(a) This emergency relief program is intended to pay the unusually heavy expenses in the repair and reconstruction of Federal roads resulting from damage caused by natural disasters over a wide area or catastrophic failures.

(b) Emergency relief work shall be given prompt attention and priority over non-emergency work.

(c) Permanent work shall be done by contract awarded by competitive bidding through formal advertising, where feasible.

(d) It is in the public interest to perform emergency repairs immediately and prior approval or authorization from the DFDE is not required. Emergency repairs may be performed by the method of contracting (advertised contract, negotiated contract, or force account) which the applicant or the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) (where FHWA performs the work) determines to be most suited for this work.

(e) Emergency relief projects shall be promptly constructed. Projects not under construction by the end of the second fiscal year following the year in which the disaster occurred will be reevaluated by the DFDE and will be withdrawn from the approved program of projects unless suitable justification is provided by the applicant to warrant retention.

(f) The Finding for natural disasters will be based on both the extraordinary character of the natural disturbance and the wide area of impact. Storms of unusual intensity occurring over a small area do not meet these conditions.

(g) Diligent efforts shall be made to recover repair costs from the legally responsible parties to reduce the project costs where highway damages are caused by ships, barge tows, highway vehicles, vehicles with illegal loads, and similar improperly controlled objects or events.

(h) Emergency funds shall not duplicate assistance under another Federal program or compensation from insurance or any other source. Where other funding compensates for only part of an eligible cost, emergency relief funding can be used to pay the remaining costs.