U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-3) today announced that the president has signed a major disaster declaration for seven counties in the 3^rd Congressional District triggering the release of funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help communities recover from severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding from May 29 to June 10, 2013.

The counties of Callaway, Lincoln, Maries, Miller, Montgomery, Osage and St. Charles within the 3^rd District are eligible for Public Assistance Program grants for emergency work and the repair or replacement of disaster-damaged facilities. The Hazard Assistance Program also is available for actions taken to prevent or reduce long term risk to life and property from natural hazards.

On July 9, 2013, Luetkemeyer authored a letter, signed by the entire Missouri Delegation, to President Obama urging the issuance of a Major Disaster Declaration as requested by the Governor Nixon.

The Public Assistance Program provides grants to state and local governments and certain non-profit entities to assist them with the response to and recovery from disasters. Specifically, the program provides assistance for debris removal, emergency protective measures, and permanent restoration of infrastructure. The purpose of the Hazard Mitigation Program is to reduce the loss of life and property due to natural disasters and to enable mitigation measures to be implemented during the immediate recovery from a disaster and that is available to every county in the state. Individual Assistance requested by Governor Nixon is still under review by President Obama.