$26 Million In New Federal Disaster Relief Funding Headed To Hawai‘i
New Funding Brings Total Federal Disaster Relief Funding For Hawai‘i To More Than Half A Billion Dollars; Schatz Worked With State And County, Federal Agencies To Ensure Hawai‘i Received Its Fair Share Of New Federal Grants
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that Hawai‘i will receive $26 million in new federal disaster relief funding. The new Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funding adds to the $71 million announced earlier this year, and will help state and local governments rebuild impacted communities, especially in low- and moderate-income areas, and provide resources to help businesses recover. U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, worked with federal agencies and state and county officials to ensure Hawai‘i submitted a strong application to receive the maximum amount of funding. The new funding allocation was part of the $1.7 billion housing disaster recovery package Congress passed last year.
“As the recovery process continues, this new federal funding will be a big help. It’s also another indication of the strong partnership between our state and our federal agencies,” said Senator Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “I will continue to fight for federal resources at every opportunity to help Hawai‘i recover.”
With the $26 million in housing and community development grants announced today, Hawai‘i has now been allocated more than a half a billion dollars in federal disaster relief funding to help the state recover from the historic storms in April 2018, Hurricane Lane, and the eruption of Kilauea on Hawai‘i Island including:
- $15.3 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in individual assistance to help people who have lost their home;
- $205 million from FEMA in public assistance to help local and state governments clean up and repair public infrastructure such as facilities, parks, and water lines;
- $93.1 million from the Department of Transportation to help rebuild roads and highways;
- $80 million from the Department of the Interior to help repair damages at the Hawai‘i Volcanoes Observatory and the Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge;
- $71 million from the Department of Housing & Urban Development for housing and community development;
- $47.2 million from the Small Business Administration in subsidized loans to help individuals and businesses pay for repairs not covered by insurance;
- $4 million from the Department of Labor in Disaster Unemployment Insurance to help those who lost their job temporarily or permanently because of a disaster and are not eligible for regular unemployment benefits; and
- $187,000 from the Economic Development Administration to provide technical assistance for economic development activities in disaster impacted areas.
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