Homeowners in the city of Houston have until 5 p.m. Dec. 31 to apply for federal aid set aside for reimbursing repairs for damage sustained in Hurricane Harvey.
The deadline remains in place despite an attempt by U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, D-Houston, to seek another one-year extension. The deadline was previously extended a year from Dec. 31, 2019.
“Unfortunately, many residents have yet to receive any reimbursement for these authorized home repair expenses. The jurisdictional dispute and resulting confusion about the process has left many people who are eligible to recover without the means to submit and follow-up on their applications,” Fletcher wrote in a Dec. 11 letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which oversees the grant program at the federal level.
The city of Houston's homeowner assistance program has been mired in a contentious court battle over whether the Texas General Land Office could intervene and oversee some aspects of the program, including home rebuilding. The case, which made it to a state appeals court, is on hold as the GLO and the city of Houston are working on an agreement, according to court filings.
