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Citation:         FEMA-1604-DR-MS, City of Waveland, Time limitation

Cross-

Reference:     Time limitation, Debris removal

Summary:       Hurricane Katrina damaged and uprooted trees throughout the City of Waveland.  FEMA prepared PW 5091 for $3,143,100 and PW 9972 for $708,905 for debris removal expenses. In June 2006, FEMA conducted a field validation of the debris clean up. As a result of the validation, FEMA reduced eligible costs for PW 5091 by $1,320,102 and PW 9972 by $297,740, a total reduction of 42 percent.  In the first appeal dated September 29, 2009, the Applicant claimed that that the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina was a justified hardship preventing the Applicant from preparing the appeal documentation in a timely manner. The Applicant also requests that FEMA waive the time limitation for filing the appeal based upon Section 301 of Robert T. Stafford Act, which allows FEMA to modify or waive administrative conditions.  The Applicant claims that that FEMA’s field validation contained numerous errors and methodological flaws and that FEMA unilaterally invalidated eligible work. The Applicant requests that FEMA re-obligate the 42 percent of the costs disallowed on both PWs. The Regional Administrator denied the appeal on July 22, 2010, stating that the Applicant exceeded the 60 day time limitation for filing an appeal set forth in section 423 of the Stafford Act and at 44 Code of Federal Regulations (44 CFR) §206.206.  The Applicant failed to file its appeal for more than two years after receipt of the notice of FEMA’s action. The Applicant provides no compelling evidence as to why they previously filed eight appeals on time, but the Applicant was more than two years outside the filing deadline for this appeal.

Issue:              Did the Applicant demonstrate extenuating circumstances to warrant waiving the 60-day time limitation for filing an appeal?

Finding:          No.

Rationale:       Sections 423(a) and 301 of the Stafford Act; 44 CFR§206.206