Public Utility District No. 1 Snohomish County v. Federal Emergency Management Agency

Public Utility District No. 1 of Snohomish County, Washington (“the District”) appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”), in this suit filed under the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. § 701 et seq. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and affirm the district court.

*704 HH

A

The District provides electric power and water services for about 230,000 customers in Snohomish County and Camano Island in the State of Washington. From November 7, 1995, through December 18, 1995, severe winter storms battered parts of western Washington state (including areas served by the District) with high winds, heavy rain, and flooding. These storms damaged the District’s electric power distribution network, and the District at once began work to restore power.

On January 3, 1996, the President of the United States declared that a major disaster, as defined by the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974 (“the Stafford Act”), 42 U.S.C. § 5121 et seq., had taken place in Washington state. The benign effect of the President’s designation was that public utilities reeling from the severe…