On Tuesday, acting Governor Dan Patrick announced that President Biden approved his request for federal assistance through Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) programs, aimed at mitigating future disasters, and Public Assistance (PA) for state and local governments.
Yesterday, acting Governor Patrick requested Individual Assistance through FEMA, which is intended to meet the basic needs of households for uninsured or underinsured necessary expenses and serious needs.
I led a letter with a bipartisan group of 19 Texas Members urging the President to approve the request immediately.
Read the letter below:
The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear Mr. President:
As members of the Texas congressional delegation, we write with an urgent plea to expedite approval of Texas’ request for Individual Assistance (IA) under the FEMA program. Specifically, our goal is to amplify the formal application provided to your Administration by acting Governor Patrick yesterday and underscores the speed by which is needed. Many residents in and around the Houston area have been without power for several days with heat indexes exceeding 100 degrees daily. They urgently need the resources FEMA can provide.
We would be remiss not to express our appreciation for your major disaster declaration earlier this week (Tuesday, July 9, 2024) approving federal assistance in the form of Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) programs (targeted toward the mitigation of future disasters) and for Public Assistance (PA) to state and local governments. In our experience, these programs have been tremendously beneficial for the recovery of our communities in the aftermath of major disasters, such as the recent storm, Hurricane Beryl.
More immediately, though, the vast majority of our constituents require Individual Assistance (IA), as they are much more vulnerable—on an individual basis—in their respective homes, while their communities focus on the recovery and rehabilitation of their municipalities at large. As stated in acting Governor Patrick’s letter (copy attached), Texans experienced damage from “storm surge, flooding, tropical storm force winds, and tornadoes followed by continued extreme heat and power outages, with over two million power outages at the peak.” [emphasis added] Given the ongoing nature of the post-disaster recovery—particularly as residents attempt to deal with extreme heat while widespread power outages preclude the use of air-conditioning—we write to underscore the urgency of Texas’ request.
Respectfully, we request the same speed of response that your Administration provided in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Beryl’s landfall on Monday, July 8.
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This afternoon, I am pleased to announce that the President has approved the request from Acting Governor Patrick for Individual Assistance under FEMA to support our friends, family, and neighbors in need. I have attached a Fact Sheet detailing what Individual Assistance includes.
Fact Sheets #1, #2, and #3
Individuals in Brazoria, Galveston, Jefferson, Orange, Counties can apply with FEMA the following ways:
- Apply online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov.
- Constituents may call the application phone number at 1-800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585).
