National Flood Insurance Program Authorized to Continue Through Mid-March<\/a><\/p>\nEsther Manheimer, mayor of Asheville, the largest city in the North Carolina mountains that was hard hit by Helene, said city officials were pleased to see th additional disaster dollars.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s only been four weeks since Asheville residents could drink from and bathe in the water coming out of their faucets. Some businesses in western North Carolina have shuttered permanently or are struggling to survive, and well over 200 roads in the region remain closed.<\/p>\n
In a statement earlier in the week, Manheimer emphasized that it was still going to be a long recovery and that \u201calready we see the long-term economic, budgetary and employment impact Helene left in her wake.\u201d<\/p>\n
The disaster relief fund was nearly running on fumes after Helene and Milton. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell warned during a Senate hearing in November that the fund was down to $5 billion.<\/p>\n
The Biden administration had asked Congress for about $40 billion for the relief fund but the bill eventually passed provides a lower amount, $29 billion.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s important to keep in mind that this isn\u2019t the only money for the disaster relief fund, said Stan Gimont, a senior adviser for community recovery at Hagerty Consulting. He used to run the community development block grant program at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.<\/p>\n
More money can and likely will be designated to the fund later when Congress does a full-year appropriation, he said.<\/p>\n
What else is in the bill?<\/strong><\/p>\nThere\u2019s also about $21 billion in disaster assistance to help farmers.<\/p>\n
North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said earlier this week that he was pleased by the agricultural aid but that the state has a lot of specialty crops such as sweet potatoes and Christmas trees that are generally not covered by federal programs. He said he will have to wait and see what specifically ends up being covered.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are still evaluating the bill as there are a lot of nuances in it. The devil is in the details,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Other money will go toward rebuilding damaged roads and highways ($8 billion), while more money (about $12 billion) would go toward helping communities recover through HUD grants.<\/p>\n
The block grant money is one of the key funds for homeowners who don\u2019t have insurance or enough insurance to recover from disasters.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also $2.2 billion for low-interest loans for businesses, nonprofits and homeowners trying to rebuild after a disaster.<\/p>\n
But the money doesn\u2019t go just toward local residents.<\/p>\n
For example, there\u2019s money for the military to address damage from hurricanes and typhoons and for a new hurricane hunter \u2014 the planes used to research hurricanes \u2014 and funds to help NASA rebuild hurricane-damaged facilities.<\/p>\n
Is the money just for recovery from hurricanes Helene and Milton?<\/strong><\/p>\nNo. The money goes to cover more than those two disasters.<\/p>\n
Some of the money is specifically earmarked for certain projects such as $1.5 billion designated for assistance after the largest wildfire in New Mexico\u2019s recorded history \u2014 the Hermit\u2019s Peak\/Calf Canyon fire \u2014 and the rebuilding of the Baltimore bridge.<\/p>\n
But a lot of the money also goes more generally toward major disasters that happened in recent years.<\/p>\n
The types of disasters covered in the legislation include droughts, wildfires, hurricanes, floods, derechos, and smoke exposure.<\/p>\n
Gimont points out that disaster recovery can take a long time so the country is both paying for disasters that happened previously while it prepares for events that will happen in the future.<\/p>\n
Take the massive Maui fire, for instance. It decimated the Hawaiian town of Lahaina last year, but Gimont said just the cleanup itself extended into late summer 2024.<\/p>\n
Photo: The aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Bradenton Beach, Fla. (AP Photo\/Rebecca Blackwell, File)<\/em><\/p>\nCopyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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