Federal government will cover more Helene recovery costs in NC with new Biden approval
The federal government will foot more of the bill as Western North Carolina continues to recover from the remnants of Hurricane Helene, which devastated much of the region this fall.
Democratic President Joe Biden on Friday approved the state’s request that the federal government pay for 90% of the costs for some projects and services aiming to help North Carolinians recover from the storm, after an initial period in which the federal government is paying for 100% of the costs.
Biden approved the federal government’s 100% “cost-share” for the recovery efforts in early October. Before Biden amended the declaration again on Friday, the federal share was set to drop to 75% in late March, or 180 days after Sept. 25. That date marked the start of the “incident period” for Helene under Biden and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)‘s major disaster declaration for the storm, issued Sept. 28.
There are three types of projects and support eligible for the increased funding from the federal government:
- Public assistance, which reimburses state and local governments and some nonprofit and private groups for efforts such as removing debris and repairing roads, bridges, public buildings and other infrastructure.
- Hazard mitigation, which provides funding for projects during communities’ recovery and rebuilding processes that seek to reduce or eliminate future damages from disasters.
- Assistance for other needs, including medical care, funeral costs, the replacement of personal property, costs and other expenses approved by FEMA.
The increased cost-share Biden approved Friday will see the federal government pay a larger portion of the costs of FEMA-approved projects long-term. That will decrease the costs of the eligible projects to the state, according to a Saturday news release from Gov. Roy Cooper’s office.
“As we continue into the recovery phase of this disaster, there will be a significant cost to rebuilding Western North Carolina communities and to assist survivors with recovering from Helene,” state Emergency Management Director Will Ray said in the release. “The increased federal cost share provided will allow for state dollars to go further, which will expedite many recovery and hazard mitigation projects as we go into 2025.”
Cooper, a Democrat, said in the release that a “complete recovery” from Helene’s devastation “will require an investment of billions of dollars.” Cooper said Biden approving the increased cost-share from the federal government “is a tremendous boost to our efforts.”
“We will continue working to get more funding into Western North Carolina so we can rebuild our communities in stronger and more resilient ways,” Cooper said.
Friday’s announcement from Biden comes as homeowners and renters in the Western North Carolina counties designated in FEMA’s disaster declaration for Helene have one month left to apply for federal assistance from the agency, with the Jan. 7, 2025, deadline approaching. Members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians of North Carolina are also eligible.
Financial assistance from FEMA is available to cover the costs of displacement, basic home repairs, personal property losses and other uninsured or underinsured disaster-caused expenses.
The quickest way to apply for assistance is at DisasterAssistance.gov. The application is also available using the FEMA App on mobile devices or by calling the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362.
