FEMA policy requires that applicants submit COVID-19 projects for work completed from July 2, 2022, through May 11, 2023, no later than November 7, 2023. Examples of extenuating circumstances that may justify a time extension are: (1) if the applicant’s RPA was not approved by October 2022; (2) the applicant has insufficient personnel due to active incident response activities on non-COVID-19 declarations; and (3) the Applicant has an overwhelming quantity of project applications to which the deadline applies. The Applicant submitted its project after the deadline and has not demonstrated extenuating circumstances beyond its control to justify extending the deadline. Section 705(c) of the Stafford Act provides that a state or local government is not liable for reimbursement or any other penalty for any payment made pursuant to the Stafford Act if the payment was authorized by an approved agreement specifying the costs. Section 705(c) does not apply to PNPs and FEMA is not seeking reimbursement because it has not obligated any funding.

The time extension request is denied because neither the Applicant nor the Recipient demonstrated extenuating circumstances beyond either’s control to justify extending the project application deadline. Additionally, as the Applicant is a PNP and no payment was authorized by an approved agreement specifying the costs, section 705(c) of the Stafford Act does not apply. Therefore, this appeal is denied.

Stafford Act § 705(c). 44 C.F.R. § 206.202(f)(2). Programmatic Deadlines Policy, at 2; FP 205-081-2, at 1,4, and5.