The President's disaster declaration on Thursday, March 20, enables Fulton County homeowners, renters and business owners with underinsured or uninsured disaster-related damage or losses to apply for a wide range of state and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) programs to help begin the recovery process.

Available assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) for renters, homeowners and businesses of all sizes to cover uncompensated property losses and other programs that help meet eligible disaster-related needs.

The first step is to call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) or, for the hearing-or speech-impaired, (TTY) 1-800-462-7585.  Registration lines are open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (local time) seven days a week until further notice. Multilingual operators with a wide range of language skills are available for registration. Online registration is available at www.fema.gov.

When registering, applicants should have the following information readily available:

• Current and pre-disaster address;
• Current telephone numbers;
• Social Security number; and
• Insurance coverage, policy number(s) and agent's name if possible.

Registration takes about 20 minutes and once all essential information is recorded an application number is assigned.

Once registered, an applicant with disaster-related damages can expect to see a FEMA-contracted inspector within a few days to view the damage and file a report. Inspectors do not determine eligibility or set compensation.

All FEMA community relations workers, inspectors and anyone else working for FEMA will always wear a visible official ID badge and will never ask for a fee of any kind.

Some quick facts about assistance for individuals:

The Individuals and Households Program provides temporary help with housing and/or financial assistance with other disaster-related needs.

Housing Assistance can provide funding for:

• Rental assistance;
• Repairs to make your home safe, sanitary and functional; or
• Homeowners to help replace destroyed homes.

Other Needs Assistance may include funding for:

• Personal property;
• Transportation;
• Medical, dental and funeral expenses; or
• Other expenses.

Other Assistance for individuals:

• Low-interest disaster loans from the SBA for homeowners, renters, and businesses of all sizes.

FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.

Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, economic status or retaliation. If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, you should call FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362) or contact your State Office of Equal Rights. If suspicious of any abuse of FEMA programs, please contact the fraud hotline at 800-323-8603.

SBA is the federal government's primary source of money for the long-term rebuilding of disaster-damaged private property. SBA helps homeowners, renters, businesses of all sizes, and private non-profit organizations fund repairs or rebuilding efforts, and cover the cost of replacing lost or disaster-damaged personal property. These disaster loans cover uninsured and uncompensated losses and do not duplicate benefits of other agencies or organizations. For information about SBA programs, applicants may call (800) 659-2955 or online at www.sba.gov.

For more information on Georgia's disaster recovery, visit www.fema.gov or www.gema.ga.gov or www.ready.ga.gov/ or www.georgia911.org or www.afcema.com