WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. has declared an emergency in the State of California due to severe winter storms, flooding, landslides, and mudslides that have ravaged portions of the west, and continue to cause emergency conditions. As a result, the President has authorized the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate all disaster relief efforts and provide assistance to alleviate the suffering caused by the emergency on the local population.
The President’s action is authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, which allows FEMA to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures to save lives, protect property, and ensure public health and safety.
The assistance is aimed to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in the counties of Amador, Butte, El Dorado, Fresno, Humboldt, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Lake, Los Angeles, Madera, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Mono, Monterey, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Francisco, San Mateo, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sierra, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Tulare, Tuolumne, and Yuba.
FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency at its discretion.
