| Democrats Deliver
Emergency War Time Spending Bill Includes Gulf Coast Recovery Assistance
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kristie Greco : (202) 226-3210
WASHINGTON, DC—House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn today commended the leadership of Appropriations Chairman David Obey and the members of the Gulf Coast Region for their tireless work on to include assistance for the areas impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the war time emergency supplemental funding bill.
"Our fellow Americans impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita are still struggling to rebuild 18 months after the storms,” said Clyburn. “That’s simply unacceptable. Citizens of the Gulf Coast now have a Congress that will act. And that’s what we’ve done in the emergency spending bill. Thanks to the leadership of Appropriations Chairman David Obey, our Committee Chairmen and our Gulf Coast members—Reps. Gene Taylor (MS), William Jefferson (LA) and Charlie Melancon (LA)—the House of Representatives is moving quickly to bring assistance to the region. This legislation will include critical assistance for housing, education, agriculture and fisheries, levee reconstruction and coastal restoration. It also includes language that waives the local match funding requirements under the Stafford Act and for some FEMA disaster assistance programs. These provisions will allow stalled reconstruction projects to move forward and help the region rebuild."
Following are details of the provisions included in the emergency war time funding bill relating to Hurricane Relief and Recovery:
Army Corps: $1.3 billion to continue repairs to flood and storm damage reduction projects in the greater New Orleans area and $37 million for hurricane and coastal storm damage reduction projects in Mississippi.
FEMA Disaster Relief Fund: $4.31 billion including $3.4 billion requested by the President and $910 million over the President’s request to cover the cost, estimated by FEMA, to waive Stafford Act requirements that state and local governments provide matching funds for some FEMA disaster assistance programs already provided in Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas.
Agriculture Disaster: $140 million for farmers and ranchers affected by the hurricanes.
Loan Forgiveness: eliminates special rules that prohibit loan forgiveness for Katrina and Rita related Community Disaster Loans.
Continued Assistance: extends: FEMA’s ability to pay utility costs through February 7, 2008; the availability of previously appropriated Title XX Social Services Block Grant funds through September 30, 2008; the Secretary of Education’s authority to waive certain regulations for emergency assistance to reopen schools in hurricane-impacted school districts for another year; and the Disaster Voucher Program, which provides Section 8 vouchers to low-income residents who moved to other parts of the country to December 31, 2007.
Additional Assistance: $120 million for disaster relief for fishing industries on the Louisiana Gulf Coast, $30 million for colleges and universities and $30 million for schools most severely impacted by the hurricanes to help them recover to normal operations, and $25.1 million to allow the Small Business Administration Disaster Loan Program to continue to make and service disaster loans to homeowners and businesses, including those affected by the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes.
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