Dear Mayor:

We have received important information about the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Mortgage & Rental Assistance Program.

FEMA's Mortgage & Rental Assistance Program is designed to cover rent or mortgage payments for those who have suffered a financial hardship as a result of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Persons suffering financial hardship who are unable to pay their rent or mortgage, and are facing eviction or foreclosure, may be eligible for this program.

To be eligible:

1. An applicant must be a United States citizen, non-citizen national or qualified alien; and,
2. The household must have suffered at least a 25 percent loss of income as a result of the disaster; and,
3. An applicant must have received a late payment notice on their primary residence, or they are in danger of eviction, foreclosure or may be removed from your home.
4. If they meet all of the above requirements, eligible applicants may include anyone living in Manhattan, who commuted out of Manhattan for work,

Or
Anyone whose employer was located in Manhattan or whose own business was located in Manhattan
Or
Anyone whose employer or whose own business, while not located in Manhattan, had an economically dependent business relationship with a firm in Manhattan.

The deadline to apply is January 31, 2003.

If applicable, your constituents can apply for assistance through FEMA's toll-free registration number at 1-800-462-9029 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Translation services are available to accommodate the needs of all language groups.

Application forms are available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Korean, Japanese and French..

It is important that your community, businesses and residents know about the availability of this assistance. To find out more about the MRA program, as well as other FEMA news for New York City please visit their web site at: http://www.fema.gov/diz01/d1391

Thank you.