FEMA finds the Applicant has substantiated through documentation the Public Works Department costs were tied to eligible work. However, the documentation for the Police Department does not differentiate potentially eligible work from ineligible, routine work. Therefore, this appeal is partially granted for $190,728.70. Appeal Letter SENT VIA EMAIL W. Nim Kidd, MPA, CEM Chief, Texas Division of Emergency Management Vice Chancellor- The Texas A&M University System Chase Park III, 313 E. Anderson Lane Austin, TX 78752 Diana Lopez Fiscal Manager Office of Emergency Management City of San Antonio P.O. Box 23339 San Antonio, TX 78223 Re: Second Appeal – City of San Antonio, PA ID: 029-65000-00, FEMA-4586-DR-TX, Grants Manager Project 184059/Project Worksheet 821, Force Account Labor & Equipment Costs, Immediate Threat Dear W. Nim Kidd and Diana Lopez: This is in response to Texas Division of Emergency Management (Recipient) letter dated February 14, 2025, which transmitted the referenced second appeal on behalf of the City of San Antonio (Applicant). The Applicant is appealing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) denial of $612,067.02 for Force Account Labor overtime for emergency work. As explained in the enclosed analysis, I have determined the Applicant has substantiated through documentation the Public Works Department costs were tied to eligible work. However, the documentation for the Police Department does not differentiate potentially eligible work from ineligible, routine work. Therefore, this appeal is partially granted for $190,728.70. By copy of this letter, I am requesting the Regional Administrator to take appropriate action to implement this determination. This determination is the final decision on this matter pursuant to 44 C.F.R. § 206.206, Appeals. Sincerely, /S/ Robert Pesapane Director, Public Assistance Enclosure cc: George A. Robinson Regional Administrator FEMA Region 6 Appeal Analysis Background Texas experienced severe winter storms from February 11 through February 21, 2021.[1] The City of San Antonio (Applicant) claimed $4,148,907.93 in FEMA Public Assistance (PA) funding, including $1,375,234.68 in Force Account Labor overtime for, among other items, the Police Department responding to calls, and assisting in water distribution, highway closures, and Emergency Operation Center (EOC) staffing, and for the Public Works Department assisting in water distribution during the incident.[2] FEMA prepared Grants Manager Project 184059 to document work and costs. From December 2021 through December 2022, FEMA made numerous requests to the Applicant for supporting documentation to substantiate its claimed costs.[3] FEMA issued a determination memorandum on October 5, 2023, granting $2,623,926.93 in costs and denying $1,524,981.00, including $1,375,234.68 in Force Account Labor overtime for lack of supporting documentation and ineligible work.[4] First Appeal On November 21, 2023, the Applicant appealed for $1,386,642.59, including $1,375,234.68 for Force Account Labor overtime, and provided additional documentation to support the costs.[5] In support of its appeal the Applicant provided timesheets, pay stubs, sign-in sheets and Force Account Labor spreadsheets sorted by department. The Texas Division of Emergency Management (Recipient) transmitted the appeal to FEMA on December 4, 2023, expressing its support. On March 7, 2024, FEMA sent the Applicant and Recipient a Request for Information (RFI) for additional documentation in support of the appeal, including overtime spreadsheets, revised to include regular time, and pay stubs for a missing pay period. FEMA asked for clarification regarding much of the documentation the Applicant had already submitted. Lastly, FEMA asked the Applicant to provide information related to locations of water distribution, how many personnel were at each site, and sign-in sheets to confirm meals. In response, the Applicant provided an explanation of its labor summary spreadsheets and supporting documentation, along with additional updated documentation.[6] On December 16, 2024, the FEMA Region 6 Regional Administrator denied costs for Force Account Labor overtime totaling $1,375,234.68, finding the Applicant did not demonstrate that the costs claimed were directly tied to eligible work in response to the declared incident, as the tasks were described in general terms without detail.[7] FEMA found that for the Applicant’s claimed costs for Police Department activities, such as traffic control and roadway closure, and for staff identified as EOC for the Ice Plan Event, the Applicant did not document that the work constituted eligible emergency protective measures rather than routine functions. Additionally, FEMA found that the Public Works Department’s spreadsheet showed overtime claimed for water distribution activities dated prior to the onset of freezing temperatures on February 12, 2021, and even small amounts of claimed overtime from prior to the February 11, 2021, start of the incident period. Therefore, the costs claimed were denied. Second Appeal On February 12, 2025, the Applicant filed a second appeal seeking $612,067.02 for Force Account Labor overtime for the Police and Public Works Departments.[8] The Applicant asserts that its police performed eligible emergency work by closing roadways, sidewalks, and entrance ramps throughout San Antonio during the winter storm as part of the Applicant’s Ice Plan, which required police to facilitate traffic flow, close roadways, and address situations on surface streets when weather conditions indicated freezing. The Applicant claims costs during the period of February 13 to February 17, 2021. The Applicant also claims costs for police that provided security and support to the Convention Center warming center and shelter hotels. The Applicant states its officers assisted with the food and water distribution sites and transported members of the public to stores and other facilities to receive basic needs, services, and follow-up medical treatment. Regarding the Public Works Department Force Account Labor overtime, the Applicant states staff assisted with unloading water, and preparing it to be inventoried and delivered throughout the distribution sites from February 17 to February 26, 2021. The Applicant, in support of its claim, provided revised labor spreadsheets. The Recipient transmitted the second appeal on February 18, 2025, to FEMA with its support. Discussion FEMA is authorized to provide assistance for emergency protective measures to save lives or to protect public health and safety.[9] For emergency protective measures to be eligible, an applicant is responsible for showing that work is required due to an immediate threat resulting from the declared incident.[10] For costs to be eligible, they must be directly tied to the performance of eligible work and adequately documented.[11] At a minimum, FEMA usually requires the “who, what, when, where, why, and how much” for each item claimed.[12] It is the applicant’s responsibility to provide documentation to substantiate its claim as eligible and to clearly explain how those records support its appeal.[13] With its second appeal, the Applicant provides a narrative explanation, along with updated excel spreadsheets for the Public Works and Police Departments. The narrative describes activities the Public Works Department conducted during the incident period, including distributing water to 13 community water sites throughout the city. Furthermore, the Applicant narrowed its Public Works Department request on second appeal to focus on water distribution activities conducted from February 17 to February 26, 2021. Additionally, the Applicant outlined activities conducted by the Police Department per the city’s Ice Plan, including traffic control of on/off ramps on major roadways, water distribution, and transportation of citizens to medical appointments. For the Public Works Department, the Applicant substantiated that this staff worked specifically on activities related to eligible water distribution during the incident period. Documentation included a description of water distribution activities conducted at the Convention Center and sign-in sheets identifying the employees working at that Convention Center location, which correspond to the force account labor spreadsheets for employees at those locations. Therefore, the work conducted by the Public Works Department and associated costs of $190,728.70 are eligible for PA funding. For the Police Department, however, the Applicant’s documentation does not differentiate between eligible emergency protective measures and routine operations. For example, the Police force account labor spreadsheet identifies all officers under the work category “ICE PLAN EVENT/Water & Food Distribution/Sheltering Support” but does not identify what specific tasks within that description the officers performed.[14] Additionally, the sign-in sheets for the officers either list routine tasks (e.g., Traffic Control) or do not list any tasks.[15] The documentation does not distinguish any potentially eligible work from ineligible work. Therefore, the $421,338.32 claimed for the Police Department is not eligible for PA funding. Conclusion