Do I report fire disaster assistance grants on my EDD certification? Confused about income reporting

No, you do NOT need to report FEMA disaster assistance when certifying for unemployment. Disaster assistance grants are not considered income for UI purposes - they're emergency aid for a specific purpose. The income reporting section is asking about earnings from work, pensions, residuals, etc. that would reduce your UI eligibility. I went through this last year with the coastal flooding assistance and confirmed with an EDD rep directly.

i think u do have 2 report it becuz its money u received during the week ur certifying for??? thats what my friend told me anyways

I can verify that FEMA disaster assistance grants are NOT reportable income for EDD certification purposes. Disaster assistance is categorized differently than regular income. The certification page is specifically asking about income from work or alternative income sources that would affect your eligibility for full benefits. Emergency assistance falls into a different category entirely. Here's what counts as reportable income: - Wages/earnings from work - Self-employment income - Pension payments - Residuals/royalties - Vacation pay - Severance pay - Jury duty fees Disaster assistance is not on this list because it's not considered regular income. Hope this helps!

I went through something similar after the 2023 floods and spent HOURS trying to get through to EDD to ask this exact question. Couldn't get past the "we're experiencing higher than normal call volume" message for days! Finally I used Claimyr.com and got connected to an EDD agent in about 20 minutes. The agent confirmed that disaster relief funds are NOT reportable income for UI certifications. You can check out how it works here: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10?si=TSwYbu_GOwYzt9km if you need to speak with EDD directly about this or any other questions.

ANYTHING you get during ur certification period is SUPPOSED to be reported!!! This is why so many people get OVERPAYMENT NOTICES later!!! The EDD computer systems eventually catch everything when they cross-reference with other govt agencies. DONT RISK IT!!!

Look, I'm in a similar situation with the fire grants. Let me tell you how confusing the whole system is... I got my fire relief money but then also started a part-time gig, so I was reporting THAT income but not the FEMA grant, and my certifications were fine. The system accepts them with no issues. If the disaster money was supposed to be reported, I figure the system would flag it somehow. Been through 3 certification periods now with no problems.

wait so do grants from other places need 2 be reported? i got a small business grant last month...

UPDATE: I called EDD this morning and got confirmation that disaster assistance grants do NOT need to be reported when certifying. The representative said that disaster relief is considered emergency assistance, not income. Thanks everyone for your help! Just wanted to post this in case anyone else has the same question in the future.

One final note on this topic: while disaster grants aren't reportable for UI purposes, remember that some types of assistance might have implications elsewhere. For example, while FEMA grants aren't taxable income, some other forms of disaster assistance might have different rules. Always good to document everything you receive and check with a tax professional if you're unsure about the broader implications beyond your UI claim.