Trump hasn't acted on Florida's Hurricane Isaias aid request after 11 days

More than two weeks after Hurricane Isaias hit the Florida Panhandle, families there still can't apply for direct federal help. President Donald Trump has not yet approved Florida's request for a major disaster declaration. That declaration is what makes individual aid from FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) available and sends federal dollars to the region ¹.

As of Monday, Oct. 26, it had been 11 days since the president received Gov. Ron DeSantis's request, local station WEAR reported. After Hurricane Sally in 2020, Trump approved the same kind of declaration in five days ¹.

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What Florida asked for

In a release dated Oct. 16, DeSantis announced that the Florida Division of Emergency Management had asked Trump for a major disaster declaration ⁴. The request seeks "Public Assistance" for 15 counties: Bay, Calhoun, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Liberty, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Wakulla, Walton and Washington ⁴.

It also seeks "Individual Assistance" for eight counties: Bay, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton and Washington ⁴. Individual Assistance is the part that helps households directly. Depending on eligibility, it can cover temporary housing, basic home repairs and essential belongings that insurance didn't cover or didn't fully cover ⁴. The request seeks roughly $237 million in federal resources, according to the News Service of Florida ³.

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Now, these disaster declarations are not automatic

The storm and the damage

Isaias was a Category 2 storm that came ashore near Destin in the Oct. 9 storm cycle ³. Six deaths in Florida have been linked to it ³. Hurricane-force winds blew the roof off a Pensacola hotel, flattened a Destin boathouse and tore away part of the front of a Panama City Beach high-rise ⁷.

About 55,000 storm-related insurance claims had been filed statewide, and Florida's Office of Insurance Regulation put insured losses near $582 million ³. Santa Rosa County alone had more than 26,000 claims and Escambia County nearly 17,000 ³. Almost 8,500 claims had been closed without any payment ³. Those households are exactly the kind of uninsured or underinsured losses Individual Assistance is meant to help with ⁴.

In the meantime, the state has been filling gaps on its own. On Oct. 19, DeSantis said Florida had received nearly 300 applications for temporary travel trailers through a partnership with a company called Emergency RV ⁷. He said he had spoken with the FEMA director and expected a decision "relatively soon" ⁷.

Why it's taking longer this time

Timing is part of the gap. When Sally made landfall on Sept. 16, 2020, DeSantis asked for an expedited declaration two days later, and Trump approved it on Sept. 23 ². This time, WEAR reported, the governor sent his request about six days after landfall and did not ask for expedited handling ².

Florida's own Republican delegation hasn't given residents the same answer. Sen. Rick Scott said he had been told Trump would approve the declaration ². Rep. Jimmy Patronis, a Republican whose district is in the Panhandle, said he had no such commitment yet, only an acknowledgment from FEMA that it had received his letter ².

No, no not yet

The governor's race weighs in

Both major candidates for Florida governor campaigned in the Panhandle on Monday ¹. Republican Byron Donalds said he had been in touch with the administration and wanted the declaration signed quickly ¹. He blamed the delay partly on how FEMA processes requests ¹. He also said the president is reviewing FEMA from top to bottom ¹.

Some of it's a little bureaucratic in FEMA between a cat 2 and a cat 3

Democrat David Jolly said FEMA is never quick enough and put the responsibility on the White House ¹. Jolly credited DeSantis with generally strong storm response but said that, locally, the governor may have fallen short this time ¹.

I mean the buck stops at the White House, the buck stops with the president

Alabama is waiting too

On Friday, Oct. 23, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey asked FEMA for a major disaster declaration covering 23 counties, including Baldwin, Escambia, Mobile's neighbor Washington, Houston and Dale ⁶. Like Florida, Alabama is asking for help with public costs and for individual aid to households ⁶. State officials said damage assessments were still under way and more counties could be added ⁶.

"Having support from FEMA is critical to states like Alabama, and I am hopeful this request will be fulfilled," Ivey said in a statement ⁶.

That matters because nothing about a major disaster declaration is automatic, as DeSantis himself pointed out ². Only the president can sign one, and until he does, the people with the heaviest losses have no FEMA application to fill out. The pattern for voters to watch is simple: one week before the Nov. 3 election, Gulf Coast families who lost their homes are still waiting on one signature from the White House.

The Record

1. Sep 23, 2020Trump approves Florida's Hurricane Sally major disaster declaration five days after DeSantis's expedited request of Sept. 18 ².
2. Oct 16, 2026DeSantis announces Florida's request for a major disaster declaration, seeking Public Assistance for 15 counties and Individual Assistance for eight ⁴.
3. Oct 23, 2026Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey asks for a major disaster declaration covering 23 counties ⁶.
4. Oct 26, 2026WEAR reports that Trump has had Florida's request for 11 days with no decision, as Donalds and Jolly campaign in the Panhandle ¹.

Sources

1. WEAR-TV, “Florida governor candidates talk FEMA holdup during Panhandle campaign trail” (2026-10-26). weartv.com/news/local/florida-governor-candidates-talk-fema-
2. WEAR-TV, “Northwest Florida awaits Trump action on major disaster declaration for Hurricane Isaias” (2026-10-26). weartv.com/news/local/northwest-florida-awaits-trump-action-
3. News Service of Florida via Tallahassee Reports, “Hurricane Isaias Claims Top $580 Million” (2026-10-26). tallahasseereports.com/2026/10/26/hurricane-isaias-claims-to
4. Office of Gov. Ron DeSantis, “Governor Ron DeSantis Announces Florida Requests Approval for Major Disaster Declaration Following Hurricane Isaias” (2026-10-16). flgov.com/eog/news/press/2026/governor-ron-desantis-announce
5. FEMA, “President Donald J. Trump Approves Emergency Declaration for Florida” (2026-10-09). fema.gov/press-release/20261009/president-donald-j-trump-app
6. FOX10 News, “Gov. Ivey requests federal disaster declaration after Hurricane Isaias” (2026-10-23). fox10tv.com/2026/10/24/gov-ivey-requests-federal-disaster-de
7. News4JAX, “Gov. DeSantis says FEMA processing federal disaster declaration for Hurricane Isaias recovery in Florida Panhandle” (2026-10-19). news4jax.com/news/local/2026/10/19/gov-desantis-shares-updat

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