General Information

 

In the time of a major disaster, such as a hurricane, CGMA’s initial objective is to rapidly provide emergency assistance for evacuation and cash needed to meet basic living expenses such as food, shelter, clothing, etc.

 

 

In these instances, CGMA uses appropriate modified procedures to provide rapid emergency assistance, including reducing normal paperwork and approval procedures to a minimum.

 

 

It is CGMA’s policy during these extraordinary times to meet the client’s immediate financial needs with an interest-free loan and then at a later date, when more specific data and information are available, determine whether the financial assistance should be a grant, loan or a combination of grant and loan.

 

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Loan Repayment

In these situations, the start of any interest-free loan repayment is deferred until some point in the future. This provides time for the situation to stabilize and for reimbursement entitlements to be determined, allowing CGMA to objectively assess an individual’s true out-of-pocket losses and financial needs.

 

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Converting a Loan into a Grant

While CGMA would like to see those affected made whole, even agencies of the federal government and major charities do not have sufficient funds to cover every individual’s actual losses. CGMA’s disaster assistance priority for losses and expenses not reimbursed by other sources is:

 

Priority 1 - Emergency disaster assistance for basic living expenses to prevent privation (lack of food, shelter or clothing) and temporary home repairs to prevent further damage.

 

Priority 2 - Basic household setup/re-establishment, personal property items and other emergency needs.

 

Disaster assistance will be provided in the order of priority indicated, subject to the availability of funds and financial need. CGMA does not provide assistance for major structural loss. It must be recognized that CGMA is not in a position to cover losses due to lack of adequate insurance coverage, the failure of an insurance company to settle claims, or to bridge the gap between pre-disaster property values and insurance recoupment.

 

NOTE: Assistance will normally be limited to $3,000 per client/family. Where a need exists for greater amounts, approval must come from CGMA-HQ.

 

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Applications

• When directed by CGMA-HQ - Disaster Assistance Request Form (CGMA Form 6) will be available from your local CGMARepresentative

 

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Need More Information?

Detailed information concerning Disaster Assistance is contained in Appendix F of the CGMA Manual

Contact your local Coast Guard Mutual Assistance Representative

Call CGMA-HQ (800) 881-2462 or (703) 872-6716

Send us an email: ARL-DG-CGMA@uscg.mil