Staff photo / Patrick E. Litowitz Davey Tree personnel clear debris on Mill Creek Boulevard in Boardman. Cleanup work continues throughout Mahoning County after weekend storms and a tornado. Approximately 100 Davey Tree employees were dispatched to the area from Columbus, Cleveland, Akron and Canton to assist Youngstown crews. They said damage is everywhere, from uprooted trees to broken limbs.

YOUNGSTOWN — As Mahoning County continues to recover from Sunday’s storms, leaders and residents are still seeking clarity about how that recovery will be paid for.

On Wednesday, Mahoning County Emergency Management Agency Emergency Coordinator Zach Williams told Boardman Township trustees it appears unlikely the county will qualify for federal or state financial assistance because it does not meet the damage threshold.

FEMA requires proof of at least 24 houses with more than 40% damage, and/or at least $1.1 million in total storm-related damage. So far it appears the storm did not meet that burden.

Canfield Township Trustee Joe Paloski did not take the news sitting down. At Thursday’s meeting of the Board of Mahoning County Commissioners, Paloski called out state and federal authorities for effectively abandoning the county and township.

“As you know, our local governments are already stretched to their limits. Meanwhile, down in Columbus, the state of Ohio is sitting on a budget surplus. They have rainy-day funds and received $1.75 billion in additional tax revenue. What are we waiting for, a rainy day? Well, it didn’t just rain. There was a tornado.”

Paloski called upon commissioners and state representatives to get Columbus to free up funding for assistance.

“Our people should not have to choose between paying out of pocket for massive commercial tree services or waiting weeks just to safely leave their homes,” he said. “We should use Ohio’s surplus to protect Ohioans. Let’s get heavy equipment into Canfield Township, clear the debris and help our community rebuild. The governor was here on Monday for pictures. We are not just another photo op.”

Mahoning County EMA Director Conner O’Halloran said that while Mahoning County may not be able to meet the FEMA assistance threshold, other mechanisms can help local governments offset some of their costs.

“Another part to this, with public funding, is public assistance funding that municipal agencies can use to track their time. Possibly in the county, Canfield Township, Boardman Township, the public entities can get reimbursed for the work, for all the extra overtime, the woodchippers, the vehicles as they’re out there,” he said.

He said communities and local agencies can also work together to find ways to save and offset costs.

“FEMA is one piece of this very massive puzzle. Our goal now is to start leveraging other community partners, United Way, Catholic Charities, Red Cross and more, so we can come together, offset some costs. We have high deductibles, we have uninsured situations and we have just total destruction that’s going to take weeks to maybe even more than a month to truly recover from.”

The audience in the commissioners meeting room also got an impromptu lesson in insurance from local American Family agent Monica Hoskins.

The Boardman resident and local home insurance agent first answered a resident’s question. Hoskins said that home insurance deductibles are not paid up front but rather simply deducted from whatever the company pays out on a valid claim.

If a person’s policy is $30,000, for example, and they have a $5,000 deductible, if their claim is approved for storm damage repairs, they’ll receive $25,000 or at least $5,000 less than whatever the requested amount was.

She said to be wary of contractors’ promises of waiving deductibles because that will not impact how the insurance company pays out the claim. Regardless of what the contractor charges, the insurance company is still claiming its deductible on any payout.

Hoskins also urged Mahoning County residents to be sure they file claims, for multiple reasons.

The first is Gov. Mike DeWine’s emergency declaration.

“Because the governor declared a state of emergency, insurance claims for the storm damage will not adversely affect the insured’s individual premiums,” she said.

So residents should not be afraid to file their claims. They also should file them because it actually helps the community.

“When you have a big catastrophic claim, you see the insurance companies’ mobile units come out,” Hoskins said.

Insurance companies, when responding to catastrophes, which for them is determined by the volume of claims they receive, will send agents in person to both provide aid and assess damage, which can lead to better resolution for those residents.

“When you have folks afraid to file claims for fear of policy cancellation, then we’re not getting the help we would have gotten because we didn’t meet the company’s threshold,” she said.

Hoskins also urged residents to make sure they obtain certificates of liability from any contractor they are considering hiring to work on their home.

That document will provide the homeowner with confirmation that the contractor is licensed and bonded, and should include the contractor’s insurance company, the insurance policy number and the phone number to reach that insurance company.

“You verify their policy is active before you allow them to do the work,” Hoskins said. “Workmanship is not covered by your insurance.”

That means that if the job is done poorly, the homeowner’s insurance company will not pay to have it repaired. But if the resident has the contractor’s certificate of liability, they can call and insist that the work be corrected.

“They’re more likely to come back because they know you have that information,” she said. If the contractor does not come back to fix the work, then the homeowner can have their insurance company file a claim with the contractor’s insurance company, and that insurer will then pay for another company to come in and repair the faulty work.

Some county residents can hope for food assistance as well.

Not through insurance companies but by contacting Mahoning County Job and Family Services.

MCJFS Executive Director Audrey Morales said Ohio will replace spent SNAP for residents who lost food because of the power outages caused by the storm.

If they had a power outage of longer than four hours, they can contact JFS, which will verify with electric companies that there was a sustained outage in that neighborhood, and the resident can expect to have SNAP credits restored to their card within a few days to replace the food they lost.