In the wake of Hurricane Helene, the NC General Assembly has now passed three pieces of legislation related to disaster recovery, none of which come close to addressing the staggering damage estimates released in the Office of State Budget & Management and Governor Cooper’s damage assessment report. Here’s a summary of that report and of how our state legislators have responded to this crisis over the last two months:
October 23: Hurricane Helene Damage Needs Assessment
On October 23, Governor Roy Cooper in collaboration with the Office of State Budget & Management (OSBM) released a report containing a preliminary assessment of the damage caused by Hurricane Helene and the level of need for federal and state resources. OSBM suggests that the overall impact of the damage from Hurricane Helene is “likely to exceed $53 billion.” The overall damage to housing is estimated to be $14.7 billion according to OSBM. According to State Budget Director Kristen Walker, about 92% of the 126K homes in WNC damaged by Helene did not have flood insurance. It’s clear that the wide-spread housing needs will not be fully met or covered by private insurance, FEMA IA, and CDBG-DR.
October 9: HB 149 – Disaster Recovery Act of 2024
Prior to the release of the report, on October 9, NC lawmakers approved $273M to support disaster recovery efforts in western NC. Legislative leaders called it a “first step” in their response, and the bill moved quickly through both chambers, passing unanimously. The funding breakdown was:
- $250M in matching funds for federal disaster assistance
- $16M for lost compensation for school nutrition programs
- $5M to state board of elections for voter outreach and communication in affected areas
- $2M to provide technical assistance on local recovery funds
October 24: SB743 – Modifications to The Disaster Recovery Act of 2024
On October 24, the General Assembly passed the second round of disaster recovery aid, and Gov. Cooper signed it into law on Friday. Housing was rarely mentioned, and only $1M of the $604M allocated in the bill will be spread between county departments of social services to provide rental assistance to households at or below 200% of the federal poverty level who have suffered hardship due to the impacts of Hurricane Helene and are facing imminent risk of eviction. Eligible households can receive a one-time payment up to the HUD local area Fair Market Rents measure for a two-bedroom unit.
November 19-20: SB382 – Disaster Relief-3/Budget/Various Law Changes
The general assembly convened on November 19th and November 20th to discuss and adopt the conference report for SB 382 – Disaster Relief-3/Budget/Various Law Changes. Despite having “Disaster Relief” in its title, the conference report is far from a disaster relief bill. Here are some highlights:
- $227 million from the Savings Reserve to be transferred to the unallocated Helene Fund (Section 1.A.5) (see below).
- $50 million transfer OSBM Disaster Relief Reserve for allocation to the Office of Recovery and Resiliency to “support homeowner recovery projects under the Rebuild NC program from the 2024-2025 fiscal year” (Section 1F.2.(a)).
- Language that requires NCORR to enter into Subrecipient Agreements by December 31, 2024 and proceed with development projects from Round 3 of the Affordable Housing Development Fund Program (Section 1F.2.(e) to the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, Pamlico County, Scotland County, the Town of Maysville, and the Town of Beulaville.
- Several extensions to permits and development approvals for impacted areas were made, as well as for temporary structures and any infrastructure needed to sustain them in disaster impacted areas.
It is important to note:
- There is no language giving explicit authority to begin setting up the infrastructure needed for the federal Hurricane Helene Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program.
- The $227 million transfer of funds to the Helene Fund is unallocated, meaning the money is not yet being funneled into any disaster relief efforts, but rather held in reserve to be used at a later date for disaster relief.
- No rental assistance for Hurricane Helene was included.
- The public version of the report was made available about two hours before members scheduled to vote.
The General Assembly seems to be waiting on the federal government to make a disaster allocation before they make a state level investment for housing recovery in the West, leaving impacted folks waiting as they try to make decisions about what’s best for their families. While legislators in Washington appear to be moving more quickly this time around, it could be months to years before North Carolina receives federal disaster funds, and whatever we receive will likely not be enough to fully recover.
Post-Election Policy Update on December 4
Leadership changes at the NCGA will have a significant impact on future disaster recovery and housing legislation. Register for our upcoming Post-Election Policy Update to learn more for both a federal and state analysis of what’s to come in the next four years and beyond.
