Gov. Josh Stein’s request for full federal reimbursement on Helene debris removal costs has been denied by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Stein made the request in April after FEMA announced they would not be reimbursing 100% of state costs to remove debris – a cost of anywhere from $1 to $2 billion.
The federal agency will instead by reimbursing only 90% of that money, leaving the state on the hook for an estimated $200 million, according to Stein.
Stein, a Democrat, said the state has already cleared more than 12 million cubic yards of debris from roads and waterways but that has “only scratched the surface.”
“FEMA’s denial of our appeal will cost North Carolina taxpayers potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to clean up out west. The money we have to pay toward debris removal will mean less money towards ing our small businesses, rebuilding downtown infrastructure, repairing our water and sewer systems, and other critical needs,” he wrote in a press release.
David E. Richardson, who is the Senior Official Performing the Duties of the for FEMA, wrote Thursday that North Carolina’s request for more funding was “not warranted.”
The current reimbursement – 90% – is more than the 75% the federal government usually reimburses states after natural disasters. But it isn’t uncommon for the federal government to kick that number up when storms are as catastrophic as Helene was in North Carolina.
“We will keep working with urgency, focus, and transparency to get any appropriated money on the ground as quickly as we can to speed the recovery. We will not forget the people of western North Carolina,” Stein wrote.
The NC House recently ed an almost $500 million Helene relief bill.
The bill allocates over $450 million from the Helene reserve fund. That’s a little more than half of what Stein asked for earlier this week in a visit to Western North Carolina.
