President Trump approved a Major Disaster Declaration for severe weather and flooding that impacted Texas communities in July, Governor Greg Abbott announced. Federal public assistance is now available in 19 counties damaged by the storms.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved its Public Assistance program, including assistance for emergency work and repair or replacement of disaster-damaged facilities, for 19 counties: Bandera, Crockett, Dimmit, Edwards, Frio, Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Kinney, La Salle, Mason, Maverick, Menard, Real, Sutton, Uvalde, Val Verde, and Zavala County.
The governor's request for Public Assistance for nine additional counties remains pending. Requests for FEMA's Individual Assistance program for 30 affected counties and for authorization of additional Hazard Mitigation Grant Program resources statewide also remain pending.
Individual Assistance funding helps cover temporary housing, emergency home repairs, uninsured personal property losses, disaster legal services, disaster unemployment assistance, and medical, dental, and funeral expenses caused by the disaster.
Texas officials continue to review damage information self-reported by residents through the state's Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool (iSTAT) damage survey. Impacted residents can submit information about damage to homes or businesses at damage.tdem.texas.gov.
Abbott said the state has extended SNAP replacement benefits for residents affected by flooding and issued a state disaster declaration, increasing the Texas State Emergency Operations Center to 24-hour operations at escalated response level.