Aid Eligibility Not Tied Solely to Income

Most federal programs to help the victims of last month’s devastating rains are for families that earn less than $50,000 a year.

That would seem to make most of the Orange County residents who suffered losses ineligible for the programs, right? Not necessarily, Federal Emergency Management Agency officials said Thursday.

While family income is taken into consideration, they said, all homeowners who suffered major damage should apply for assistance, regardless of their income.

Orange County, which sustained at least $63.5 million in damage, was among the counties that President Clinton declared disaster areas because of the heavy storms last month. That declaration, made Wednesday, makes residents and business owners eligible to apply for low-interest loans, grants and other forms of federal assistance.

Because the worst damage occurred when landslides hit wealthy areas such as Anaheim Hills, Laguna Beach and San Clemente, some affluent residents felt they would not qualify for assistance.

But FEMA spokesman Alex Newton said that even some high-income residents may be eligible for assistance.

“We are a supplemental assistance organization,” he said. “We’re not there to help every victim. We are there to help those who have no other recourse and they are stripped of virtually everything.”

“That said,” he continued, “we want everyone who feels they need assistance to call in and talk to a registrar. We don’t want someone to say, ‘I make $50,000 a year, so I can’t get any help.’ That’s not true. Each case is judged individually.”

The telephone number for FEMA is (800) 462-9029.