DisasterAssistance.gov is an easy to use website that consolidates disaster information in one place. Currently, 17 U.S. Government agencies, which sponsor more than 50 forms of disaster assistance, contribute to the website. You can apply for many forms of assistance with a single, online application. Your application information is shared only with those agencies that you identify and is protected by the highest levels of security. Ultimately, DisasterAssistance.gov will speed the application process and allow you to check the progress of your application online.

To see a list of agencies and learn more about the forms of assistance they offer, please visit our Federal Agency Benefits page.

More than 800,000 individuals needed emergency assistance, such as housing, food, and clothing, after Hurricane Katrina struck the southern United States in 2005. That year, more than 2.7 million people applied for FEMA assistance. Since Hurricane Katrina, more than 50 presidentially declared national disasters have been declared each year. These events have caused injury and death, destroyed homes and businesses, and disrupted the lives of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation.

DisasterAssistance.gov is the result of Executive Order 13411, which requires the government to simplify the process of identifying and applying for disaster assistance. Executive Order 13411 was issued in response to the confusion and frustration people encountered when they asked for help from multiple federal programs following Hurricane Katrina. All federal agencies that offer forms of assistance to those affected by disaster are working closely to turn this vision into reality. The initial DisasterAssistance.gov website launched December 31, 2008, with disaster assistance programs administered at the federal level.

Following the initial launch, additional forms of assistance will be added, expanding DisasterAssistance.gov’s capacity to help individuals in need. DisasterAssistance.gov is scheduled to be completed by 2014 and will include forms of assistance available at the federal, state, regional and local level.