Stafford Act

The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1988 (42 U.S. Code 5191), .is the principal legal authority for U.S. Federal responses to domestic disasters. Its full invocation requires a Presidential proclamation of a disaster, which then authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to respond.

One of the key attributes of invoking the Act is that FEMA can draw on a preestablished disaster assistance fund, without waiting for explicit Congressional legislation.