President Donald J. Trump declared that an emergency exists in the state of Texas and ordered federal assistance to supplement state and local response efforts due to the emergency conditions resulting from Tropical Storms Marco and Laura beginning on Aug. 23, 2020, and continuing.
The president’s action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population. Counties included in the declaration are: Aransas, Bexar, Brazoria, Calhoun, Cameron, Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Harris, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Kenedy, Kleberg, Liberty, Matagorda, Newton, Nueces, Orange, Refugio, San Patricio, Victoria and Willacy.
Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize and provide, at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency.
Emergency protective measures, limited to direct federal assistance and reimbursement for mass care including evacuation and shelter support, will be provided at 75 percent federal funding.
USDA efforts prior to storms
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) also partnered with FEMA and other disaster-focused organizations and created the Disaster Resource Center. The website now provide an easy access point to find USDA disaster information and assistance.
USDA also developed a disaster assistance discovery tool specifically targeted to rural and agricultural issues. The tool walks farmers and ranchers through five questions that generate personalized results identifying which USDA disaster assistance programs can help them recover from a natural disaster, including tropical storms and hurricanes.
Helping farmers, ranchers weather financial impacts of disasters:
Livestock owners and contract growers who experience above normal livestock deaths due to specific weather events, as well as to disease or animal attacks, may qualify for assistance under USDA’s Livestock Indemnity Program.
Livestock, honeybee and farm-raised fish producers whose mechanically harvested or purchased livestock feed was physically damaged or destroyed; or who lost grazing acres or beehives due to an extreme weather event may qualify for assistance. Producers of non-insurable crops who suffer crop losses, lower yields or are prevented from planting agricultural commodities may be eligible for assistance under USDA’s Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program if the losses were due to natural disasters and if a policy is in place for the current crop year.
Helping operations recover after disasters:
USDA also can provide financial resources through its Environmental Quality Incentives Program to help with immediate needs and long-term support to help recover from natural disasters and conserve water resources. Assistance may also be available for emergency animal morality disposal from natural disasters and other causes.
Farmers and ranchers needing to rehabilitate farmland damaged by natural disasters can apply for assistance through USDA’s Emergency Conservation Program. USDA also has assistance available for eligible private forest landowners who need to restore forestland damaged by natural disasters through the Emergency Forest Restoration Program (PDF, 257 KB). For declared natural disasters that lead to imminent threats to life and property, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) can assist local government sponsors with the cost of implementing recovery efforts like debris removal and streambank stabilization to address natural resource concerns and hazards through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program.
Orchardists and nursery tree growers may be eligible for assistance through USDA’s Tree Assistance Program to help replant or rehabilitate eligible trees, bushes and vines damaged by natural disasters.
Producers with insurance coverage administered federal crop insurance program should contact their crop insurance agent for issues regarding filing claims. Those who purchased crop insurance will be paid for covered losses. Producers should report crop damage within 72 hours of damage discovery and follow up in writing within 15 days. The Approved Insurance Providers (AIP), loss adjusters and agents are experienced and well trained in handling these types of events. As part of its commitment to delivering excellent customer service, RMA is working closely with AIPs that sell and service crop insurance policies to ensure enough loss adjusters will be available to process claims in the affected areas as quickly as possible.
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA), Risk Management Agency (RMA) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) remind producers to gather important crop and livestock records and keep them in a safe place as they will likely be needed when inquiring about disaster assistance program eligibility and reporting loss or damage to local USDA Service Centers.
More disaster recovery information for any farmers or ranchers facing natural disasters, including tropical storms and hurricanes, is available at farmers.gov/recover.