FACT SHEET: HOUSES OF WORSHIP IN NORTH CAROLINA MAY BE ELIGIBLE TO
APPLY FOR FEMA PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
[https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20230502/fact-sheet-houses-worship-north-carolina-may-be-eligible-apply-fema-public]


Release Date: 
Octobre 10, 2018 

_The Stafford Act has been revised to make houses of worship, like
other community, volunteer and private, nonprofit organizations,
eligible to apply for potential funding to help with certain
disaster-related costs under FEMA’s Public Assistance grant
program._

_WHAT IS THE PUBLIC ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAM? _ 

	* Public Assistance (PA) reimburses state, tribal, territorial, and
local governments, and certain types of private nonprofit (PNP)
organizations for 75 percent of eligible disaster-related expenses.
	* PA grants help pay for efforts to protect people and property,
clean up neighborhoods and repair roads and bridges.  
	* For the Hurricane Florence disaster declaration in North Carolina,
the Public Assistance program is funded by FEMA and administered by
North Carolina Emergency Management (NCEM). 

_ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR HOUSES OF WORSHIP_

	* To be an eligible applicant, a house of worship must:

	* Provide a current ruling letter from the IRS granting tax exemption
under Section 501 (c) (d) or (e) of the IRS Code of 1954, or through
the North Carolina Secretary of State.
	* Be owned or operated by a private nonprofit (PNP)
organization.   
	* Have facilities that sustained damage caused by Hurricane Florence
in North Carolina.
	* Have either not received funding or received insufficient funding
after applying for a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) disaster
loan.

SBA DISASTER LOANS ARE A CRITICAL PART OF THE APPLICATION PROCESS 

	* For PNPs, including houses of worship, FEMA may only provide Public
Assistance funding for eligible Permanent Work costs that an SBA
disaster loan will not cover.

	* Under the Stafford Act, PNP facilities including houses of worship,
must apply to the SBA for a low-interest disaster loan for permanent
repair work.
	* FEMA will provide financial assistance only if the house of worship
is denied an SBA loan – or if the loan authorized is insufficient to
cover repair costs.

APPLICANT BRIEFINGS PROVIDE INFORMATION ABOUT THE APPLICATION PROCESS

	* A representative of the house of worship must attend an applicant
briefing hosted by NCEM. For additional details, including how to
participate, contact your local emergency manager. 
	* If a house of worship decides to apply for disaster assistance from
FEMA after participating in an applicant briefing, it must submit a
Request for Public Assistance (RPA). 

REQUEST FOR PUBLIC ASSISTANCE APPLICATION 

	* A form must be completed and submitted in the FEMA Grants Portal to
be considered for disaster recovery assistance funding. * First, send
an email to public.assistance@ncdps.gov which includes the
applicant’s first and last name, email address, phone number and
organization name. 
	* Then, look for an email invitation from the North Carolina
Department of Public Safety to submit an RPA. * Contact NCEM Public
Assistance at public.assistance@ncdps.gov with any questions on RPA
submissions.

 

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