‍General Facility Eligibility

FEMA processes Public Assistance (PA) grant funding according to the type of work an applicant undertakes. For work to be eligible, it must be required as a result of the declared incident, be located in the designated area, be the legal responsibility of the applicant, and be undertaken at a reasonable cost. This chapter provides important information relating to PA facility eligibility and general requirements for work to be eligible.

I. Facility Eligibility

In general, a facility must be determined eligible for work to be eligible.

Facility Rule Applicability Matrix

The requirement for a facility to be declared eligible varies based on the applicant type and the category of work being performed:

• Private Nonprofit Organizations: For PNPs, the facility must be eligible in order for any work to be eligible.
• SLTT Governments: For State, Territorial, Tribal, and local governments, the facility must be eligible in order for Permanent Work, temporary repairs, or mold remediation to be eligible. Facility eligibility is not applicable to other Emergency Work.

A. Public Facility

An eligible public facility is one that a state, local, Tribal Nation, or territorial (SLTT) government owns or has legal responsibility for maintaining.

Eligible Public Structural Systems

A public facility includes any of the following structures or systems:

• Systems including flood control, navigation, irrigation, reclamation, public power, sewage treatment and collection, water supply and distribution, or watershed development.
• Buildings such as maintenance and storage sheds, restroom facilities, bath houses, or outbuildings including ancillary facilities.
• Non-federal-aid streets, roads, or highways, alongside associated ramps or access roads.
• Public buildings, structures, or systems, including those used for educational, recreational, or cultural purposes.
• Airport facilities including runways.
• Parks including piers, docks, trails, benches, picnic tables, swimming pools, golf courses, or ball fields.
• Other public facilities including pumping stations, communication towers and antennas, contents, supplies, equipment, vehicles, fences, parking lots, stairs, signage, lighting, sidewalks, gutters, ditches, guard rails, integral ground, catch basins, or outfall structures.

Natural Feature Standards

A natural feature is considered improved and maintained if it meets all of the following conditions:

• The natural feature has a designed and constructed improvement to its natural characteristics, such as a terraced slope or realigned channel.
• The constructed improvement enhances the function of the unimproved natural feature.
• The applicant maintains the improvement on a regular schedule to ensure that the improvement performs as designed.

Section-Specific Eligibility Limits

Scope Restriction: Only the specific section of a natural feature that meets the criteria above is eligible. For example, if only 150 linear feet of a natural channel bank is armored with rip rap and maintained, the eligible facility is strictly limited to that 150-linear-foot section.

Explicit Facility Ineligibility List

The following facility types are completely ineligible for assistance:

• Unimproved property that is not enhanced or maintained (e.g., a hillside or slope, forest, or natural channel bank).
• Land used for agricultural purposes.
• A facility maintained by a community development district that is not open to the general public or does not provide a service to the general public.

B. Inactive or Partially Inactive Facility

To be eligible, a facility must have been in active use at the start of the incident period. Inactive or partially inactive facilities are ineligible, unless one of the following specific conditions is met:

• The facility was only temporarily inactive for repairs or remodeling, provided a contractor is not responsible for the repair of disaster-related damage.
• The applicant established future active use in an approved budget or plans.
• The applicant can clearly demonstrate its intent to begin use within a reasonable amount of time.

Prorated Active Occupancy Rules

Proration Mandate: For facilities that are partially occupied and therefore partially inactive at the start of the incident, the inactive portions are not eligible unless an exception applies. When the eligible repairs benefit a non-active area, the assistance will be prorated according to the percentage of the facility that was in active use. For example, if the roof of a partially used building is destroyed, FEMA limits the eligible cost to a prorated amount based on the active space percentage.

Private Nonprofit Mixed-Use Limit

PNP Threshold: For private nonprofit mixed-use facilities to be eligible, more than 50 percent of the facility had to be in active use for an eligible purpose at the time of the incident.

C. Facility Scheduled for Repair or Replacement

Facilities that are not yet under contract but are scheduled for repair or replacement using non-federal funds are eligible provided that the claimed damage did not exist prior to the incident. If damage existed prior to the incident, only the repair of damage caused by the incident is eligible.

Facilities Under Contract for Construction

If a construction contract was in place for the facility at the time of the incident, FEMA reviews the contract to determine if it identifies the contractor or owner as responsible for repairs, requires a builder's risk policy, contains a force majeure provision, or identifies the point at which responsibility transfers back to the owner.

Leased Facilities

FEMA reviews the lease agreement to determine legal responsibility for repair of damage caused by the incident. If the lease does not specify either party as responsible, FEMA considers the owner of the facility legally responsible for the costs to restore the facility.

Federal Facilities

Facilities owned and maintained by federal agencies are ineligible. If a federal agency constructed a facility and formally designated the applicant as the legally responsible entity for operation, maintenance, and repairs, FEMA reviews the other federal agency's authority and agreement to confirm the legally responsible entity.

Private Property Work Limitations

Work on private property is the legal responsibility of the property owner and generally ineligible for PA funding. In rare cases where a SLTT government conducts activities on private property, FEMA reviews the applicant's legal basis and specific authority to conduct the activities.

Work Under the Authority of Other Federal Agencies

FEMA does not provide assistance for facilities or work that fall under the specific and exclusive authority of another federal agency (OFA), even if that OFA does not provide funding for the facility or work. Applicants must apply directly to the respective agency for assistance.