Now, the Follow-Up : A key part of the post-quake struggle lies in Washington

To his credit, President Clinton now knows firsthand what this region needs in order to recover from Monday’s earthquake. His visit Wednesday was relatively brief but he saw fallen freeways, spoke with residents of the hard-hit San Fernando Valley, heard requests for help from local officials and even rode out some sizable aftershocks.

Now he must return to Washington and follow up on his promises to ask Congress for an emergency appropriation of federal aid for Los Angeles and to work with local officials in California for waiver of a federal requirement so that a matching-funds figure can be lowered from 25% to 10%. He knows enough about California’s recent economic problems to recognize that it is unrealistic for a state mired in recession to come up with even 25%. For its part, California’s congressional delegation must hang together to make sure that the infusion of federal aid gets here as fast as possible.

Although the most obvious need for U.S. aid is in helping rebuild the fallen freeways, Washington can also help provide emergency housing assistance. As Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry G. Cisneros said Wednesday, our post-quake housing crisis has yet to come.

At least 4,000 people are in emergency shelters after being ordered out of damaged houses, apartments and mobile homes. An estimated 20,000 are camping out in parks, driveways and automobiles, preferring to be outside while the aftershocks continue.

Many victims will need help to rebuild, repair or relocate to permanent housing. Most will qualify for temporary housing assistance checks provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Homeowners and tenants qualify for this help, which, for up to 18 months, covers rents typical for an area. They can expect a check within a week of making an application.

To speed that process, FEMA is taking applications by telephone and expects to open a dozen new centers Thursday. Using a similar process after the recent brush fires, FEMA issued checks within two or three days of getting applications. That fast delivery was made possible because federal disaster relief workers now use hand-held computers, eliminating time-consuming paperwork. The new technology was just one of the many improvements made under President Clinton.

FEMA can also provide aid for small repairs and grants for such needs as replacing essential household items. Those grants, which are typically awarded to people on fixed incomes, can also be used to pay for quake-related medical expenses or funerals. In addition, the disaster relief agency provides low-interest loans, which are processed by the Small Business Administration, to cover the loss of uninsured residential property and personal effects.

When government checks arrive, newly homeless people can turn to the city housing department for help in finding an apartment. Housing officials have already begun to contact apartment owners in the hardest-hit areas to find vacancies. The recently recorded vacancy rate of 10% in the San Fernando Valley should offer a substantial source of replacement housing.

Cisneros also has allocated $100 million from reserve funds for 3,000 new subsidized rental vouchers known as Section 8 certificates for poor tenants. A good first step--but just a start in the rebuilding process.