FEMA Awards $1.3 Million to Jackson County for Hurricane Michael Expenses

Tallahassee, Florida — FEMA has approved $1,280,925 to the state of Florida to assist Jackson County with reimbursement for the costs of emergency protective measures following Hurricane Michael under FEMA’s Public Assistance Program.

FEMA funds will reimburse Jackson County for actions it took to remove immediate threats to public health and safety, such as search and rescue, evacuation and sheltering, and installing emergency road signs within the county following the October 2018 storm.

The grant is funded by FEMA’s Public Assistance program, an essential source of funding for communities recovering from a federally declared disaster or emergency. The Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) works with FEMA during all phases of the program and conducts final reviews of FEMA-approved projects.

Applicants work directly with FEMA to develop projects and scopes of work. Following approvals by FEMA and FDEM, FEMA obligates funding for the project.

Once a project is obligated by FEMA, FDEM works closely with the applicant to finalize the grant and begin making payments. FDEM has implemented new procedures designed to ensure grant funding is provided to local communities as quickly as possible.

This project is funded at 100 percent federal cost share.

FEMA’s Public Assistance program provides grants to state, tribal, and local governments, and certain types of private non-profit organizations, including houses of worship, so that  communities can quickly respond to and recover from major disasters or emergencies.