January 28, 2015
FEMA DRF Major Disaster Assistance: Rhode Island
Overview
Figure 1. DRF Obligations for Declared Major
Disasters in Rhode Island, by Fiscal Year
The Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) is managed by the Federal
Figures are in millions of dollars. The number of declarations
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and is the
per year is in parentheses.
primary source of funding used to provide assistance
following a major disaster declaration. The authority to
declare a major disaster is provided to the President under
the Robert T. Stafford Emergency Relief and Disaster
Assistance Act (P.L. 93-288).
The information below includes only the funding provided
as a result of a major disaster declaration, not other
assistance funded through the DRF. Additionally, this
information does not include other federal sources of
disaster assistance, such as Small Business Administration
disaster loans.
FEMA administers disaster relief through regional offices
around the country. Rhode Island is part of Region I,
headquartered in Boston, MA.
Major Disaster Declarations:
FY2000-FY2013
A total of five major disaster declarations were made in the
state of Rhode Island between FY2000 and FY2013.
During that time, there were also three requests for major
disaster declarations that were denied. The approved
declarations led to $141 million in federal obligations from
the Disaster Relief Fund. This funding does not include the
assistance that was provided directly by the state, either as a
cost-share for federal assistance, or through the state’s own
authorities and programs. There was a high level of
variation in the amount of funding obligated each year, with
more than $100 million obligated in FY2001 alone. Figure
1 displays the total funding obligated to Rhode Island each
year. The highest number of declarations in one year
occurred in FY2013, which had two declarations.
Significant Incidents
The most significant incident in the state of Rhode Island

was caused by severe storms and flooding in FY2010. This
Source: CRS analysis of FEMA DRF obligations data as of June 2014.
incident led to more than $100 million in federal funding
Notes: Figures above reflect both actual obligations and projected
from the DRF.
obligations. Only obligations from the FEMA Disaster Relief Fund are
included. Please consult the “Additional Resources” section for
Other major incidents include Hurricane Sandy in FY2013.
information on other federal assistance programs.
Rhode Island also received assistance following Tropical
Storm Irene in FY2011.


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FEMA DRF Major Disaster Assistance: Rhode Island
Types of Assistance Provided for Major
Other Assistance Funded Through the
Disasters
DRF
A major disaster declaration can include funding for
In addition to the major disasters listed above, there are also
different purposes, depending on the needs of the state.
other forms of assistance that are funded through the
These purposes include:
Disaster Relief Fund. These include both Emergency
•
Declarations and Fire Management Assistance Grants. The
Public Assistance (PA) that is used to conduct debris
assistance provided for these declarations typically involves
removal operations, repair or replace damaged public
lower obligation levels than major disaster declarations,
infrastructure, and other assistance;
although there is significant variation across incidents.
• Individual Assistance (IA) that provides direct aid to
impacted households, and other assistance;
Emergency Declarations are often made at the time a threat
•
is recognized and are issued to assist state, local, and tribal
Hazard Mitigation (HM) that funds resilience projects
efforts prior to the incident.
and programs, typically across the whole state; and
• FEMA administrative costs associated with each
Fire Management Assistance Grants (FMAGs) provide aid
disaster declaration.
for the control, management, and mitigation of fires.
The decision to provide certain types of assistance is made
Additional Resources
at the time of the major disaster declaration. For many
major disasters, all of the assistance types outlined above
There are many existing CRS products that address issues
will be authorized. For others, some assistance types will
related to the Disaster Relief Fund, the disaster declaration
not be included. Figure 2 compares the amounts expended
process, and federal emergency management policy. Below
for different types of assistance that were provided to
is a list of several of these resources:
Rhode Island from FY2000 to FY2013.
• CRS Report R41981, Congressional Primer on
Figure 2. DRF Assistance for Rhode Island, by Type
Responding to Major Disasters and Emergencies
(FY2000-FY2013)
• CRS Report R43519, Natural Disasters and Hazards:
CRS Experts
• CRS Report RL34146, FEMA’s Disaster Declaration
Process: A Primer
• CRS Report R42845, Federal Emergency Management:
A Brief Introduction
• CRS Report R43537, FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund:
Overview and Selected Issues
• CRS Report RL33053, Federal Stafford Act Disaster
Assistance: Presidential Declarations, Eligible
Activities, and Funding
FEMA is also responsible for administering the National
Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). More information on
whether your community participates in this program can
be found in the NFIP Community Status Book at fema.gov.
CRS Experts
Source: CRS analysis of FEMA DRF obligation data as of June 2014.
County Impact
FEMA Disaster Assistance:
Francis X. McCarthy, fmccarthy@crs.loc.gov, 7-9533
Since 2000, five localities in Rhode Island have received
Bruce R. Lindsay, blindsay@crs.loc.gov, 7-3752
aid under a major disaster declaration. Newport County has
Jared T. Brown, jbrown@crs.loc.gov, 7-4918
received the highest number of declarations during this
National Flood Insurance Program:
period, with five.
Rawle King, rking@crs.loc.gov, 7-5975
Daniel J. Richardson, drichardson@crs.loc.gov, 7-2389

IF10097
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