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Worth County OKs resolution allowing Secondary Roads to use county UEI for FEMA filings
Summary
The Worth County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution letting the Secondary Roads department use the county’s UEI number for FEMA grant paperwork and assume related risks; supervisors also debated whether pursuing small FEMA awards is worth staff time.
The Worth County Board of Supervisors voted to approve a resolution authorizing the Secondary Roads department to use Worth County’s Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number to file FEMA-related documents and to assume the risks associated with that usage.
The resolution was read into the record and put to a roll-call vote during the board’s May 30 meeting; Supervisors Wilburg and Stone voted “aye,” and the motion carried with the third board member recorded as voting “aye.”
Board members said the action responds to a direct request from a Homeland Security contact who said FEMA required a resolution that confirms county consent to let Secondary Roads use the county UEI to release funds. One supervisor described the request as “weird” and noted the county had earlier submitted grants with the same UEI without this step being required.
In discussion before the vote, supervisors also questioned whether chasing modest FEMA reimbursements is worth staff time. One supervisor noted that, for relatively small amounts — referring to roughly $50,000 as an example for recent events — the administrative work, documentation and repeated information requests can impose substantial staff time and costs. The board said it will continue to submit necessary documentation on a case-by-case basis.
The resolution text on the record states that the Board of Supervisors of Worth County, Iowa, in February 2025, approves use of the county UEI by Secondary Roads and assumes “all risk involved,” language read aloud at the meeting. County staff completed the signatures after the vote.
The action allows the secondary roads department to proceed with FEMA filings under the county's identifier; no specific FEMA award was accepted or allocated at the meeting.
Meeting materials did not include a copy of the resolution in the transcript and did not specify which FEMA application (by disaster number) would be pursued next. The county indicated it will continue to evaluate event-by-event whether to pursue reimbursement when the expected recovery amount and staff time align.
The county did not cite any statute or administrative code during the discussion; the request was described as a FEMA administrative requirement conveyed by a state or federal contact.
