DEADLINE TO MOVE FROM HOTELS EXTENDED TO FEBRUARY 7, 2006 (Updated 01/20/06)
On January 9, FEMA announced the final extension of the hotel program to February 7.  

• The Agency says it will stop paying for hotel rooms for Katrina and Rita evacuees on February 7, unless the evacuee calls FEMA by January 30 for a unique authorization code.  (Those living in hotels in New Orleans or Jefferson parish (and who have registered with FEMA and have a hotel authorization code) cannot be terminated from the program until after March 1.)
• If an evacuee gets an authorization code by January 30, FEMA will continue to pay for that hotel room until at least February 13.
• Assistance may be available beyond February 13 on a case-by-case basis.
• When an evacuee calls for their authorization code, FEMA will let them know when the Agency will stop paying for their hotel room.

Although many evacuees in and around New Orleans have resisted moving out of their hotels because there is no housing available, FEMA is urging them to consider moving out of state, at least temporarily, where there is more housing.

Background
On January 2, FEMA extended the deadline to end the hotel program, past January 7, until further notice for all Katrina evacuees. The earlier December 15 deadline was extended as a result of a December 12 court ruling.  FEMA has acknowledged that they still do not know the identities of all displaced households currently living in hotels, nor do they know the location of the hotels housing evacuees. A Houston Chronicle article describes the decision in more detail.

On December 25, Corporate Lodging Consulting, the firm contracted by FEMA to manage the hotel program, sent notices to hotels across the country asking them to participate in an Evacuee Census. Hotel managers are asked to provide FEMA with the number of evacuees lodging in their hotels. They are also distributing flyers to hotel managers stating that, "The (hotel lodging) program will continue for all evacuees in all states until further notice pending the resolution of certain issues now in litigation."

On December 16, FEMA announced that no SBA loan application need be completed to receive temporary housing assistance. This complies with the order in McWaters v. FEMA, however, all distaster survivors need to be informed about this change in policy, as many were already turned down or told such application was necessary.

FEMA estimates there are nearly 41,000 hotel rooms nationwide occupied by evacuees as of December 13. 

Background/Prior Developments
On November 15, FEMA announced its plans to transition all of the evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita out of hotels and into long-term housing alternatives, such as apartments.  On November 22, FEMA announced that it has extended the deadline from December 1 to December 15, and gave states with the most evacuees an opportunity to have the deadline further extended to January 7.   NMHC issued the following press release in response to the extended deadline. 

On December 12, a federal judge ruled that FEMA must extend its hotel program for hurricane Katrina evacuees to February 7.  U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval said victims must be given more time in hotels because FEMA cannot guarantee that all applications for other aid, such as rent assistance or trailers, will be processed by the agency's January 7 deadline.  The temporary restraining order was part of a class-action lawsuit filed in November by advocates for hurricane victims.  Duval's order applies only to victims of Hurricane Katrina, however.  It does not affect victims of Hurricane Rita.

FEMA TO END CITY VOUCHER PROGRAM FUNDING MARCH 1, 2006
FEMA's November 22 announcement also sets a deadline for FEMA-funded voucher programs running in Texas and other states.  The plan's details were released in this FEMA press release and  guidance notice.  Essentially, the notices says that

• As of December 1, FEMA will no longer enter into apartment leases under its Section 403 "Emergency Shelter" Program.  (This is the program used to reimburse cities such as Houston and Dallas for their evacuee voucher programs.) 
  
  
• All Section 403 apartment leases will end as of March 1, 2006.  (NMHC continues to seek clarification on how this affects the Houston voucher program where FEMA authorized one-year leases and the new Dallas voucher program where FEMA authorized six-month leases.) After that point, evacuees are expected to pay for their rent via the individual aid they receive from FEMA, through HUD's KDHAP voucher program or through their own financial resources.  FEMA also will pay any penalties for early lease-termination fees if evacuees decide not to stay.

FEMA estimates there are nearly 41,000 hotel rooms nationwide occupied by evacuees as of December 13. 

FEMA HOUSING OUTREACH
On November 16, FEMA issued an  advisory describing the process by which the FEMA Community Relations Strike Teams will be contacting hotel and motel management and Hurricane Katrina evacuee occupants to help them find long-term housing.

FEMA has also created a special page on their web site detailing the housing assistance programs available to them.

RESOURCES FOR EVACUEES

• All evacuees who need help finding housing may contact FEMA’s housing locator service (1-800-762-8740; TTY 1-800-462-7585).    It is open daily from 8 am – 9 pm EST).
  
  
• For other forms of assistance, evacuees may contact FEMA’s help line (1-800-621-FEMA or TTY 1-800-462-7585) or a nearby Disaster Recovery Center to learn more about alternative housing options and referral services.
  
  
• For information about HUD programs, call 1-800-955-2232 (TTY is 1-800-877-8339) for general inquiries and 1-866-373-9509 (TTY 1-800-877-8339) for affected families to learn about the Katrina Disaster Housing Assistance Program.

NMHC/NAA RESPONSE
As the attached NMHC  press release indicates, NMHC remains concerned about the aggressive timetable FEMA has presented and its notification that all city and state voucher programs will no longer be funded after March 1, 2006.  NMHC issued the following press release on November 22 welcoming FEMA's flexibity in extending the hotels-to-apartments deadline.

On November 16, NMHC/NAA also sent a  letter to FEMA and HUD requesting clarification on several issues that are preventing full implementation of the federal post-disaster housing plan.   This November 16 letter is a follow up to an earlier  letter sent on November 9.

HOUSTON RESPONSE
The City of Houston has also sent a  letter to FEMA requesting an extension of the December 1 deadline as well as a waiver on the March 1, 2006 deadline for voucher-funded leases to end based on earlier FEMA commitments that the city could enter into one-year leases.