The following answers to the questions below were provided verbatim directly to Elbow Park resident, Brenda Leeds Binder, from an employee of the Premier’s Office, by e-mail dated August 1, 2013, who was also informed that information on the Alberta.ca website will be updated to clarify these matters.
1. Will a notice will be placed at Land Titles if your property is on a flood fringe and if you did not access DRP funding?
o At this time, only those with flood damage who apply* to the 2013 Disaster Recovery Program will have a notation on their land title. The government is still reviewing how this policy will be applied province-wide.
* Note: In a follow-up e-mail seeking clarification for words “who apply”, the response was “only properties in floodways and flood fringes that accessed assistance will have this notice.”
2. Will a property that is in a flood fringe have a notice placed at Land Titles if the property owners did not access DRP funding for the 2013 flood?
o At this time, notices will only be put on land titles for homes rebuilt or repaired using funding from the 2013 Disaster Recovery Program. The government is still reviewing how this policy will be applied province-wide.
3. If the answer to (1) is no, then does receiving the pre-loaded debit cards offered just shortly after the flood, which were offered to anyone evacuated, count as accessing DRP funding, which could therefore result in a notice being placed on your Land Titles (assuming the pre-loaded debit cards were the only funding you accessed)?
o No – the debit cards were not related to the DRP. They were emergency funds for evacuees to use for day-to-day costs like food, hotels, and other personal items. The DRP is for people who had uninsurable property damage because of the June flooding. You will not have a notice on your land title just because you received a debit card.
4. If a property owner does not access DRP funding for damage from the 2013 flood, then can that property owner (or a future owner of the affected property) receive DRP funding in the event of a future disaster, whether or not “flood mitigation” steps are taken?
o Yes, only flood fringe property owners that access DRP in 2013 will be required to mitigate their basements in order to qualify for future assistance. If you did not access the program in 2013, you will qualify next time. The government’s focus right now is on assisting homeowners with flood damage and helping them mitigate their properties. This may change if a homeowner does future renovations to a property in the floodway or flood
fringe.
5. For clarity, my understanding presently to the questions above is that there will not be a notice on Land Titles if you are in flood fringe and you do not access DRP funds for 2013 flood damage, and that you will be eligible for funding in the event of a future disaster.
o If you do not access the DRP this year, you will qualify for future disaster recovery assistance. Right now, the land titles notice is only being applied to properties repaired or rebuild using DRP funding. Going forward, the government will determine how this policy will be applied across Alberta.
6. I am still unclear whether the pre-loaded debit cards counts as “accessing DRP funds”, but I don’t believe it should because: (i) that money was to help with costs of evacuation, not rebuilding; and (ii) there was no forewarning at the point in time those cards were being provided that they would severely and detrimentally impact the value of your property, so you could make an informed decision as to whether or not to take the pre-loaded cards
o The Debit cards are not related to the Disaster Recovery
Program.