Temporary Disaster Housing – Fremont and Mills Counties

Overview

• DR-4421 Major Disaster Declaration issued March 23, 2019

Direct Temporary Housing Assistance in Iowa 

• FEMA’s Direct Temporary Housing Assistance program has been approved for residents of Fremont and Mills counties. 

• This assistance is provided when adequate, alternate housing is unavailable, and the occupants cannot fulfill their permanent housing plan through no fault of their own. FEMA can provide this assistance for up to 18 months from the date of the declaration. 

• FEMA determines who will be offered disaster housing, based on an applicant’s individual situation.  Once an occupant is licensed in to a temporary housing unit, eligibility for continued assistance is subject to the occupant’s continuing need for housing while working on a permanent housing plan.  Eligibility is evaluated by FEMA on a monthly basis.  

• Temporary Housing Units (THUs) will be matched to eligible applicants based on the size and needs of the household, including any household members with disabilities or other access or functional needs.

Current Status: (as of May 17) 

• FEMA’s Individual Assistance program staff directly contacted potentially eligible homeowners and renters to determine their interest in receiving a THU. 

• THUs are being staged at Camp Dodge in Johnston, Iowa, until the individual units are moved to temporary housing sites. 

Next Steps: 

• FEMA has identified 196 available pads on which THUs can be placed in Fremont, Mills, Montgomery, Page and Pottawattamie counties.  These pads are within a 50-mile radius of damaged homes in Fremont and Mills counties. 

• FEMA is currently in process of leasing pads in the closest commercial sites. Once sites are leased, FEMA will deliver and install THUs on the sites. 

• FEMA continues to identify households that are willing to relocate into each of the available commercial parks. THUs will likely not be placed on private sites that are high-risk or prone to flooding in an effort to protect lives and property.     

• If required by commercial park owners, all applicants will have to pass a background check.

• Applicants will be responsible for setting up utility services in their own names.  Utility service setup has to be completed prior to occupancy of a unit. 

• The applicant will sign a licensed-in agreement with FEMA in order to occupy the unit.

For occupants to remain in the unit, they must:

• Demonstrate a continued housing assistance need;
• Actively participate in the FEMA recertification process;
• Show progress toward achieving a permanent housing plan;
• Adhere to FEMA’s rules, terms and conditions and the rules, laws, and regulations of the site and jurisdiction where the THU is located;

Note: Applicants not receiving assistance for direct housing may be eligible to receive continued temporary housing (rent) assistance for up to 18 months from date of declaration.

For more information on disaster recovery: 

Iowa assistance: www.floods2019.iowa.gov

FEMA assistance:  www.fema.gov/disaster/4421 

SBA assistance: www.SBA.gov/disaster or SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955.