Major Disaster Assistance from the DRF: Connecticut

Major Disaster Assistance from the DRF: Connecticut

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Updated March 6, 2017
Major Disaster Assistance from the DRF: Connecticut
Overview
Local Impacts
The Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) is managed by the Federal
From FY2000 to FY2015, eight local governments and two
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and is the
tribal governments in Connecticut received aid under major
primary source of federal assistance following a major
disaster declarations. The cities of New Haven and New
disaster declaration. The authority to declare a major
London, and the town of Windham received aid for the
disaster is provided to the President under the Robert T.
highest number of declarations during this period, with
Stafford Emergency Relief and Disaster Assistance Act
eight each.
(P.L. 93-288).
Figure 1. DRF Actual and Projected Obligations for
The information below includes only DRF funding
Declared Major Disasters in Connecticut, by Fiscal
provided to Connecticut as a result of assistance associated
Year
with a major disaster declaration. This information does not
Figures are in millions of dol ars, truncated. The number of
include other assistance provided through the DRF or
declarations per year is in parentheses.
disaster assistance provided by other federal sources, such
as Small Business Administration disaster loans.
FEMA administers disaster relief through regional offices
around the country. Connecticut is part of Region I,
headquartered in Boston, MA.
Major Disaster Declarations: FY2000-
FY2015
A total of nine major disaster declarations were made in the
state of Connecticut between FY2000 and FY2015. During
that time, there were also four requests for major disaster
declarations that were denied. The approved declarations
led to $433 million in actual and projected federal
obligations from the DRF. Actual and projected obligations
are used throughout this In Focus to account for the total
amount of federal assistance ultimately obligated. 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 actual
and projected funding obligated for major disasters each
year, with more than $175 million in actual and projected
obligations for disasters in FY2013 alone. Figure 1

displays the actual and projected obligations to Connecticut
Source: CRS analysis of FEMA DRF obligations data as of December
each fiscal year. The highest number of declarations in a
2015.
single year was two, which occurred in FY2011 and
Notes: Actual and projected obligations are recorded in the fiscal
FY2013.
year in which the major disaster was declared. Only obligations from
Most Costly Declarations
the FEMA DRF are included. Please consult the “Additional
Resources” section for information on other federal assistance
The declaration associated with the largest actual and
programs.
projected obligations from the DRF to the state of
Connecticut was for Hurricane Sandy in FY2013. This
Types of Assistance Provided for Major
declaration resulted in more than $129 million in actual and
Disasters
projected obligations to Connecticut from the DRF.
A major disaster declaration can authorize funding for
different purposes, depending on the needs of the state.
The next two most costly declarations were for a severe
These purposes include:
storm in FY2012 and Tropical Storm Irene in FY2011.
 Public Assistance, which is used by tribal, state, or local
governments, or certain private nonprofit organizations
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Major Disaster Assistance from the DRF: Connecticut
to provide emergency protective services, conduct
Assistance Grants. The funding associated with these types
debris removal operations, and repair or replace
of assistance typically results in lower obligation levels than
damaged public infrastructure;
assistance provided as a result of major disaster
declarations, although there is significant variation across
 Individual Assistance, which provides direct aid to
incidents.
impacted households;
 Emergency Declarations are often made at the time a
 Hazard Mitigation Assistance, which funds mitigation
threat is recognized in order to assist tribal, state, and
and resiliency projects and programs, typically across
local efforts prior to an incident.
the entire state;
 Fire Management Assistance Grants (FMAGs) provide
 FEMA administrative costs associated with each disaster
aid for the control, management, and mitigation of fires.
declaration; and
FEMA Assistance Not Funded Through
 Mission Assignment, which tasks and reimburses other
the DRF: National Flood Insurance
federal entities that provide direct disaster assistance.
Program
Floods represent a majority of all major disaster
The decision concerning which types of assistance to
declarations nationwide. One of the primary sources of
provide is made either when the major disaster is declared
assistance for flooding events is the National Flood
or when the declaration is amended. For many major
Insurance Program (NFIP), which is not funded through the
disasters, all of the assistance types outlined above are
DRF. For more information on the NFIP, please refer to
authorized. For others, some assistance types are not
CRS Report R44593, Introduction to FEMA’s National
authorized. Figure 2 compares the actual and projected
Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
obligations for different types of assistance provided to
Connecticut as a result of a major disaster declaration from
Additional Resources
FY2000 to FY2015.
Many existing CRS products address issues related to the
DRF, the disaster declaration process, and types of DRF
Figure 2. DRF Assistance for Connecticut, by Type
assistance. Below is a list of several of these resources:
(FY2000-FY2015)
 CRS Report R41981, Congressional Primer on
Responding to Major Disasters and Emergencies
 CRS Report R43519, Natural Disasters and Hazards:
CRS Experts
 CRS Report R43784, FEMA’s Disaster Declaration
Process: A Primer
 CRS Report R43537, FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund:
Overview and Selected Issues
 CRS Report R44619, FEMA Disaster Housing: The
Individuals and Households Program—Implementation
and Potential Issues for Congress
 CRS Report R43990, FEMA’s Public Assistance Grant
Program: Background and Considerations for Congress
CRS Experts
FEMA Disaster Assistance:
Bruce R. Lindsay

Source: CRS analysis of FEMA DRF obligation data as of December
Jared T. Brown
2015.
Shawn Reese
Note: The specific assistance within each of the identified types may
National Flood Insurance Program:
have changed in the period FY2000 to FY2015.
Diane P. Horn
Other FEMA Assistance Funded
Through the DRF
Bruce R. Lindsay, Analyst in American National
In addition to the major disaster assistance described above,
Government
there are other forms of assistance that are funded through
IF10064
the DRF. These include assistance associated with
Emergency Declarations and with Fire Management

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Major Disaster Assistance from the DRF: Connecticut

Disclaimer
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