Arkansas Agencies to Receive Federal Reimbursement
Release Date: September 21, 2005
Release Number: 3215-005
» More Information on Arkansas Hurricane Katrina
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Federal officials announced today more than $3.9 million in federal dollars has been obligated to reimburse Arkansas state and local agencies for hurricane costs, and that is just the beginning. State officials already have reimbursed state agencies, counties and local service providers $1.5 million which ultimately will be covered by the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The bulk of the obligated funding, $3 million, is earmarked for the Arkansas Department of Health & Human Services to provide public health, mental health and medical assistance for evacuees and emergency workers in Arkansas. Three-quarters of a million dollars has been obligated to cover the costs of sheltering evacuees in Arkansas. This amount will increase as the requests for reimbursement are received and processed.
State and local governments and designated agencies that provide services to evacuees from Hurricane Katrina are eligible for 100 percent reimbursement for costs associated with:
- mass food, shelter and transportation for evacuees;
- extended hours to enforce safety;
- emergency operation centers;
- emergency medical care; and
- emergency-related school costs.
Under the Public Assistance (PA) Program of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the state, local governments and certain private non-profit organizations are eligible to receive help with emergency measures.
In addition to the funds specifically obligated for Arkansas, FEMA also is paying to transport evacuees within Arkansas. In early September, FEMA paid for 110 buses to transport evacuees from Fort Chaffee to shelters and camps throughout the state. Today, FEMA has lined up 25 buses to transport more than 4,000 evacuees expected to arrive in Arkansas from Houston in the next few days.
FEMA prepares the nation for all hazards and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, trains first responders, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.
Last Modified: Tuesday, 07-Feb-2006 09:59:47