October 18, 201810/18/2018

State leaders agree to bipartisan $800 million Hurricane Florence relief bill

With extensive hurricane damage in eastern counties, North Carolina's leaders worked together to approve an additional $800 million of relief funding. The bill, dubbed the "2018 Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Act," was passed unanimously in both chambers, after which Gov. Roy Cooper promptly signed it into law.

After signing the act, Cooper said in a statement, "I appreciate legislators responding quickly and taking this initial step to help North Carolinians recover from this devastating storm, particularly in the areas of education and the federal match."

When this $793 million is taken together with the initial $56.5 million approved in the days after the storm, the state has now dedicated $850 million to Florence recovery. Since 2016 the state has allocated a total of $1.2 billion towards hurricane relief in general. 

According to a press release from legislative leaders, "The Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Fund (HFDRF) appropriates $65 million to provide a state match for federal disaster assistance and another $65 million state match for federal transportation assistance. It spends $60 million on capital recovery funds for public school facilities and $30 million for capital needs in the University of North Carolina system. Another $28 million will benefit local governments, while agriculture recovery received $50 million. More than $30 million was directed to housing recovery support."
 
They also said that, "Tens of millions more dollars will meet needs in behavioral health, community hospitals, small businesses, community colleges, and mosquito abatement efforts in areas of North Carolina affected by Hurricane Florence. Funding for coastal beach renourishment, dredging needs, marine debris cleanup, and commercial fishermen were also included in the recovery package."

State House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) and Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) said, “Since Hurricane Florence hit, we’ve sought to take politics out of the relief effort. Today’s historic, bipartisan aid package is yet another step in a collaborative recovery process that we hope will continue.”