Public paper · October 5, 2026 · Disaster aid · sourced with RebuildAlert
30 days of FEMA PA obligations by category: utilities took 42 percent
In the past 30 days, FEMA set aside $541.9 million for 837 new public rebuilding projects. Utilities got $229.8 million, or 42 percent. The median wait from declaration to this funding step was 519 days.
noticenearby.com/papers/rebuildalert-pa-obligations-by-category-sept-2026.pdf
After a presidential disaster declaration, cities, counties, tribes, and some nonprofits can ask FEMA for help. FEMA is the federal agency that helps after floods, fires, and storms. The Public Assistance program, or PA, helps pay to clean up and rebuild public things.
A project worksheet is the record for one PA job. An obligation is when FEMA formally sets money aside for that worksheet. It is a big step. It is not a contract, and it is not a bid. Local governments and utilities get this money and then hire contractors through public bids.
On Monday, October 5, 2026, FEMA’s public OpenFEMA data showed 837 new Category A–G worksheets with a first obligation in the past 30 days. Those jobs were worth $541.9 million in federal share. Federal share is the part FEMA pays. The local applicant usually pays the rest.
Utilities took the biggest share of the money. Category F—power, water, sewer, and similar systems—got $229.8 million, or about 42 percent. That was only 105 worksheets. Roads and bridges had the most worksheets, at 211, but only about 10 percent of the dollars.
A few large projects held most of the money. Only 85 of the 837 worksheets were labeled Large. Those 85 carried about 85 percent of the federal share. The middle wait from a disaster declaration to this funding step was 519 days—about 17 months. A fresh obligation does not mean a fresh disaster.
Oregon ranked second in the nation in this window, with 37 projects and $38.3 million. The largest Oregon row was about $35.9 million in emergency work for the Battle Mountain Complex Fires. Puerto Rico led overall. North Carolina, New York, and Louisiana rounded out the top five by dollars.
PA sorts permanent and emergency work into seven lettered categories, A through G: debris, emergency measures, roads and bridges, water control, buildings and equipment, utilities, and parks and other. Match your trade to the letter. Read the applicant, not FEMA. FEMA does not hire the contractor.
This page names no street. County and city are as far as a later worksheet note should go. An obligation is not an award to you, and it is not a solicitation.
The longer note, with the full category table, is on RebuildAlert: https://www.rebuildalert.com/blog/pa-obligations-by-category-a-g-september-2026
Disaster aid · sourced with RebuildAlert. https://www.rebuildalert.com
What a contractor can do with this
Debris haulers watch Category A. Road crews watch C. Electrical, water, and sewer firms watch F. Builders watch E. Use the federal share as a clue, not a price. Federal share is FEMA’s part, not the contract value.
Expect a wait. With a median of 519 days from declaration to first obligation, plan a pipeline in months, not days. The applicant still has to hire, and that follows public bidding rules.
Category Z covers management costs. That is overhead, not field work. RebuildAlert’s daily digest focuses on newly obligated Category A–G worksheets for the counties or states you watch.
How the numbers were pulled
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA API, Public Assistance Funded Projects Details v2, queried October 5, 2026. The filter kept worksheets whose first obligation date fell on or after September 5, 2026. Dollar figures use the federalShareObligated field. Days to obligation compare declaration date to first obligation date.
FEMA updates this data often, so the same query on another day may return different numbers. This is a plain-language note. It is not FEMA guidance and not legal advice. RebuildAlert is not affiliated with FEMA or DHS.
Notes and sources
- Source: FEMA OpenFEMA, pulled Oct. 5, 2026. Past 30 days: 837 Category A–G worksheets, $541.9 million federal share. Category F utilities: $229.8 million (42%). Median days declaration→obligation: 519. Oregon: 37 projects, $38.3 million, led by about $35.9 million emergency work for Battle Mountain Complex Fires.
- RebuildAlert: https://www.rebuildalert.com/blog/pa-obligations-by-category-a-g-september-2026
- Author: Ryan Standley / Record of Sale, LLC / Notice Nearby. Not legal advice. Not FEMA guidance. Not a newspaper. Not Legal Publication. No street addresses.
Disaster aid · sourced with RebuildAlert · https://www.rebuildalert.com · @NoticeNearYou post pending.
Not legal advice. Not a newspaper. Not Legal Publication. Record of Sale, LLC (Oregon).