Tribal Members among Those Getting Help with Disaster Recovery
Release Date: November 20, 2007
Release Number: 1731-043
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PASADENA, Calif. -- Federal and state disaster recovery assistance programs are helping Californians with their recovery from the recent wildfires, and tribal lands in the disaster-declared counties are part of this big picture.
An Oct. 24 presidential declaration opened the door to both individual assistance and public assistance in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, San Diego, and Ventura counties, including tribal lands within these counties.
Financial or direct housing assistance is available to all eligible persons in these counties through the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Individuals and Households Program (IHP). The housing element of this program helps with rental assistance or lodging expenses, and home repairs or alternate housing when the primary residence is permanently uninhabitable.
Another part of FEMA's IHP program helps with personal property losses such as clothing, furnishings, appliances and certain clean-up items; repair or replacement of a vehicle, or additional costs for public transportation; medical, dental and funeral expenses; and other disaster-related expenses such as moving and storage costs.
The California Department of Social Services administers a State Supplemental Grant Program to provide additional funds to those who have received the maximum grant assistance from FEMA, but who still have eligible losses.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has a social services emergency grant in place specifically for Native Americans. This grant provides up to $1,000 for tribal members who were evacuated and had to live off tribal lands. More than 800 members from the 11 tribes evacuated received help through this emergency grant program.
"Most of those evacuated did not have an opportunity to take essential items with them," said James Fletcher, BIA Superintendent for Southern California. "BIA emergency grants helped provide for a variety of interim needs until those evacuated could return home."
Access to federal and state disaster assistance is only one phone call or a couple of online clicks away: the toll-free registration number is 1-800-621-FEMA (3362), or TTY 1-800-462-7585. Online registration is provided at www.fema.gov.
FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.
Last Modified: Tuesday, 20-Nov-2007 14:36:12