Disaster Cost Reimbursement Manual City of St. Petersburg

C. Force Account Equipment
Force account equipment is a term used to identify City owned equipment used to perform eligible
work related to a disaster. Use of pick-up trucks and automobiles may be reimbursed on the basis of
mileage if less costly than hourly rates. For all other types of equipment, costs are reimbursed using
the FEMA hourly rates included in this manual. The City’s equipment list is maintained, updated
and matched up with the appropriate FEMA equipment code by the Fleet Management
Department through the M5 system. Fleet will advise Budget of the appropriate FEMA code to be
added to the equipment list in Oracle projects. This list is available on the intranet under Disaster
Information Pages/FEMA Assistance Recovery Forms & Information/FEMA Disaster Equipment
Rates and should be used to identify equipment used for disaster related activities.
If the City uses its own equipment, the following should be noted to ensure all required
information is documented properly for reimbursement:
• The Force Account Equipment Summary Record sheet included in this manual (FEMA-B-1)
must be completed. Be very specific in your description of the work performed and document
what was done, when and where. For the equipment used, include Make, Model, Year, Horse
Power, Size and Capacity.
• The equipment forms must be compiled into a spreadsheet (AUDIT SERVICES WILL
PROVIDE A TEMPLATE SPREADSHEET) including the following fields:
o Equipment Description including the Make, Model, Year, Horse Power, Size and Capacity
o FEMA equipment code
o Operator name and employee number
o Date and number of hours equipment was used for disaster related activities
o Equipment rate & total cost
o Location/Site and description of work performed
• Ensure the equipment usage can be reconciled to the timesheets for the individual assigned to the
equipment (idle time is not allowable).
• Standby time is generally unallowable.
• Mobilization and demobilization cost should be considered.
• Throughout the year, departments should advise the Budget Department of newly acquired or
disposed equipment. The Budget Department is responsible for maintaining a current list of all
relevant City equipment in Oracle. (This listing is to be used to complete the Force Account
Equipment Summary Record and to populate the Excel spreadsheet referenced above).
Fleet Management and Budget will work together to maintain a current and accurate listing of
equipment with proper FEMA codes for reimbursement purposes in both the M5 and Oracle
systems.
D. Equipment and Supplies Purchased for Disaster Use
In the event the City does not have sufficient equipment and supplies to respond to a disaster, FEMA
may assist the City in purchasing the needed equipment and supplies. If the individual items of
equipment and/or the aggregate total of supplies have a fair market value greater than $5,000 when they
are no longer needed for the PA program the City will be required to compensate FEMA for its share of
the current market value. Equipment with a per unit value less than $5,000 may be retained or sold by
the City with no further obligation to FEMA.
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