Arkansans May Be Eligible for Transitional Sheltering Assistance

FEMA and the state of Arkansas have activated Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) for Arkansans displaced by recent severe storms in Baxter, Boone, Fulton, Madison and Marion counties.

Residents in these counties who have applied for disaster assistance may be eligible to stay temporarily in a hotel or motel paid for by FEMA. To qualify, residents must apply for FEMA Individual Assistance by the Aug 28. 2024, deadline. FEMA will notify those who submit an application of their eligibility for the TSA benefit through an automated phone call, text message and/or email, depending upon the method of communication they selected at the time of application for disaster assistance.

Applicants may be eligible if they cannot return to their disaster-damaged home and their housing needs cannot be met by insurance, shelters or rental assistance provided by FEMA or another agency.

Under the TSA program, FEMA pays the cost of room, taxes and non-refundable pet fees directly to participating hotels and motels. Pet fees will only be paid up to the approved limit of assistance for individual rooms. Survivors are responsible for all other costs, including laundry, restaurant/room service, parking, telephone or movie rental.

Continued eligibility is determined on an individual basis. When eligibility ends, survivors will be notified by FEMA seven days prior to checkout date.

TSA is limited to participating hotels and motels in Baxter, Boone, Fulton, Madison and Marion counties or the counties that border them. This includes participating hotels in contiguous counties in the State of Arkansas to include Benton, Carroll, Crawford, Franklin, Izard, Johnson, Newton, Searcy, Sharp, Stone and Washington counties, and in the State of Missouri to include Howell, Oregon, Ozark, Stone and Taney counties. Applicants must refer to the TSA Locator to find a hotel at www.femaemergencyhotels.com and enter their FEMA registration number, obtained when they registered for FEMA assistance.

TSA participants may also be eligible for other FEMA financial help, including Displacement Assistance, Rental Assistance, Home Repair Assistance and other aspects of the Individual Assistance program.

To apply for FEMA assistance, homeowners and renters can:

• Visit a Disaster Recovery Center. Find an available center at fema.gov/drc.
• Go online to DisasterAssistance.gov.
• Download the FEMA App for mobile devices.
• Call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362 between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. Help is available in most languages. If you use a relay service, such as video relay (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service.