PORTLAND – President Bush made a formal disaster declaration Friday for a snowstorm that blanketed some parts of western Maine with 3 feet of snow in early December.

The president’s action makes federal funding available to the state and eligible local governments in Aroostook, Cumberland, Franklin, Hancock, Kennebec, Oxford, Penobscot, Piscataquis and Somerset counties.

Assistance is available on a cost-sharing basis for measures that were undertaken to save lives and protect public health, safety and property over a 48-hour period Dec. 5-7.