in a hotel, with family and friends or for other options while you look for temporary housing.

· Personal property: Money to help you repair or replace appliances, room furnishings, a personal or family computer damaged by the disaster, books, uniforms, tools, additional computers and other items required for school or work, including self-employment.

· Medical/dental: Money to help you pay for medical expenses because the disaster caused an injury or illness. This money can also be used to help replace medical/dental equipment, breastfeeding equipment, or prescribed medicine damaged or lost because of the disaster.

· Funeral: Money to help you pay for funeral or reburial expenses caused by the disaster.

· Child care: Money to help you pay for increased or new child care expenses caused by the disaster.

· Assistance for miscellaneous items: Money to help you pay for specific items, (such as a generator, dehumidifier, chainsaw, etc.) that you purchased or rented after the disaster to assist with recovery. The miscellaneous items may be used for gaining access to your property or for cleaning efforts caused by the disaster.

· Transportation: Money to help you repair or replace a vehicle damaged by the disaster when you don’t have another vehicle you can use.

· Moving and storage expenses: Money to help you move and store personal property from your home to prevent additional damage, usually while you are making repairs to your home or moving to a new place due to the disaster.

· Group flood insurance policy: If your home is in a Special Flood Hazard Area and you have flood damage caused by the disaster, FEMA may purchase a Group Flood Insurance Policy on your behalf that gives you three years of coverage.

· Clean and aanitize: Money to help you pay for minor damage caused by the disaster to prevent additional loss and potential health or safety concerns. This money is only available in certain disasters if you had property damage but were not eligible for Home Repair or Replacement Assistance because FEMA determined you could still live safely in your home.

Renters can apply for FEMA assistance

FEMA Individual Assistance is available to renters, including students, as well as homeowners in affected counties with uninsured losses from the storms, tornadoes and flooding that began April 26.

FEMA grants can help pay for temporary housing. Renters may also qualify for financial help to replace essential personal property, medical and dental, transportation, childcare, moving and storage and other uninsured expenses.

Citizenship and FEMA eligibility

FEMA is committed to helping all eligible Texas households recover from the storms and flooding that began April 26, including U.S. citizens, non-

You or a member of your household must be U.S. citizen, non-U.S. citizen national or qualified non-citizen to apply. Families with diverse immigration status, including adults who are undocumented, can apply as long as at least one family member is a citizen, non-U.S. citizen national or qualified non-citizen. For instance, if you are undocumented and have a child under 18 who is a U.S. citizen and lived in the household during the time of the disaster, you can apply for FEMA assistance.

A qualified non-citizen includes:

§ Legal permanent resident (“green card” holder)

§ An asylee, refugee, or a non-citizen whose deportation is being withheld

§ Non-citizen paroled into the U.S. for at least one year

§ Non-citizen granted conditional entry (per law in effect prior to April 1, 1980)

§ Cuban/Haitian entrant

§ Certain non-citizens subjected to extreme cruelty or who have been a victim of a severe form of human trafficking, including people with a “T” or “U” visa.

For adults who apply on behalf of a minor child, the child must have a Social Security number and live with the parent or guardian who applies. The parent or guardian will not have to provide any information on their own immigration status or sign any documents regarding their status.

The minor child must be under age 18 as of the first day of the disaster incident period, April 26, 2024.

Applying for assistance

Texans have several ways to apply for FEMA assistance: § Go online to disasterassistance.gov/. § Download the FEMA App for mobile devices.

§ Call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362 any day from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. CT. Help is available in most languages. If you use a relay service, such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service.

§ Visit any Disaster Recovery Center. For operating hours and addresses, go online to fema.gov/drc.