Governor Abbott Announces Approval Of Federal Disaster Assistance For 17 Texas Counties

TEXAS, July 13 - July 13, 2024 | Austin, Texas | Press Release

Governor Greg Abbott announced that the federal government has updated the Major Disaster Declaration for Hurricane Beryl to include 17 Texas counties now eligible for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Individual Assistance program. Texas may request additional counties for federal assistance based on completion of damage assessments in impacted communities.

“This approval to include 17 counties for FEMA assistance is a crucial step forward to help Texans and communities recover and rebuild after Hurricane Beryl,” said Governor Abbott. “We continue working with our federal, state, and local partners to assess damages as part of Texas' ongoing response to ensure all necessary resources, funding, and assistance are available to support impacted communities. Texans who sustained damage to their home or business are encouraged to report it using the Texas Division of Emergency Management’s iSTAT damage survey to help determine if counties are eligible for financial assistance. I thank all the state and local officials, emergency response personnel, and first responders who continue to work tirelessly to help their fellow Texans in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl.”

Qualifying Texans in the following counties are eligible for FEMA’s Individual Assistance program: Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Nacogdoches, Orange, Polk, San Jacinto, Walker, and Wharton. Texans can apply for FEMA disaster assistance online at disasterassistance.gov or by calling 800-621-3362.

FEMA’s Individual Assistance program funding assists with expenses such as temporary housing, emergency home repairs, uninsured and underinsured personal property losses, disaster legal services, disaster unemployment assistance, and medical, dental, and funeral expenses caused by the disaster.

A request from Texas to the federal government to reopen the incident period and instead designate it as “continuing” amid the ongoing response and recovery to Hurricane Beryl remains pending with FEMA.

Texans are urged to submit online damage surveys to report damage to homes and businesses using the Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool (iSTAT) damage survey. iSTAT surveys can be filled out in English and Spanish by visiting damage.tdem.texas.gov and clicking “July 7th - Ongoing Hurricane/Tropical Storm Beryl.”

Information entered into the iSTAT damage survey helps emergency management officials identify immediate resource needs and aids in determining whether the state meets federal requirements for various forms of federal disaster assistance. Reporting damage through the iSTAT tool is a voluntary activity, is not a substitute for reporting damage to your insurance company, and does not guarantee disaster relief assistance. Tutorial videos in English and Spanish explaining how to fill out iSTAT surveys are available at damage.tdem.texas.gov.

Texas continues to support the needs of local officials and distribute truckloads of commodities to affected areas, including generators, tarps, fuel, ready-to-eat meals, water, and ice. To date, the state has distributed more than 3,677,000 bottles of water, more than 472,800 ready-to-eat meals, and more than 127,700 bags of ice to communities impacted by Hurricane Beryl.

The State of Texas continues to take action to provide all available resources to help support local communities from the impacts of Hurricane Beryl, including: