FEMA Disaster Declarations List Through Sept. 15, 2026

TL;DR: By September 15, 2026, the active federal declaration list included September 1 major-disaster designations for North Dakota, South Dakota and Hawaii, plus a September 14 Fire Management Assistance declaration for Texas.

Newest verified additions on the list

The most recent entries published by September 15, 2026 were loan-implementation notices tied to presidential major-disaster actions dated September 1, 2026. According to the Federal Register notice titled Presidential Declaration of a Major Disaster for Public Assistance Only for the State of North Dakota, the North Dakota action carries the code FEMA-4934-DR and covers severe storms, straight-line winds and tornadoes.

That North Dakota designation lists an incident period of June 7, 2026 through June 9, 2026. Private nonprofit organizations providing essential services of a governmental nature in the designated counties may seek disaster loans through the MySBA Loan Portal at https://lending.sba.gov, with in-person filing at other locally announced locations.

A companion entry, the Federal Register notice titled Presidential Declaration of a Major Disaster for Public Assistance Only for the State of South Dakota, records FEMA-4938-DR, also dated September 1, 2026. Its incident is described as severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding. The incident period is June 28, 2026 through July 3, 2026.

A third September 1 action, described in the Federal Register notice titled Presidential Declaration of a Major Disaster for the State of Hawaii, is coded FEMA-4936-DR. It identifies the incident as an earthquake, with an incident period of May 22, 2026.

Separately, a FEMA Alert dated September 15, 2026 reported a Fire Management Assistance Declaration for Texas for the Hydra Fire on September 14, 2026. That entry is identified as FM-5677-TX and lists Bosque County as approved for Public Assistance.

How a federal declaration gets on the list

Declarations do not appear automatically after damage. Under Sections 401 and 501 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, cited as 42 U.S.C. 5170 and 5191, a state governor or tribal chief executive may ask the President to declare that a major disaster or emergency exists when an event exceeds state or tribal response capabilities.

That description appears in the Federal Register notice titled Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review, Comment Request; The Declaration Process, published September 15, 2026 by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The same notice explains that a request must move through FEMA, which evaluates the request and makes a recommendation to the President about response action.

If the request is granted, the state or tribe may become eligible for assistance under 42 U.S.C. 5170a-5170c; 5172-5186; 5189c-5189d; and 5192. A state or tribe may appeal a denial under 44 CFR 206.46 and may seek an adjustment to the cost-share percentage under 44 CFR 206.47.

For planners, the procedural detail matters because the declaration code determines the aid channel. The September 2026 Federal Register collection uses FEMA Form FF-104-FY-22-232, formerly 010-0-13, titled Request for Presidential Disaster Declaration Major Disaster or Emergency. It carries OMB No. 1660-0009. Comments on extension of that collection were due on or before October 15, 2026, with submissions directed to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.

The contact listed for additional information was Dean Webster, Declaration Section, Federal Emergency Management Agency, at (202) 646-2833. The information-management contact was Director, Information Management Division, 500 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20472.

North Dakota and South Dakota: Public Assistance Only designations

The North Dakota and South Dakota entries share an important limiter: Public Assistance Only. In those two cases, the Small Business Administration notices state that private nonprofit organizations providing essential services of a governmental nature may file disaster-loan applications.

For North Dakota FEMA-4934-DR, the primary counties are Bottineau, Burke, Divide, McLean, Mercer, Oliver and Williams. The physical-damage number is 21861B and the economic-injury number is 218620. Disaster Declaration numbers are #21861 and #21862, with North Dakota Disaster Number ND-20016.

For South Dakota FEMA-4938-DR, the primary counties are Beadle, Bennett, Buffalo, Day, Hand, Hughes, Hyde and Stanley. The notice also lists tribal areas: Crow Creek Sioux Tribe of the Crow Creek Reservation and Lower Brule Sioux Tribe of the Lower Brule Reservation. The physical-damage number is 21857B and the economic-injury number is 218580. Disaster Declaration numbers are #21857 and #21858, with South Dakota Disaster Number SD-20026.

Both Public Assistance Only declarations set the same SBA loan calendar in the published notices: Physical Loan Application Deadline Date November 1, 2026, and Economic Injury Loan Application Deadline Date June 1, 2027. Interest rates for private nonprofit organizations are listed at 3.625 percent for physical damage, whether or not credit is available elsewhere, and 3.625 percent for economic injury where credit is not available elsewhere.

Customer-service contacts differ by state in the notices. The North Dakota contact is Robert Camacho, Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience, U.S. Small Business Administration, 409 3rd Street SW, Suite 6050, Washington, DC 20416, at (202) 205-6734. The South Dakota contact is Shaquille Lewis at the same office address, at (202) 205-6734. General assistance is available by email at [email protected] and by phone at 1-800-659-2955, with 7-1-1 for telecommunications relay services.

Both notices cite Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 59008 and authority 13 CFR 123.3(b). Both were signed by James Stallings, Associate Administrator, Office of Disaster Recovery & Resilience.

Hawaii earthquake: broader loan eligibility and tax relief

The Hawaii entry differs from the Dakota entries because eligibility is broader. According to the Federal Register notice titled Presidential Declaration of a Major Disaster for the State of Hawaii, applications for disaster loans may be submitted online using the MySBA Loan Portal or in person at other locally announced locations.

The primary county for physical-damage and economic-injury loans is Hawaii. Contiguous counties for economic-injury loans only are City and County of Honolulu, Kalawao, Kauai and Maui. Disaster Declaration numbers are #21842 and #21843, with Hawaii Disaster Number HI-20015. Numbers assigned are 218422 for physical damage and 218430 for economic injury.

The Hawaii calendar matches the other September 1 actions: issued September 1, 2026, physical-loan deadline November 1, 2026, and economic-injury deadline June 1, 2027. Interest rates listed are 5.750 percent for homeowners with credit available elsewhere and 2.875 percent without; 8.000 percent for businesses with credit available elsewhere and 4.000 percent without; 3.625 percent for private nonprofit organizations for physical damage; and for economic injury, 4.000 percent for business and small agricultural cooperatives without credit available elsewhere and 3.625 percent for private nonprofit organizations without credit available elsewhere.

Tax administration followed the FEMA action. In IRS release HI-2026-03, dated September 10, 2026 and titled IRS announces tax relief for taxpayers impacted by the earthquake in Hawaii County, the Internal Revenue Service announced relief for individuals and businesses affected by the earthquake in Hawaii County that began May 22, 2026.

The IRS said affected taxpayers have until February 1, 2027 to file various federal individual and business returns and make tax payments. Following the FEMA disaster declaration, individuals and households that reside or have a business in Hawaii County qualify. Deadlines falling on or after May 22, 2026 and before February 1, 2027 receive additional time. The February 1, 2027 deadline also applies to affected quarterly payroll and certain excise returns normally due July 31 and November 2, 2026.

Penalties on payroll and excise deposits due on or after May 22, 2026 and before June 8, 2026 will be abated as long as deposits were made by June 8, 2026. The IRS said it automatically identifies taxpayers in the covered area, while taxpayers outside the area whose records were inside it may call 866-562-5227. The release also notes Public Law 119-64, the Disaster Related Extension of Deadlines Act, and notes earlier relief after March severe storms, flooding and mudslides in Hawaii County.

Fire Management Assistance: a separate track

The Texas Hydra Fire entry illustrates a separate declaration track from major disasters. The September 15, 2026 FEMA Alert states that FEMA issued a Fire Management Assistance Declaration for Texas to supplement state, tribal and local recovery efforts in areas affected by the Hydra Fire on September 14, 2026.

Bosque County was listed as approved for Public Assistance under FM-5677-TX. Unlike the SBA loan notices above, the alert does not list homeowner, business or economic-injury loan rates. For household planning, the practical lesson is to check the declaration prefix: DR designations in this period carried loan deadlines and county lists through SBA, while FM designations identified fire-specific supplemented efforts and approved counties.

What readiness planners should record

A usable declaration log should capture code, declaration date, incident description, incident period, designated counties or tribal areas, application deadlines, and assistance contact. For the September 1 group, those fields are November 1, 2026 for physical loans and June 1, 2027 for economic-injury loans. For Hawaii County earthquake effects, add February 1, 2027 for the postponed federal tax filings and payments described by the IRS.

Keep the request paperwork distinct from the aid paperwork. The declaration-request collection is administered under OMB No. 1660-0009 through FEMA, while post-declaration SBA loan filing uses the MySBA Loan Portal. Retain the disaster numbers with insurance and tax files: ND-20016 with 21861B and 218620, SD-20026 with 21857B and 218580, and HI-20015 with 218422 and 218430.