County Executive Isiah Leggett declared a state of emergency for Montgomery County on Monday, making the county eligible for federal aid as it responds to Hurricane Sandy, a county spokeswoman said.

The declaration allows the county to call upon staff to respond to the storm as needed, Mary Anderson said. 

“It’s mainly a human resources [measure] in terms of getting people to work,” Anderson said. “It changes pay structures and it’s also useful in seeking federal reimbursement later on." 

States of emergency were declared in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC. Howard County Executive Ken Ulman also signed an emergency declaration for that county.

The declaration makes the county eligible for federal reimbursement for overtime hours and for other expenses “whether that’s road cleanup or storm debris pickup,” Anderson said.

It also could be applied to other expenses, such as hotel rooms for emergency workers, she said. The county has yet to incur such costs for Hurricane Sandy.