NC Gov. Cooper proposes $3.9B in Helene disaster relief from the state

Gov. Roy Cooper is proposing $3.9 billion in state Hurricane Helene relief for the western part of the state devastated by flooding.

Total damage in Western North Carolina is estimated at roughly $53 billion, Cooper said. His proposed $3.9 billion would be for costs that won’t be covered by the federal government or private insurance, he explained during a news conference Wednesday.

He called the money a “down payment on Western North Carolina’s future.”

“Evidence from past storms shows that communities that recover fastest and strongest are the ones that get fast and strong investment after the storm,” he said.

Mitchell, Yancey and Buncombe counties suffered the most damage and need the most help to rebuild the grid, Cooper said, with schools still closed.

“These businesses need cash fast, and our plan would provide grants and loans to keep businesses afloat, just like we provided during the pandemic,” the governor said. “Our proposed investments also include roads and bridges, health care centers, schools, downtown and other vital needs. But this is just a start.”

How the estimated damage will be recovered

State Budget Director Kristin Walker told reporters the $53.6 billion in total damage and needs is broken down as 62%, or $33.4 billion, unfunded. She expects $13.6 billion in federal funding, $6.3 billion in private and other funding, and $273 million already funded by the state.

Some of the total estimated costs may never be recovered. That unfunded amount of about $33 billion is close to the state’s annual budget.

The estimated amount of total damage is the “overall assessment of how much damage and need there was,” Walker said. “Certainly, especially when you get into things like induced or indirect, you don’t expect anyone to really recover that loss.”

She doesn’t think “anyone anticipates that the full, anywhere near the full, $53 billion will be recovered.”

What Cooper is requesting

Here’s the breakdown of what money Cooper is requesting in the $3.9 billion of relief.

▪ $650 million for the economy, most of which — $475 million — would go to a Helene Business Recovery Grant program.

▪ $650 million for housing, with half of it going to a Homeowner Recovery Program.

▪ $578 million for utilities and natural resources, $289 million of which is to match federal money, with other money going toward water, parks, storm abatement and stormwater projects.

▪ $422 million for agriculture, with more than half going to the Helene Agriculture Disaster Farmer Recovery Program.

▪ $55 million for transportation, mostly for private roads and bridges to be repaired or replaced.

▪ $594 million for government and recovery operations.

▪ $282 million for education, with $100 million of that going to buildings.

▪ $252 million for Health and Human Services.

▪ A yet to be determined amount to assist tribal and federal lands in the state.

Republican plans for Helene relief

The General Assembly will meet Thursday to pass its second wave of relief, after approving $273 million Oct. 10, a bill quickly signed by Cooper.

The governor is a Democrat and the legislature is Republican-controlled. GOP lawmakers have not yet released the bill, which they plan to vote through the same day.

Sen. Kevin Corbin, a Macon County Republican, told Haywood County officials he expects the bill to fund about $1 billion in relief, according to the Smoky Mountain News.

Lawmakers spent the past two weeks gathering more information for what exactly is needed in disaster relief this month and expect much of the relief to come from the federal government.

Republican Senate leader Phil Berger and Republican Sen. Brent Jackson criticized the part of Cooper’s proposal that would include $175 million in funding not for Helene relief, but for the N.C. Office of Recovery and Resilience (NCORR) Hurricane Florence Homeowner Recovery Program.

“For years, Gov. Cooper has shrugged off what has become the most botched, long-term hurricane response in the country. It’s a stain on our state and it keeps me up at night thinking about what may come as we start to recover from Hurricane Helene,” said Jackson, a Sampson County Republican who chairs the legislature’s Hurricane Response and Recovery Subcommittee.

The state’s Savings Reserve, also known as the rainy day fund, has $4.47 billion in it as of Oct. 18, according to the Office of State Budget and Management, which is under the Cooper administration.

Republican House Speaker Tim Moore told reporters when the last bill passed two weeks ago that the second bill would likely be funded from the Savings Reserve, too. He noted the state also has about $700 million in a separate disaster response fund.

This story was originally published October 23, 2024 at 2:47 PM.

Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan

The News & Observer

919-829-4877

Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan is the Capitol Bureau Chief for The News & Observer, leading coverage of the legislative and executive branches in North Carolina with a focus on the governor, General Assembly leadership and state budget. She has received the McClatchy President’s Award, N.C. Open Government Coalition Sunshine Award and several North Carolina Press Association awards, including for politics and investigative reporting.