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Kane County emergency management plans disaster recovery committee as FEMA thresholds rise
Summary
County emergency management briefed the committee on recent fire response in Elgin, the county—s plan to create a public-private disaster recovery committee, and new federal changes that raised FEMA Public Assistance thresholds substantially, reducing the likelihood of federal reimbursement for all but the largest disasters.
KANE COUNTY, Ill. — Kane County—s emergency management director told the Judicial and Public Safety Committee on May 15 that county staff are forming a public-private disaster recovery committee and warned that recent federal changes to FEMA—s Public Assistance thresholds will make federal reimbursement unlikely except in the largest disasters.
Director Scott Greif (appearing as Scott in the meeting) briefed the committee on an apartment fire in Elgin that affected 18 units and prompted county coordination with local fire and police and the American Red Cross. The county opened a shelter and two people spent the night; many residents chose to stay with family rather than use the shelter. "We still opened the shelter so that it was available and there was food for people to come," Greif said.
Greif said the county is assembling a disaster recovery committee as a public-private partnership to organize local recovery resources after disasters. "The person does not need to be a subject matter expert, just needs to be an organizer," he said, asking the board for volunteers to chair or co-chair the committee. He said groups including the United Way, churches and chambers of commerce have expressed interest.
Federal funding changes: Greif told the committee the federal Public Assistance thresholds that trigger FEMA reimbursement have been quadrupled: where the state threshold had been around $24 million and a county threshold near $2.3 million, the new thresholds are approximately $96 million for the state and $9.2 million for counties. "So what it means is, except for the largest of large disasters, there's probably not federal help coming," Greif warned, adding the change will have long-term budget implications for local governments.
Why it matters: Under the Public Assistance program, when a state reaches its threshold in government costs after a disaster, local governments can aggregate their costs and apply for federal reimbursement (historically about 75%). The raised thresholds mean many disasters that previously qualified for federal assistance may no longer do so.
Next steps: Emergency management will continue to monitor federal developments and bring recommendations to the committee; staff plan an initial interest meeting for the disaster recovery committee in summer 2025 and will seek a local chair and partners to coordinate recovery efforts.
