Agenda Item D.1
CPMS DISCUSSION/ACTION ITEM
Meeting Date: April 2, 2024
TO: Mayor and Councilmembers
SUBMITTED BY: Jaime A. Valdez, Neighborhood Services Director
PREPARED BY: Michael Baris, Emergency Services Coordinator
SUBJECT: Status of Ongoing FEMA Reimbursement Efforts
RECOMMENDATION:
Receive a report regarding ongoing FEMA reimbursement efforts.
BACKGROUND:
After a local emergency, a presidential disaster dec laration may be made that allows emergency projects to be reimbursed via federal funds. The City works closely with two agencies when conducting disaster recovery – the California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) at the state level, and the Federal E mergency Management Agency (FEMA) at the federal level.
Currently, the City is pursuing reimbursement regarding three (3) presidentially declared disasters: the winter 2017 storms, January 2023 winter storms, and March 2023 winter storms.
Multiple factors determine the final reimbursement value of a project after going through the recovery process. Typically, t he maximum value received in reimbursement is
93.75% of eligible items; 75% from FEMA, and 18.75% from CalOES. Other factors can change this final reimbursement value, such as mitigation efforts to prevent future damage to infrastructure or FEMA auditors discovering ineligible items within the project scope. The totals within this staff report are estimates as of the time of writing this report.
DISCUSSION:
Table 1 on the ensuing page shows the status of current recovery projects undertaken by the City. Recovery dollars are approved and received on a project -by-project basis and not as a lump sum for a disaster.
Meeting Date: April 2, 2024
TABLE 1
1. 2017 Winter Storms, CalOES reached out to City staff in late 2023 to inquire about a pending long -term closeout that had not taken place in prior years. City staff have been aggregating information related to the 2017 Winter Storms and submitted missing documentation for processing.
2. Darker green indicates shorter timelines for receiving potential reimbursement (funds) due to where they are in the FEMA review process.
One declared disaster can spark multiple emergency projects with varying impacts and timelines for recovery . The FEMA reimbursement process consists of many levels of review depending on the size, type, and environmental impacts of a project (i.e. small sinkhole vs. cliff erosion). As such, City staff may need to call upon multiple disciplines/specialists to answer questions arising from FEMA’s review process . City staff then repeat this approach for every additional project under a declared disaster.
Emergency projects must be addressed immediately for protection of life safety and property, and expenditures for emergency projects are paid from existing operating budgets. City staff pursue FEMA reimbursement claims to lessen fiscal impacts associated with a declared disaster.
Not all recovery reimbursement claims are made through FEMA. Other fe deral organizations may be responsible for specific types of damage or aid, such as the Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) or the Department of Housing and Urban Development and their Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program. The Cathedral Oaks Crib Wall, for example, is Project Name Disaster #Project CostE st. Federal Reimb.E st. State Reimb.E st. T ime of Receiving Funds E st. T otal Reimb.
Citywide Debris
Removal N/A $10,560.46 $0.00 1 year+ $10,560.46
Fish Weirs Repair N/A $31,298.54 $0.00 1 year+ $31,298.54 Parks and O pen Space
Debris Removal $252,851.65 $189,638.74 $47,409.68 6-12 Months $237,048.42 Citywide Street T ree
Removal $20,512.50 $15,384.38 $3,846.09 <6 Months $19,230.47 Maria Yg nacio Creek
Debris Removal $55,542.42 $41,656.82 $10,414.20 <6 Months $52,071.02 J onny D Wallis Sinkhole $7,627.27 $5,720.45 $1,430.11 <6 Months $7,150.57 San Rossano and
Padova Drain $51,984.10 $38,988.08 $9,747.02 <6 Months $48,735.09 San Pedro (Phase 1) $51,577.61 $38,683.21 $9,670.80 <6 Months $48,354.01 San Pedro (Phase 2) $46,087.65 $34,565.74 $8,641.43 6-12 Months $43,207.17 E llwood B each Dr Drain
Repair $61,267.00 $45,950.25 $11,487.56 6-12 Months $57,437.81 Mesa T rail E rosion $80,000.00 $60,000.00 $15,000.00 1 year+ $75,000.00 303 Santa B arbara
Shores $57,400.00 $43,050.00 $10,762.50 <6 Months $53,812.50 Newport Creek Culvert $65,776.94 $49,332.71 $12,333.18 1 year+ $61,665.88 Parks and O pen Space
Debris Removal $332,992.99 $249,744.74 $62,436.19 6-12 Months $312,180.93 T otal
Reimbursement
A mount
$1,057,752.87
2017 Winter
S torms
March
2023
S torms
J anuary
2023
S torms
Meeting Date: April 2, 2024
not under the authority of FEMA and is instead under FHWA because of its proximity to a roadway. Additionally, the initial damage to the crib wall was caused by storms in 2017 and disas ter recovery projects must be linked a declared disaster that has been recovered from. As recovery options were not adequately pursued to federal standards in 2017, the project remains ineligible for 2023 recovery funding.
FISCAL IMPACTS:
State and federal funds are received on a project -by-project basis. Funds are received 4-8 weeks after a project completes all levels of the FEMA review process . For perspective, the FEMA review process can take anywhere from a year to several years.
ALTERNATIVES:
There are no other feasible alternatives for this item other than not pursuing reimbursement.
LEGAL REVIEW BY: Megan Garibaldi, City Attorney
APPROVED BY: Robert Nisbet, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Presentation on the Status of Current Disaster Reimbursement Projects
ATTACHMENT 1
Presentation on the Status of Current Disaster Reimbursement Projects Status of Ongoing
FEMA Reimbursement
Efforts
Michael Baris
Emergency Services Coordinator
Disaster Cost Recovery
After a local emergency, a presidential disaster declaration may be made that allows emergency projects to be
reimbursed via federal funds.
Two agencies become close
partners:
• California Office of Emergency
Services (CalOES)
• Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA)
Reimbursement Calculations
Typically, the maximum value received in reimbursement is
93.75% of eligible items within a project’s cost:
• 75% from FEMA
• 18.75% from CalOES
Reimbursement amounts can go up and down:
• FEMA auditors can identify ineligible project items
• Eligible mitigation efforts can be added to a project Reimbursement Timing
FEMA approves funding on a project-by-project basis, so the combined value across all projects will not be received in a lump sum.
Staff have identified projects and their estimate value and reimbursement timing on the following table:
Project Name Disaster #Project CostE st. Federal R eimb.E st. State Reimb.E st. T ime of R eceiving Funds E st. T otal R eimb.
Citywide Debris
R emoval N/A $10,560.46 $0.00 1 year+ $10,560.46
Fish Weirs R epair N/A $31,298.54 $0.00 1 year+ $31,298.54 Parks and O pen Space
Debris Removal $252,851.65 $189,638.74 $47,409.68 6-12 Months $237,048.42 Citywide Street T ree
R emoval $20,512.50 $15,384.38 $3,846.09 <6 Months $19,230.47 Maria Yg nacio Creek
Debris Removal $55,542.42 $41,656.82 $10,414.20 <6 Months $52,071.02 J onny D Wallis Sinkhole $7,627.27 $5,720.45 $1,430.11 <6 Months $7,150.57 San R ossano and
Padova Drain $51,984.10 $38,988.08 $9,747.02 <6 Months $48,735.09 San Pedro (P hase 1) $51,577.61 $38,683.21 $9,670.80 <6 Months $48,354.01 San Pedro (P hase 2) $46,087.65 $34,565.74 $8,641.43 6-12 Months $43,207.17 E llwood B each Dr Drain
R epair $61,267.00 $45,950.25 $11,487.56 6-12 Months $57,437.81 Mesa T rail E rosion $80,000.00 $60,000.00 $15,000.00 1 year+ $75,000.00 303 Santa B arbara
Shores $57,400.00 $43,050.00 $10,762.50 <6 Months $53,812.50 Newport Creek Culvert $65,776.94 $49,332.71 $12,333.18 1 year+ $61,665.88 Parks and O pen Space
Debris Removal $332,992.99 $249,744.74 $62,436.19 6-12 Months $312,180.93 T otal
Reimbursement
A mount
$1,057,752.87
2017 Winter
S torms
March
2023
S torms
J anuary
2023
S torms
Questions?
Thank you for your time.