SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — California cities and counties still don’t know how much they’ll have to pay for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pandemic program to house homeless people in hotel rooms after the Federal Emergency Management Agency said in October that it was limiting the number of days eligible for reimbursement.

State and municipal authorities were taken aback when they received a letter in October stating that FEMA would only cover housing costs for homeless individuals at risk of contracting COVID-19 for a maximum of 20 days, instead of an indefinite period. This change went into effect on June 11, 2021, when Governor Gavin Newsom lifted the extensive stay-at-home mandate he had issued in March 2020.

The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services requested that FEMA review the new policy, stating that it would burden cities and counties with a minimum of $300 million during a financially strained period. They also expressed that local governments had been assured that the federal government would cover the expenses.

On Tuesday evening, FEMA released a statement stating that they will carefully consider the letter sent by California on January 31st. They also mentioned that all states have received identical guidance and policy updates during the duration of the pandemic.

In March 2020, as a response to the pandemic, Governor Newsom introduced Project Roomkey, a hotel housing program. This was seen by homeless advocates as an innovative solution to protect individuals who could not safely remain in their homes to avoid spreading the virus. Initially, FEMA agreed to cover 75% of the expenses, but later agreed to fully reimburse the program.

The officials in California contended with the federal agency that there was no notification given regarding the alteration in policy.

The October letter was written by Robert J. Fenton, the regional administrator for California. He informed CalMatters, the first to report on the inconsistency last week, that the policy was not a recent development.

He explained to the nonprofit news organization that he is clarifying and returning the original policy guidance to them.

FEMA refused to allow Fenton to be interviewed by The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Earlier on Tuesday, Cal OES spokesperson Brian Ferguson expressed concern that if FEMA did not take action, it could damage the trust between local governments and the federal government in times of crisis.