The Federal Emergency Management Agency has rejected a request for federal aid to people in need of help after the July 2026 floods in Texas, which inundated homes in Uvalde and damaged properties in Kerr County — in some cases for the second time in two years.
Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Division of Emergency Management are reviewing the decision and the appeal process, according to a statement from the governor’s office.
Disaster recovery experts say FEMA Individual Assistance funding is a critical way for residents to cover short-term costs such as making homes habitable again, paying for hotels or other temporary housing and replacing lost items.
“One-on-one assistance from FEMA was the thing that people relied on and turned to to be able to help them rebuild in a meaningful way,” said Allison Brim-Estelle, field director for a national association for disaster survivors called Rebuild.
FEMA said in a statement that it is committed to helping the state recover and carefully reviews requests for assistance, including consideration of factors such as insurance coverage, other recent disasters, the profile of the affected population, disaster-related unemployment and the state’s fiscal capacity.
“FEMA remains focused on empowering states to take the lead in their community response and recovery activities and is committed to providing support where federal assistance is warranted,” the agency said in a statement.
The Trump administration has shifted its expectations for states to play a greater role in disaster recovery. FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton, speaking at a National Emergency Management Association conference Tuesday, said states “must have the appropriate financial reserves” to begin the recovery process after a disaster, Politico reported.
“Individual assistance from FEMA was the thing that people relied on and turned to to be able to help them rebuild meaningfully. »
Allison Brim-Estelle
Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, along with Abbott, served on the FEMA Review Board convened by President Donald Trump to recommend ways to overhaul the agency. The council’s report released in May says state and local governments must lead disaster response, rather than always relying on or expecting the federal government to do so.
Last month, Kidd warned state lawmakers at a public hearing that they should start changing how they fund disaster recovery. Texas is paying just $37 million of the $1.9 billion the state budgeted for emergency responses for 2027, Kidd said — or 2 percent.
The difference is covered by federal funding.
“With the changes at the federal level and the slowing down of reimbursements from the federal government, we will be in a situation where we could find ourselves in a very different situation this time next year,” Kidd said.
Community leaders and residents in Kerr County were among those already struggling with the lack of FEMA funding for individuals. Residents and businesses were rebuilding after devastating floods in July 2025, which killed more than 100 people and destroyed homes, when storms struck again in July 2026 across a wide area and caused further damage to businesses and homes.
Kerr County had received an outpouring of support from nonprofits and individuals in 2025, but leaders found themselves with less financial and volunteer assistance in 2026 and a much longer wait for FEMA aid.
Abbott announced in September – more than six weeks after the recent flooding – that FEMA would help some local governments recover their costs, but the decision on whether to help individuals was still up in the air.
The Texas Hill Country Community Foundation said last week it has so far provided about $1.3 million in emergency financial assistance to 947 Hill Country households, as well as temporary housing assistance for 58 households.
“Families continue to recover without individual assistance from FEMA, and philanthropy and local nonprofits are helping to fill critical gaps,” said CEO Austin Dickson.
Yet after a disaster, most communities “raise only a fraction of the dollars needed for recovery, which is time-consuming and costly,” Dickson said at the Texas Tribune Festival in September.
Rebuild, the survivors’ association, has advocated for the state to create a personal disaster relief fund, Brim-Estelle said. She said her work in Kerr County showed that the need “is still very real” as people try to raise funds out of their own pockets or from churches or organizations to repair their homes however they can.
Many are crowded with other families or have left the area, she said.
“Ultimately, Governor Abbott owes Texas families and flood survivors an explanation and a plan here,” Brim-Estelle said. “Do you think FEMA should provide individual assistance to survivors in Texas or…is the state going to foot the bill?”
In a statement, Abbott spokesman Andrew Mahaleris highlighted Abbott’s Oct. 15 request to suspend federal tax deadlines and waive late fees for people and businesses affected by the flooding, as well as a July 22 announcement extending the window for people receiving the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, to apply for help to replace food lost or destroyed in the flooding.
“Texas will provide all necessary resources to communities impacted by July’s storms and flooding,” Mahaleris said.
Disclosure: Austin Dickson has financially supported the Texas Tribune for the past five years. The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that is funded in part by donations from its members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial support plays no role in our journalism. Find a full list of them and more information about our financial and disclosure policies here.
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