The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has once again denied Governor Josh Stein’s request to continue its debris cleanup reimbursement program in western North Carolina.
After Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina last September, the Biden administration gave FEMA the okay to do a full 100% reimbursement, allowing the state to focus on the task at hand and deal with the damage left over from the deadliest hurricane in the state’s history.
However, in April, FEMA notified Gov. Stein of their decision to stop their cost-share program, citing that the agency determined it was “not warranted”. Gov. Stein promptly appealed the decision, calling it “disappointing”.
This month, FEMA rejected Gov. Stein’s appeal, once again calling it “not warranted”. Gov. Stein’s office released a statement following the decision. “The first step to help western North Carolina recover is to clean up all the debris,” said Gov. Stein. “So far, we have removed more than 12 million cubic yards of debris from roads and water ways, but given the immense scale of the wreckage, we have only scratched the surface.”
FEMA’s decision on Stein’s appeal comes on the heels of the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina (GROW NC) announcing there’s more debris than originally anticipated.
Without the 100% reimbursement, FEMA would still reimburse the state by 90%. However, that missing 10% is estimated to be $200 million that the state would have to come up with, possibly costing the people of North Carolina.
“FEMA’s denial of our appeal will cost North Carolina taxpayers potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to clean up out west,” Stein explained. “The money we have to pay toward debris removal will mean less money toward supporting our small businesses, rebuilding downtown infrastructure, repairing our water and sewer systems, and other critical needs.”
In addition to retracting the 100% reimbursement for debris cleanup, FEMA has cancelled the disbursement of millions of dollars to counties out west by abruptly ending their Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program. Established during Trump’s first term, the BRIC program assists states in better mitigating the damage of natural disasters by building better infrastructure, which reduces the long-term risks and costs of such disasters.
Along with ending the BRIC program, FEMA canceled funds that Congress had previously approved for the program back in 2020 to 2023. This means the loss of $3.6 billion, which Congress had already approved to be sent out, for communities across the country to protect themselves from natural disasters. North Carolina’s own Mount Pleasant was set to receive $4 million, but the cancellation of funds has the town’s recovery plans upside down.
Though Trump has spoken about possibly ending the agency as a whole, the cancellation of the BRIC program was a shock to even some Republican Congressional members who, alongside Democrats, sent a letter to Trump requesting the program be reinstated. The letter was signed by 80 congressional members from both parties and explains the importance the BRIC program holds as it saves time, money, and lives.
Despite the unexpected withdrawal of federal support for recovery, Gov. Stein says he remains determined to continue to push ahead for the people of western North Carolina.
“Despite this news, we are going to stay the course. We will keep pushing the federal and state governments to do right by western 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.”
