Bill Tittle, Chief of Emergency Management for Hamilton CountyEven though more than $50 million in federal funding to repair and rebuild in the tri-state area after the April storms is frozen while Congress wrangles about budget details, local officials say that suspension hasn’t been felt at the local level.
However, a tight budget for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the high number of national disasters this year may mean future projects may not be approved, officials say.
“If there is anything we are not going to get, we won’t know it for a very long time,” said Bill Tittle, head of the Hamilton County Emergency Management Agency. “We are just now getting final paperwork for the February tornado and still in the process of working on the April storms. It will likely be several months before that is finished.”
FEMA froze public disaster assistance for previous disasters, including the April storms, after spending for Hurricane Irene depleted its funds to less than $1 billion. Their funds have now fallen to below $400 million and are expected to be exhausted by the end of September, as immediate relief costs rise for Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee.
Bill Tittle, Chief of Hamilton County Emergency ManagementThe freeze does not apply to individual assistance or immediate cleanup after a storm, but is for public assistance in rebuilding roads, water control facilities, building, utilities and parks. The way the approval process works and the lengthy lag time mean local agencies probably won’t feel that freeze before the money is replenished, Tittle said.