The committee must adopt and carry out rules for disaster recovery assistance, reimbursements, and related procedures.
(a) In addition to the program purposes set out in Section 31-9-81, the Alabama Disaster Recovery Program shall also be available for the following purposes: (1) To provide assistance under circumstances determined appropriate by the committee as set out in subsection (b) for individual Alabama residents who suffer loss as a result of an event that could enable a county or municipality to seek reimbursement from the Alabama Disaster Recovery Fund pursuant to Section 31-9-83 or for private nonprofit facilities otherwise eligible for assistance under the Stafford Act, 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq., as amended. (2) For mitigation projects or programs developed by the Alabama Emergency Management Agency or a local government according to rules and procedures allowing for such activities adopted pursuant to subsection (b). (3) For reimbursement of day-to-day administrative costs incurred by the Alabama Emergency Management Agency or a local emergency management program according to rules and procedures allowing for such reimbursement adopted pursuant to subsection (b). (b) In order to provide for the additional program purposes set out in subsection (a) and for authorizing distributions for state emergency response and relief efforts, the committee shall develop and implement rules and procedures for providing assistance to individual Alabama residents or to eligible private nonprofit facilities, for reimbursing costs associated with implementing mitigation projects or programs that meet the requirements established by the committee, and for reimbursing day-to-day administrative costs incurred by the Alabama Emergency Management Agency or a local emergency management program. The rules and procedures, which shall be adopted pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, shall include, at a minimum, circumstances under which individuals or private nonprofit facilities will be eligible for assistance and the application and approval process to be utilized, procedures for mitigation projects or programs authorized by the committee, and procedures for reimbursement of day-to-day administrative costs. The committee may also develop rules and procedures which allow for recovery funds to be made available as federal matching funds for any of the program purposes set out in Section 31-9-83 or subsection (a). Expenditures from the recovery fund made in accordance with the rules adopted under this section are authorized, provided the expenditures are otherwise consistent with the provisions and intent of this article. (c) Notwithstanding the time frames for effective dates of rules in the Administrative Procedure Act, the rules adopted pursuant to this section shall become effective on January 1 following their final adoption and shall govern distributions and reimbursements for events occurring after the rules are effective. The committee shall meet to establish the rules required under this section no later than 90 days following the enactment of a funding source for the Alabama Disaster Recovery Fund by the Legislature. No reimbursement shall be made as provided in this section for events occurring before the effective date of the rules adopted pursuant to this section.