The Federal Emergency Management Agency has rejected a request for federal assistance for people who needed assistance after the July 2026 floods in Texas that inundated homes in Uvalde and damaged properties across Kerr County – in some cases for the second time in two years.
According to a statement from the governor’s office, Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Division of Emergency Management are reviewing the decision and appeal process.
Disaster relief experts say FEMA funding for individual assistance is a critical way for residents to cover short-term costs, such as: B. to make houses livable again, pay for hotels or other temporary accommodation, and replace lost items.
“FEMA’s individual assistance was the most important thing people were counting on and hoping to help them rebuild in a meaningful way,” said Allison Brim-Estelle, field director for a national disaster survivors association called Rebuild.
FEMA said in a statement it is committed to helping the state rebuild and is closely reviewing requests for assistance, taking into account factors such as insurance coverage, other recent disasters, the profile of the affected population, disaster-related unemployment and state financial capacity, among other factors.
“FEMA remains focused on empowering states to take the lead in their collaborative response and recovery activities and is committed to providing assistance when federal assistance is warranted,” the agency said in a statement.
The Trump administration has shifted expectations for states to play a larger role in disaster recovery. FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton said Tuesday at a National Emergency Management Association conference that states “must have the appropriate financial reserves” to jump-start the disaster recovery process, Politico reported.
Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, served with Abbott on the FEMA Review Council assembled by President Donald Trump to recommend ways to overhaul the agency. The council’s report, released in May, said states and local governments must lead disaster relief efforts rather than always relying on or expecting the federal government to do so.
Last month, Kidd warned state lawmakers during a public hearing that they must begin changing the way they fund disaster recovery. Texas is paying just $37 million of the $1.9 billion the state budgeted for emergency relief in 2027, Kidd said — or 2 percent.
The difference will be covered by federal funds.
“Given the changes at the federal level and some slowdown in reimbursements from the federal government, we’re going to be at a point this time next year where we could be in a very different situation,” Kidd said.
Kerr County community leaders and residents were among those already struggling with the lack of FEMA funding for individuals. Residents and businesses there were recovering from the devastating floods in July 2025, which killed more than 100 people and left homes torn apart, when storms again hit a wide area in July 2026, causing further damage to businesses and homes.
Kerr County had received a flood of support from nonprofits and individuals in 2025, but in 2026, leaders had less financial support and volunteer help and had to wait much longer for FEMA assistance.
Abbott announced in September — more than six weeks after the most recent flooding — that FEMA would help reimburse some local governments, but a decision on whether to help individuals was pending at the time.
The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country announced last week that to date it has provided approximately $1.3 million in emergency financial assistance to 947 households in the Hill Country, as well as temporary housing assistance to 58 households.
“Families continue to recover without FEMA’s individual support, and philanthropy and local nonprofits are helping fill critical gaps,” said Chief Executive Officer Austin Dickson.
Still, after disasters, most communities “only raise a fraction of the dollars needed to rebuild, which is lengthy and expensive,” Dickson said at the Texas Tribune Festival in September.
Rebuild, the survivors’ association, has been lobbying for the state to create a disaster relief fund for individuals, Brim-Estelle said. She said her work in Kerr County showed the need is “absolutely still very real” as people try to raise money from their own pockets or from churches or organizations to repair their homes as best they can.
Many were crowded with other family members or had left the area, she said.
“The bottom line is that Governor Abbott owes the Texas families and flood survivors here an explanation and a plan,” Brim-Estelle said. “Do you believe FEMA should provide individual assistance to survivors in Texas or… will the state foot the bill?”
In a statement, Abbott spokesman Andrew Mahaleris referred to Abbott’s Oct. 15 request to suspend federal tax deadlines and waive late fees for people and businesses affected by the flood, as well as a July 22 announcement extending the time in some counties for people receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to apply for help to replace food lost or destroyed by the floods.
“Texas will provide all necessary resources to communities impacted by July’s storms and flooding,” Mahaleris said.
Disclosure: Austin Dickson has been a financial supporter of the Texas Tribune for the past five years. The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization supported in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in our journalism. A full list of these and further information about our financial and disclosure policies can be found here.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
Photo: Damaged cars washed away in the Kerrville flood on July 16, 2026. Brenda Bazan for The Texas Tribune
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