FEMA lifts manual drawdown restriction on U.S. Virgin Islands recovery reimbursements

The Federal Emergency Management Agency lifted the manual drawdown requirement for reimbursement of post-Hurricanes Irma and Maria recovery project spending in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Government House said on February 3, 2021.

Under the manual drawdown process, the territory had been required to submit reimbursement requests to FEMA for approval before it could draw funds.

FEMA imposed the requirement after a 2018 audit found discrepancies in reimbursement filings submitted by the Virgin Islands government for contract work performed in the aftermath of the 2017 storms.

Government House said FEMA notified the Virgin Islands government in a January 29, 2021 letter that it had completed its assessment of the territory’s response to a Notice of Potential Debt Letter issued on December 15, 2020.

According to the statement, FEMA said the Office of Disaster Recovery had made substantial progress in providing supporting documentation related to the potential debt and that its responsiveness, together with approved internal control plans, led to the decision to lift the manual drawdown process.

The Office of Disaster Recovery was established in 2019 to manage and oversee the disaster recovery process and reconcile past recovery-related discrepancies, according to Government House. The territory was to continue coordinating with FEMA to ensure compliance with federal guidelines and standards.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/fema-lifts-manual-drawdown-restriction-for-reimbursement-of-recovery-project-spending-2/