(December 27, 2006)--Thousands of Hurricane Katrina evacuees who lost federal housing help this summer may be eligible for renewed payments.
But they face a tight deadline to seek them.
Under a court order, the Federal Emergency Management Agency sent letters to about 4,000 victims in Texas last week.
The letter explains why they were deemed no longer eligible for aid.
A federal judge had ruled previous letters were unconstitutional because they contained only hard-to-decipher computer codes and agency jargon.
With the new letters, storm victims can appeal the previous FEMA cutoff and may be eligible for renewed housing payments of about $750 a month.
But the program is set to expire at the end of February and the appeal process can take up to three months.
