FEMA Public Assistance Program

All eligible expenses will be reimbursed as long as they are incurred/paid within the incident period of March 23 , 2020 through September 14, 2020. As of 2021, it is possible expenses from January 20, 2020 through March 22, 2020 will also be reimbursed, but this will be determined by the state.

New directives, issued in 2021, have expanded eligibility to includes expenses between January 21, 2021 through September 30, 2021.

We will be filing for assistance as one Archdiocesan entity. We will submit all of our parish and school expenses under one umbrella, and once we receive funds from MEMA, we will distribute these funds directly back to the entities that applied.

Please only submit expenses if you have the proof of payment (canceled check or bank statement) to accompany the invoice. It is OK to submit expenses past the deadline – it simply means the expense will go into the next batch that will be processed.

This is an unprecedented disaster and much of the policy is still being developed. We have not received any guidance on the eligibility of these types of expenses. Our best advice would be to capture these costs and provide the documentation in our claim to FEMA, who will make an eligibility determination. Additionally, we strongly suggest that parishes incur only the costs that are necessary to plan for or respond to the pandemic and continue their operations. We do not encourage parishes to spend funds on items that would be “nice to have” based on the belief that it would be reimbursed by FEMA. We will certainly submit all costs to FEMA for their consideration, provided they are COVID-19 related costs.

A copy of the invoice and cancelled check would be best. However, if the cancelled check is unavailable, a copy of the original check with a copy of the bank statement showing that check has cleared is acceptable.

As of 2021, we are told the rate will be 100%.

Volunteer labor can be used to perform tasks/services for which you would otherwise use employees or contract for the service. A reasonable value for that volunteer labor will be assigned based on a prevailing rate in the market. If your ushers are already volunteer positions, there is no market rate for those services. To aid you in this process, download the Volunteer and Donated Resources Worksheet.

Please send documentation to our office. We have set up a dedicated email for this purpose: covidexpenses@rcab.org. Please call 617-833-0811 if you have any questions.

Individual parishes/ministries that have an accounting system should track COVID-related expenses on a parish/ministry level by setting up a “cost code” for COVID-19. Ideally, use your existing general ledger account structure, but separate the transactions into a COVID-19 department or code.

For QuickBooks Users:

Please create a subaccount “– 80 – FEMA Public Assistance Program COVID-19” within each applicable expense account (ex. 6309 Maintenance Buildings, 6201 Office/Cleaning Supplies etc.) to track direct costs associated with COVID-19.

For Intacct Users:

Please use project number “P-0000618 – FEMA Public Assistance Program COVID 19” to track direct costs associated with COVID-19.

Save and scan all documentation when incurring costs for COVID-19. This would include proposals, contracts, purchase orders, invoices, and checks for goods/services provided. Send documentation to us at covidexpenses@rcab.org

Below is a list of categories for cost tracking. The aim is to account for all expenses that are not part of your normal operations or in excess of what would be normally required. Err on the side of caution and include all expenses that you feel meets that criteria:

• Staffing directly related to COVID-19 – any contract or volunteer labor for planning or responding to the disaster
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) & Supplies – all equipment, supplies and devices for the both parish personnel or those in the community
• Temporary facilities – establishing exterior facilities (including tents) to perform food/clothing/supply distribution or screening of those that may be infected
• Maintenance (contracted or volunteer) – cleaning, remediation, equipment, personnel and supplies, including sanitization of your public spaces. If utilizing volunteers, be sure to document their name, date of service, duties performed, and hours worked
• Facility Improvements – Construction of or conversion/enhancement of spaces to assist with COVID-19 response