Trump approves federal disaster funding for Frederick, Washington counties

June 25--Frederick city and county governments will be eligible to receive federal funds to assist with the recovery from last month's damaging floods, according to a White House press release.

President Donald Trump agreed with local and state officials that the flooding that occurred in Frederick and Washington counties from May 15 to May 19 constituted a major disaster for the region, according to the release issued Monday. City and county officials hosted state and federal emergency management assessors shortly after the floods, and Gov. Larry Hogan formally requested a presidential disaster declaration on June 15.

The list of requirements for a disaster declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act was a request for local governments to submit a damage cost estimate.

Monday's release did not specify a set amount of money that will be made available, and representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency responded to The Frederick News-Post's requests for clarification with a copy of a fact sheet about the Stafford Act.

Under the president's declaration, funding will be available to local governments and certain nonprofits "for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities," according to the release.

The announcement was accepted happily by city and county leaders Monday.

"My initial response was 'Yippee' because we did have over $6 million in damage to county infrastructure, roads and bridges, that we had to repair," County Executive Jan Gardner said. "... This means that we can recover at least 75 percent of our costs."

If approved further, local governments could qualify for an enhanced cost-share that would cover up to 90 percent of the costs and damage, according to the Stafford Act fact sheet.

Frederick Mayor Michael O'Connor agreed with Gardner, calling Monday's announcement a welcome surprise.

"Obviously we are pleased to see some recognition of the impacts of those storms and we look forward to additional information about how we can access the funds available for our recovery efforts," O'Connor said.

May's flooding caused more than $31.2 million in structural damage and close to $7 million in property loss, according to assessment forms submitted to the county by residents and business owners. The Stafford Act does not cover reimbursement or funding for private residents or businesses.

Follow Jeremy Arias on Twitter: @Jarias_Prime.

___

(c)2018 The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.)

Visit The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.) at www.fredericknewspost.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.