A hurricane approaching the North American continent is visible above Earth. Credit: Mike Mareen/Adobe Stock
When a hurricane or other natural disaster hits, public and private nonprofit entities often look to the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) for financial assistance. But obtaining and keeping FEMA Public Assistance is not simple. With so many rules, regulations, and policies applicable to funding, applicants frequently find themselves fighting to justify eligibility of costs. We surveyed our team to identify the issues they’ve seen most frequently arise for Public Assistance applicants over the last year. We compiled their responses into the following three tips for obtaining and keeping FEMA reimbursements (we provided similar tips last year, available here):
Ensure you have performed and documented pre-disaster maintenance. Recently, it seems FEMA is denying costs left and right because applicants cannot show that the damage was not pre-existing or was not the result of poor maintenance. Do your roads have cracks or potholes?
