Governor Bobby Jindal announced that portions of the state have been approved for a major disaster declaration by the federal government. The major declaration authorizes Stafford Act Public Assistance Program funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to assist parishes recovering from severe storms, tornadoes and flooding this October and November.

Governor Bobby Jindal said, “This is good news for our Louisiana communities hit by the severe weather this October and November. These public assistance funds will provide communities the support they need to rebuild and repair critical infrastructure, in addition to helping them pay the costs they incurred while responding to the storms this fall.”

FEMA’s notification to the state today said that the FEMA Public Assistance (PA) program will provide assistance for repairs to damaged public facilities in nine parishes: Beauregard, Bossier, Caldwell, Claiborne, De Soto, Natchitoches, Ouachita, Union, and Webster. FEMA denied Governor Jindal’s request for assistance for two parishes: Caddo and Jefferson Davis, citing that they did not meet the federal eligibility requirements for assistance because their damage did not rise above the minimum threshold.

Governor Bobby Jindal requested a major disaster declaration from President Obama in a November 30, 2009 letter, following the state’s emergency declaration on October 30, 2009. The letter also included a request for funding under FEMA’s Individual Assistance Program to assist those individuals who experienced damage to their homes as a result of the severe weather. FEMA said the damage to individual property did not reach their minimum threshold, however, and funding through that program was not authorized.