Arizona Disaster Relief Program: State Emergency Funds, FEMA Aid, and Local Help

How the Arizona disaster relief program works

Disaster help in Arizona moves up in layers. Each layer opens only when the one below it is overwhelmed:

1. Local response. Cities, counties, and tribal governments respond first. Your county emergency management office runs shelters, sandbag sites, and damage reports.
2. State emergency declaration. If the damage is beyond local means, the governor (or DEMA’s director in some cases) can declare a state emergency. That unlocks the Governor’s Emergency Fund and state staff and equipment.
3. Federal request. If the damage is beyond the state’s means, the governor can ask the President for a major disaster declaration. FEMA reviews damage before deciding.
4. Federal programs. If approved with Individual Assistance, FEMA household grants, Disaster Unemployment Assistance, crisis counseling, and sometimes Disaster SNAP become available in the named counties or tribal lands.

Tribal nations in Arizona can also ask the President for their own federal declaration. Several recent Arizona declarations came that way.

The key point for families: a state emergency declaration does not by itself create a household grant. Unlike states such as Iowa, which runs a separate state grant for low-income households, we could not find a published Arizona program that pays individuals directly when FEMA aid is not approved. DEMA’s website blocked our checks, so ask DEMA or your county emergency manager whether any state help has been set up for a specific event.

The Governor’s Emergency Fund in detail

Arizona’s emergency spending rules are in A.R.S. 35-192. The law lets the state pay disaster costs out of the general fund for floods, wildfires (after other fire funds run out), epidemics, and other major disasters. It sets limits and a spending order:

Because the fund is small and pays governments first, it rarely reaches individual families as cash. When the Legislature wants to help a hard-hit area further, it usually does so through the state budget for specific projects.

FEMA declarations for Arizona since 2024

We checked FEMA’s OpenFEMA declarations data on November 8, 2026. Since mid-2024, Arizona has had three major disaster declarations, all requested by tribal nations, plus several Fire Management Assistance Grants (FMAGs).

FEMA usually gives people about 60 days after a declaration to register, so the windows for the 2024 declarations have closed. If you live on San Carlos Apache lands and were affected by the October 2025 storms, contact the tribe’s emergency management office or FEMA to ask whether registration for DR-4911 is still open. No Arizona county outside tribal lands has had FEMA household aid since 2024.

The 2025 Gila County floods and what followed

Flash flooding on September 25–27, 2025 hit Globe and other parts of Gila County hard. Here is what official records show:

• No FEMA major disaster declaration. OpenFEMA lists no declaration for Gila or Mohave counties for the fall 2025 floods. News reports say FEMA denied the state’s request in December 2025 and denied its appeal in July 2026.
• SBA disaster loans were offered. At the governor’s request, the SBA opened disaster loans for Gila County and the neighboring counties of Coconino, Graham, Maricopa, Navajo, Pinal, and Yavapai, plus the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community and the San Carlos Apache Tribe. The deadline for home and property damage was December 9, 2025, and for economic injury July 10, 2026. Both have passed.
• Later storm remnants. The remnants of Hurricane Priscilla and Tropical Storm Raymond on October 10–13, 2025 led to an SBA economic injury loan declaration for businesses and nonprofits in Gila, La Paz, Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, Yavapai, and Yuma counties. Its deadline was August 14, 2026, plus a 60-day grace period, which has now ended.

If you still have unmet needs from those floods, the best routes are your county’s long-term recovery group (ask Gila County Emergency Management or 211), local churches and charities, and the state’s crisis programs described below.

Applying for FEMA Individual Assistance

If a future disaster brings a federal declaration with Individual Assistance for your area, apply at DisasterAssistance.gov, through the FEMA App, or by phone at 1-800-621-3362. FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program can help with:

• temporary housing or rent while your home is unlivable,
• basic repairs to make your home safe and livable,
• replacing essential personal property, and
• other serious disaster needs, such as medical, funeral, and transportation costs.

FEMA does not pay for losses covered by insurance, so file your insurance claim first and keep the decision letter. FEMA help is meant to cover basic needs, not to restore everything you lost. Photograph damage before cleanup, keep receipts, and use our document checklist to gather proof of identity, address, and ownership. If you need help paying for repairs when no FEMA aid exists, our guide to government assistance for home repair covers USDA and local repair programs.

Wildfire and post-fire flooding

Arizona’s biggest recurring disasters are wildfires in the spring and early summer, followed by monsoon flooding from July through September. Burned slopes cannot soak up rain, so neighborhoods below a burn scar can flood for several years after a fire.

• FMAGs do not pay households. A Fire Management Assistance Grant reimburses firefighting costs. If you see an FMAG announced for your county, it does not mean personal aid is coming.
• Flood insurance matters. Homeowners and renters insurance usually excludes flooding. A National Flood Insurance Program policy normally has a 30-day waiting period, but FEMA allows an exception for flooding that starts on burned federal land if the policy was bought before the fire was contained or within 60 days afterward. Ask an insurance agent whether this applies to your property.
• Report damage. Tell your county emergency management office about damage even if you are insured. These reports help officials decide whether to ask for state or federal help.

Farmers and ranchers with fire, flood, or drought losses should contact their county office of the USDA Farm Service Agency in Arizona.

Food help after a disaster in Arizona

Disaster SNAP (D-SNAP) gives short-term food benefits to people not normally on SNAP, but only after a federal declaration with Individual Assistance and USDA approval. USDA’s Arizona disaster nutrition page shows no active response, and its only past Arizona response listed is from the 2018 Tinder Fire, when SNAP households in two Coconino County ZIP codes could replace lost food.

If you already get SNAP (Nutrition Assistance) through the Arizona Department of Economic Security and lose food in a power outage, flood, or fire, you can ask DES for replacement benefits. Federal rules generally require you to report the loss within 10 days. If you are not on SNAP and have little money, our guide to emergency food stamps explains expedited SNAP, which can be issued within about a week.

SBA disaster loans, for information

The U.S. Small Business Administration offers disaster loans to homeowners, renters, businesses, and nonprofits in declared areas. For the 2025 Gila County floods, homeowners could borrow up to $500,000 for home repairs and up to $100,000 for personal property. These are loans that must be repaid, not grants, and we are not recommending one. The SBA can open loans even when FEMA does not approve a major disaster declaration, as it did for Gila County.

The IRS often extends tax deadlines for people in federally declared disaster areas. Check its tax relief in disaster situations page for Arizona notices.

Help when there is no federal declaration

Most Arizona disasters never reach a FEMA household declaration. These are the places that help anyway:

• 211 Arizona. Dial 211 or visit 211 Arizona for shelters, food banks, cleanup crews, and local recovery groups.
• American Red Cross. The Red Cross provides emergency shelter, meals, and sometimes short-term financial help after home fires, floods, and storms.
• State crisis services. Arizona DES and local community action agencies run Short-Term Crisis Services, which can help with rent, utility, and other costs during a crisis. Our Arizona hardship program guide explains how it works.
• Legal help. AZLawHelp.org lists free legal aid for insurance disputes, landlord problems after a disaster, and contractor fraud.
• Lost work. Disaster Unemployment Assistance is only available after a federal declaration with Individual Assistance. Without one, apply for regular unemployment through Arizona DES if you lost your job.

Related guides

• Iowa disaster relief program
• Arkansas disaster relief program
• Washington disaster relief program
• Government assistance for house fire victims

Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information. Declarations, deadlines, and program rules change after each disaster. Federal declaration data comes from FEMA’s OpenFEMA database. National Relief Program is an independent website and is not affiliated with DEMA, FEMA, the SBA, or any government agency.