RICHMOND, VA — FEMA has approved a Major Disaster Declaration for Buchanan and Tazewell Counties, after extreme rainfall events from July 13 – July 14, 2022 resulted in devastating flash floods and landslides. The declaration provides federal support through Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation grant programs to assist in recovery efforts and protect against future disasters.

The Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) will hold Applicant Briefings in the coming weeks to help inform potential grant applicants of the process for applying for and receiving federal grants. Applicants will have 30 days to register and submit a Request for Public Assistance (RPA) in the FEMA Grants Portal.

With this approval, local, state, and private non-profit organizations with infrastructure damage or emergency and debris removal expenditures, may apply to FEMA for reimbursement of 75 percent of eligible costs. The FEMA Public Assistance program could take years to be fully reimbursed for disaster related expenditures. The Virginia Department of Emergency Management is the administrative agency for this grant program.

With this approval, Virginia will receive funding for projects to reduce future flooding. This program could take 5-7 years to implement. The application phase of this program is 12 months, and then FEMA may take 6-18 months to award the project based on environmental and historic review compliance or technical feasibility review. Federal assistance is approved at 75 percent of the total eligible project costs. Local governments and state agencies will apply through the Virginia Department of Emergency Management as the administrating agency.

A decision on the potential award of Individual Assistance is still pending.

For more information, please visit https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-us/suite#:~:text=information%2C%20please%20visit-,VDEM%E2%80%99s%20grants%20page.,-%23%23%23