It was the massive scale of destruction in the North Carolina mountains after Hurricane Helene last year that spotlighted how advantageous microgrids — small independent power grids — can be to communities that have suffered disasters.

After horrific flash floods from the storm that hit Sept. 27 inundated many of Asheville’s roads and buildings — and nearly all of its vital utility infrastructure — critical help soon arrived from the New Orleans-based nonprofit disaster service Footprint Project in the form of mobile renewable power.

An estimated 1 million western North Carolinians lost power in the storm. Many were also left without running water, food and shelter.

“We saw the value in what they were doing, in deploying small-scale solar and battery storage to help communities that lacked access to power, water and telecommunications,” North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association Executive Director Matt Abele told Coastal Review. “And so we jumped in right away and helped to fundraise for them to be able to expand the amount of work that they were doing in that part of the state.”

Apparently, the practicality and flexibility of the technology also impressed officials with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality State Energy Office, which on Aug. 12 announced a $5 million investment to provide accessible post-disaster emergency power with permanent and mobile microgrids.

“Hurricane Helene showed us that we need to be prepared to withstand severe weather emergencies,” Gov. Josh Stein said in a press release announcing the plan. “That means rebuilding our energy infrastructure with resilience in mind.”

Along with NCSEA and the Footprint Project, the state energy office will collaborate in the project with Land of Sky Regional Council, as well as a network of regional partners.

With as many as 24 stationary microgrids that would be installed across six western counties affected by Helene and two mobile Beehive microgrid hubs, one on the coast, the other in the mountains, the project is intended to fill critical needs in communities statewide.

Essentially four large shipping containers with solar panels on top of the outside and battery storage systems inside, each Beehive — the “Hive” — operates independent of the stationary power grid. Smaller mobile solar-equipped trailers — the “Bees” — are dispatched to affected areas to provide power for essential services such as water filtration stations, charging stations for phones and other devices and hotspots for internet through cellular or satellite connections.

Abele said that NCSEA became familiar with Footprint through its relationship with Green Tech Renewables, a nationwide distributor of solar and battery storage that had partnered with the Hawaii Solar Energy Association and Footprint in responding to Maui wildfires.

Abele said his organization reached out via email to Footprint as Helene was approaching the mountains. As it turned out, the large scale of the damage and the randomness of impacts from the storm really highlighted the value of the Beehives being able to go where needed.

“I think that’s the beauty of having a setup like these Beehive microgrids, where you can charge mobile equipment,” Abele said. “Because only investing in permanent infrastructure, it’s like trying to essentially find a needle in a haystack and predict exactly where the next storm is going to hit, versus having the equipment on hand and ready to go, to be deployed to where that next storm is.”

Green Tech’s Raleigh location had solicited donations of solar panels and other supplies, as well as raised funds to purchase products such as photovoltaic wire and batteries, and trucked it to western North Carolina to support Footprint Project’s work, as described in an article published by Elizabeth Ouzts for the nonprofit news site Energy News Network in October 2024.

According to the article, by late December the group had built about 50 microgrids throughout mountain communities. That was the most ever since it started in 2018 in response to founder Will Heegaard’s experience two years earlier working as a paramedic in New Guinea and struggling to find power to refrigerate blood supplies.

Heegaard, today operations director for the Footprint Project, which he founded with partners Jamie Swezey and Nate Heegaard, said the group is working toward replacing the fossil-fuel-powered generators that have long been serving communities after disasters with battery-charged solar panels. Not only are Beehives and Bees not dependent on fuel supplies, they’re quiet and clean.

“Responders use what they know works, and our job is to get them stuff that works better than single-use fossil fuels do,” he told Energy News Network. “And then, they can start asking for that. It trickles up to a systems change.”

Even if the microgrids don’t outright replace those generators, Heegaard added, they can supplement them, helping fuel supplies last longer.

The state’s grant will provide about two beehives with mobile equipment and permanent installations with fixed solar and battery storage that would be attached to either local government buildings or nonprofit center or other location where people congregate after a storm, Abele said. 

“And so those are all really important decisions in terms of where that investment is being made, to ensure that it is being made in a place that people will go and serve the community appropriately,” he said.

“Because the worst-case scenario is, you walk down a path of investing, and then deploying infrastructure, and then that infrastructure sits unutilized during a natural disaster because it’s inaccessible,” he said.

According to the state, the Land of Sky Regional Council, part of the Appalachian Regional Commission, will soon begin purchasing the Beehive microgrids, and site selection for the microgrids is to begin this fall. The stakeholder engagement for the installation will take place in September, and project completion is anticipated in June 2027.

One of the most significant reasons that solar-powered microgrids like the Beehive hadn’t  found much traction in the U.S. is because of the high cost of batteries, Abele explained.  But now, he said, the price of batteries — similar to what happened earlier to solar panels — has decreased about 92% in the last 15 years, making the much-improved technology affordable.

“We’ve seen sort of a smattering of these projects on an ad hoc basis, but not a comprehensive strategy around deploying this equipment,” he said.

In addition to the proposed Beehives, there have been other smaller microgrid projects in the state, including on Ocracoke and plans in Charlotte.  

“But aside from that, there aren’t a ton of examples that you can point to in other states,” Abele said. “And so I think North Carolina really is going to be a leader in setting the example for recovery after a natural disaster.”

Coastal communities have until 5 p.m. Jan. 24 to apply for state funding to help recover from hurricane damage.

The North Carolina General Assembly allocated $10 million to the Department of Environmental Quality for the funding, which is being administered by the Division of Water Resources through its Coastal Storm Damage Mitigation Fund.

Funding can only be used for costs associated with beach nourishment, artificial dunes and other projects to mitigate or remediate coastal storm damage to the ocean beaches and dune systems of the state.

All applications will be evaluated to determine if the proposed beach nourishment or dune project would meet the minimum requirements, and ranked according to their projected environmental benefit, social benefit, economic benefit, as well as based on considerations of the project’s life, financial resources and project efficiency, officials said.

Any project the funds are used for must be matched dollar for dollar with nonstate funds.

To read more about the criteria used to select recipients, go to the guidelines on the department’s website.

The state office that helps homeowners and local governments with disaster recovery and resiliency is accepting public comments on proposed new mitigation funding use to help owners of properties at risk of flooding by elevating structures.

The North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency will accept comments until 5 p.m. Dec. 14 on a proposed amendment to how it administers Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation funds.

Changes being considered include allocations to the Affordable Housing Development Fund, the Public Housing Restoration Fund, the Infrastructure Recovery Program and Strategic Buyout Program, among other updates.

A draft of the new Substantial Action Plan Amendment 6 for mitigation funding is available for review online.

“The proposed action plan amendment is intended to address homeowner mitigation needs, including establishing the Residential Property Elevation Fund, which will be used to rehabilitate, reconstruct or replace properties located in a floodplain or at risk of future flooding,” according to the state. “The new fund will help protect properties against future flood damage through structural elevations and related activities.”

This fund is separate from the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery-funded ReBuild NC Homeowner Recovery Program, which mostly serves properties that do not need home elevation.

Submit comments to either ncorr.publiccomments@ncdps.gov or to NCORR Public Comments, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, NC 27709.

In addition to mitigation initiatives, the office administers programs that include long-term disaster recovery, resiliency, community development, affordable housing, strategic buyout and local infrastructure.

More than $600,000 in grant funding through a state-private partnership will help kick-start 10 resilience projects in eastern North Carolina.

The North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, or NCORR, partnered with the Duke Energy Foundation to select the recipients for the Duke Energy Resilience Accelerator Grant Program.

Over the last few years, NCORR’s Regional Resilience Portfolio Program has worked with nine Council of Governments in the eastern part of the state, particularly those with areas hit hard by the September 2018 Hurricane Florence, to create regional vulnerability assessments and resilience portfolios. The winning projects were established in these regional portfolios.

“The goal of the program was to help local leaders work with one another to identify priorities, challenges and then strategies for climate hazard resilience,” the state’s Chief Resilience Officer Dr. Amanda Martin said in a statement. “The accelerator grant seed money will move these projects to the next step of implementation.” 

The Albemarle Commission has been awarded $65,000 to develop a toolkit of customizable stormwater, water quality and flooding outreach for its member counties. The Albemarle Commission is the Council of Governments organization for Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hyde, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington counties.

In the Cape Fear region, $65,000 has been awarded to expand Men and Women United for Youth & Families, an organization serving historically underserved communities with disaster mitigation and recovery assistance. Counties in the Cape Fear region are Brunswick, Columbus, New Hanover and Pender.

In the Eastern Carolina Council of Governments region, through an agreement with Goldsboro, $65,000 will go to Community Technical Assistance Inc. to reuse city-owned property acquired through FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program as an outdoor classroom for education and leadership training. The Eastern Carolina Council of Governments region includes Carteret, Craven, Duplin, Greene, Jones, Lenoir, Onslow, Pamlico and Wayne counties.

Roxboro, in the Kerr-Tar Council of Governments region, will use its $65,000 to coordinate a commercial and industrial building inventory, including analysis of climate hazard impacts and risk reduction improvements, for its member counties of Person, Granville, Franklin, Vance and Warren.

In the Lumber River Council of Governments region, $65,000 goes to Carolina Wetlands Association and its partners to develop a wetland restoration plan for 50 acres covering part of the Lumbee Cultural Center property and surrounding wetlands in Robeson County that routinely floods. The counties in this region are Bladen, Hoke, Richmond, Robeson and Scotland.

Cumberland County, in the Mid-Carolina Council of Governments region, has been awarded $27,650 to install stream gauges and sensors at six locations to help improve flood warning and forecasting in routinely flooded areas. This region includes Cumberland, Harnett and Sampson counties.

Two projects in the Mid-East Commission region have been awarded funding. Carolina Wetlands Association will use $65,000 for wetland and floodplain restoration along Parker Creek just north of Greenville and further downstream. The Association of Mexicans in North Carolina will use its $60,850 to relaunch NC Latino Disaster Recovery Alliance to share hazard response and preparedness information with Latino and Spanish-speaking community members, including farmworkers. This region includes Beaufort, Bertie, Hertford, Martin and Pitt counties.

Triangle J Council of Governments has been awarded $65,000 to plan and implement a Haw River warning system and evaluate backup power needs for emergency shelter facilities. This region includes Chatham, Johnston, Lee and Moore counties.

Nash County, in the Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments, has been awarded $65,000 to create flood resiliency by developing a benefit-cost analysis and a study of routinely flooded access points that include access to an emergency communications tower and residential neighborhood. This region includes Edgecombe, Halifax, Nash, Northampton and Wilson counties.

“Resiliency to climate hazards begins at the local level,” Duke Energy’s North Carolina president Kendal Bowman said. “North Carolina communities have been hit hard in recent years by natural disasters and storms. These grants will help communities thrive amid changing climate conditions.”

The Regional Resilience Portfolio Program is a component of the larger Regions Innovating for Strong Economies & Environment, or RISE, program.

RISE, a partnership between the NCORR and N.C. Rural Center and in collaboration with the N.C. Councils of Governments, is funded by a $1.1 million U.S. Economic Development Administration grant, in addition to federal mitigation funds, and support from both NCORR and N.C. Rural Center. RISE is managed by NCORR, a division of the state Department of Public Safety.

Local governments in impacted and distressed counties are encouraged to apply for the $47 million the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency expects to award by this fall for housing that increases community resilience.

This is the third phase of the Affordable Housing Development Fund program, and the money is for financing multifamily or single-family housing rehabilitation and new construction outside the 100-year floodplain, officials said this week.

Funding is available for projects located in any of the federally identified most impacted and distressed, or MID, counties, with priority given to the six state-defined MID counties that are not currently supported by the fund, which are Harnett, Johnston, Sampson, Lenoir, Pitt and Beaufort counties, according to the website.

Bladen, Duplin, Jones, Pamlico, Pender and Scotland counties are strongly encouraged to apply for this third round, officials said.

The funds will be used to increase the availability of safe, affordable housing in areas of the state that experienced major damage from hurricanes Matthew and Florence. Most of these areas were already experiencing a housing shortage prior to receiving damage from multiple hurricanes. The award funds will promote rebuilding and replacing some of the lost housing stock.

Local governments interested in applying should submit letters of interest by June 27 ahead of the application period that begins June 28. Letters of interest are nonbinding but mandatory for applications.

An information session is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 24. Sign up for the session and learn more about the letters of interest on the Affordable Housing Development Fund website

Applications will be accepted until 5 p.m. Aug. 25 and awards will be announced in October. Eligibility requirements are included in the online manual.

The Affordable Housing Development Fund Program is supported by North Carolina’s Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Recovery funding for hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

It is one of multiple housing programs overseen by NCORR through its Community Development Office.

As hurricane season nears, families and communities are urged to take precautions and prepare for extreme weather before it hits.

Hurricane season is June 1 through Nov. 30, but federal agency leaders are reminding folks now about the importance of hurricane preparedness.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Federal Emergency Management Agency officials spoke Monday during a media briefing from this year’s National Hurricane Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOAA National Hurricane Center Acting Director Jamie Rhome said that the conference kicks off the hurricane season “in a sprint, one where we’re moving about the country trying to raise awareness and get people to take action before — keyword: before — a hurricane threatens.”

He’s been to many communities after storms, he said, and observed that people who prepare before a hurricane fair the best. It’s those that wait to the last minute to react that often suffer the worst of its impacts, especially as “storms rapidly intensify right on our doorstep.”

Water is the primary indicator to storm fatalities, sometimes weeks after the storm hits, Rhome continued.

“We have to do a better job messaging that even if you survive that first thrust, that first wave, you’ve got to be prepared for, in some cases, weeks without power and often the oppressive heat that comes with it,” Rhome said. His organization needs to work on getting the message out that mortality is increasingly happening at the back end of the storm and in some cases lasts many, many weeks, he added.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said that the agency is going to focus on all of the risks of hurricanes, including water, which she added is a significant risk. While hurricanes in the past may have been primarily a wind event, that doesn’t mean that will be the experience this year.

Criswell said that insurance is the first and best resource that families and individuals have to help get them on the road to recovery after a severe weather event happens, regardless of the type of disaster.

FEMA works with states when storm threats have yet to make landfall and issue emergency declarations to ensure all potential resources are positioned to assist with immediate response once it’s safe to do so, Criswell said. “We’re taking the actions today to make sure that we are ready for what the potential impacts might be going into this hurricane season.”

Criswell said she wants FEMA to focus on helping communities, use available tools to make more timely decisions to get resources to the most hard hit communities faster and offering “culturally competent messaging ahead of the storms, ahead of hurricane season, so we can make sure that we’re targeting audiences and recognize that each community is different.”

Disaster Preparation resources

• National Hurricane Preparedness Week April 30-May 6.
• ReadyNC.gov.
• N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
• N.C. Department of Environmental Quality
• FEMA Preparedness Community.
• NOAA National Hurricane Preparedness.
• National Hurricane Center.

Following a slew of complaints over the still-lagging response to hurricanes Matthew and Florence, Richard J. Trumper has been named to join the North Carolina Department of Public Safety as senior adviser for disaster recovery.

Currently executive director of disaster recovery with the Office of State Budget and Management, Trumper begins his new role Wednesday, state officials announced.

As senior adviser, Trumper is to support initiatives to build long-term and stable recovery for North Carolinians following natural disasters.

As part of an expanded, comprehensive approach to recovery, Trumper is to work with department leaders, the state Office of Recovery and Resiliency, North Carolina Emergency Management and other partners to get disaster survivors back in their homes faster.

“Our state has made substantial progress recovering from hurricanes Matthew and Florence, but we still have a long way to go,” Department of Public Safety Secretary Eddie M. Buffaloe Jr. said in a statement. “Richard Trumper brings a wide range of experience and expertise that will support a core mission of rebuilding homes and communities as fast as possible after a disaster, while also making them more resilient in the future.”

Buffaloe and Rebuild NC chief Laura Hogshead told a legislative committee in December that they took responsibility for the slow pace of recovery in getting hurricane survivors back into homes.

Trumper is a North Carolina licensed general contractor who joins the department with more than 22 years of experience, including program management, construction management, disaster recovery, reconstruction and restoration, mitigation and disaster damage assessment.

“I look forward to joining the Department of Public Safety and establishing new partnerships that will speed up the recovery process and help families return home more quickly,” Trumper said. “My goal will be to build on the good things we’re already doing.”    

While with the Office of State Budget and Management, he developed and managed state-funded recovery, reconstruction and mitigation programs in 21 eastern North Carolina counties, according to the state. Recently, he has led state recovery efforts in western counties impacted by the 2020 earthquake and Tropical Storm Fred. 

Homeowners impacted by hurricanes Matthew and/or Florence may still apply for assistance through the Homeowner Recovery or Strategic Buyout programs. 

The North Carolina agency responsible for distributing Hurricane Florence disaster relief handed out tens of millions in funding with limited oversight on how recipients spent the money.

The North Carolina Department of Public Safety, or DPS, did not independently verify how state agencies, the university and community college systems, and nonprofit Golden LEAF Foundation, spent $502 million in disaster recovery funds, according to a newly released report from the North Carolina Office of State Auditor.

That office also concluded that DPS, which distributed the funds, did not make sure recipients of $783 million had a way to track how the money was being spent and whether those entities were meeting their recovery goals.

“As a result, there was an increased risk that recipients could have misused funds without the misuse being detected and corrected timely,” according to the April audit. “Additionally, DPS was limited in its ability to know whether funds were achieving legislatively intended results and to take timely corrective action, if necessary.”

The funds — $942.4 million — were a result of the legislative-approved October 2018 Hurricane Florence Emergency Response Act.

This legislation led to the creation of the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, a DPS program responsible for providing general disaster recovery coordination and public information, outreach and application case management for residents, program and construction management services, audit, finance, compliance, and reporting on disaster recovery funds, and reporting the use, oversight and results achieved by those funds.

As of Jan. 31, 2021, DPS had distributed $783 million from the disaster recovery fund, money that was used to reimburse the costs of recovery efforts of state agencies, higher education institutions and a non-profit foundation.

Recipients of the funds were required to submit reports that included a summary of program activities and how much was spent to date to DPS on a quarterly basis.

An audit of quarterly reports from 14 recipients that administered 51 programs through January 2021 found that only 8%, four of the 51 programs, did not report what they would do with the funds for all programs, according to the report.

Sixteen of 51 programs totaling $262 million did not measure their progress on meeting their objectives.

DPS does not know whether $147 million disbursed to seven recipients used the money for repairs and renovations at public schools, universities and community colleges, counties and local governments, and volunteer fire departments. Or, whether $8 million allocated to higher education institutions was used to cover grants to assist students from disaster-declared counties pay for tuition, fees and emergency expenses.

Audit tests also show that it is unknown whether $11 million funneled to DPS was used to provide disaster housing recovery support programs for homeowners.

In his March 29 response to State Auditor Beth Wood, DPS Secretary Eddie Buffaloe Jr. wrote that the department is limited in withholding funds or providing oversight on grants.

“It is certainly our intention to comply with subrecipient monitoring standards and maintain proper program accountability within our legal authority,” he wrote.

The audit concludes, “This is not true,” saying that DPS did verify spending of recipients who turned in supporting documents between Nov. 1, 2018, through July 31, 2019.

The audit states that Hurricane Florence legislation required DPS to administer funds, which are defined as “to manage or supervise the execution, use, or conduct of.”

“Without monitoring, it would be difficult to ensure that the funds were used for authorized purposes or that the provisions and legislative intent of the Hurricane Florence Recovery legislation were carried out,” according to the audit. “The Governor, Legislators and the citizens of North Carolina should consider this clarification when evaluating DPS’s response to the audit finding.”

The state auditor recommends DPS do the following:

• Monitor recipients’ spending to ensure funds are being spent in accordance with the law.
• Develop policies and procedures to ensure each recipient identifies objectives for what they will do with the funds and track whether they’re meeting those objectives.

The audit also recommends that the General Assembly consider instituting monitoring requirements in the future for Hurricane Florence recovery funds or other emergency relief funds.

There are a lot of firsts and significant investments in the newly minted state budget, and among the biggest of those that check both boxes is a broad array of new efforts to increase resiliency and decrease flooding — along with the kind of money that could make it happen.

Remarkable as that might be, it comes as no surprise.

Although there was ample skepticism that a full, two-year budget plan could be worked out, given the contentious relationship between the legislative and executive branches, there was little doubt that the resiliency and flooding plans and the kind of funding necessary for them would come out of this year’s session.

All three budget plans proposed by the state House, Senate and Gov. Roy Cooper included a major push to bolster resiliency and address flooding.

Among the initiatives are $20 million to develop a statewide Flood Resiliency Blueprint to guide strategy at the local and state level; $15 million for a new transportation infrastructure resiliency fund and $15 million for a new disaster relief fund for transportation-related flood mitigation; $8.5 million for an innovative flood mitigation pilot project in the Stoney Creek watershed near Goldsboro; $5 million for Southport waterfront stabilization; $1.15 million in local coastal planning and management grants; and $300,000 to hire coastal resiliency planners.

Also in the package is about $70 million for local flood mitigation projects and disaster recovery, and another $40 million for coastal storm damage, with up to $20 million earmarked for the Brunswick County town of Oak Island shoreline stabilization and $2 million allocated to the North Carolina Coastal Federation for living shorelines, oyster reefs and marsh-restoration grants.

In all, the budget appropriates roughly half of $800 million in the state’s disaster and resilience reserve toward local and statewide flood mitigation and resiliency, as well as new personnel to assist local governments in planning and developing shovel-ready projects.

Although there’s a focus on areas of the coastal plain repeatedly hit by both hurricanes and the more frequent heavy downpours that have marked this era of climate change, any question about whether flooding was mostly an eastern concern was answered again this year in August when deadly floods from Tropical Storm Fred underlined the vulnerability of the state’s mountain and foothill communities. The budget allocates about $124.4 million to them for disaster relief.

In statements released Friday, shortly after Cooper signed the budget, Rep. John Bell, R-Wayne, and Sen. Jim Perry, R-Lenoir, who led the flooding and resiliency efforts in the House and Senate, respectively, said early on in the session that the intent was to break away from dealing with disasters one at a time and move toward a more forward-thinking approach.

“North Carolina has now been hit by two 1,000-year floods within the past five years,” Bell said last week. “This budget provides an historic and unprecedented investment to help these local communities recover and prepare for future disasters. This is the largest proactive, statewide package that North Carolina has ever made to address flooding. It will help put an end to the costly cycle of spending after disasters.”

Perry said the changes would make a long-term difference in flood-prone areas.

“We can’t stop flooding, but we should work to reduce its severity,” he said. “This budget takes a huge step forward to reduce flooding and prepare us for the next big storm.”

Rep. Charlie Miller, R-Brunswick, said the legislation would assist coastal areas that are struggling to deal with repeated flooding.

“As a Southport native, I’ve seen countless storms decimate the area and can recognize the importance of having a proactive plan in place, not waiting until we’re faced with the recovery process to identify that we needed to be more prepared,” Miller said.

Follow-through required

Will McDow, director of the Climate Resilient Coasts and Watersheds project for Environmental Defense Fund, said the state is taking a critically important step that will require substantial coordination across multiple state and federal agencies. 

“This really needs to be an all-of-government approach to make sure that things are coordinated and being done in a way that is additive to the state and not creating confusion or duplicating efforts,” McDow said Monday in an interview with Coastal Review. “Because this can’t be a one-time investment. This is going to take multiple years of investing. Eastern North Carolina has been the current focus, but Hurricane Fred shows us that western North Carolina is also in the bull’s-eye of these climate-induced floods.”

McDow, who was part of a budget negotiating team representing environmental groups, said the budget sets up an interagency group to coordinate and monitor the effectiveness of the programs.

Much of the responsibility for implementing the programs falls to the North Carolina Office of Resiliency and Recovery, which was set up in 2018 under the Department of Public Safety mainly to manage federal disaster relief following Hurricane Florence.

NCORR, now also administering numerous programs including disaster relief from other recent hurricanes and tropical storms, became a permanent state agency under the new budget and picked up three new positions dedicated to resilience planning and implementation.

The Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Mitigation Services is charged with development of the Flood Resiliency Blueprint, which according to the budget “shall form the backbone of a State flood planning process that increases community resiliency to flooding, shall be a resource for riverine and stream management to reduce flooding, and should support the establishment and furtherance of local government stormwater maintenance programs.”

McDow translates that to mean the development of a “decision-support tool” that will allow local governments to weigh their options in building resiliency.

“To me, it’s just a central piece. It’s not the largest funding piece, but it’s possibly the most important connector to all of this work,” he said.

McDow said the blueprint will build on extensive mapping and modeling that the state has already done to give communities a better understanding of what’s needed to reduce flooding and the most effective ways to go about them. “It’s going to help communities really know at a tangible level, what they need to do.”

Some of the projects funded in the budget will study whether natural solutions upstream, such as engineering agricultural fields to flood, rebuilding wetlands and reforesting are more effective and less costly than building up levees or raising roads downstream.

Other aspects are also aimed at assisting local decision making with funding for local planning and additional staff and support for the Division of Coastal Management’s Resilient Coastal Communities Program, which seeks to help communities to assess their risk and vulnerability, engage the public and identify and prioritize projects.

The public comment period ends at 5 p.m. Thursday on amendments to state action plans for communities impacted by hurricanes Matthew and Florence through the state Office of Recovery and Resiliency, or NCORR.

The additional public comment is requested on proposed amendments to three action plans for spending U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery and Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation funds in parts state impacted by hurricanes Matthew and Florence, according to officials.

The proposed amendments will simplify programs and spending across the grants, including more than $947 million in federal funding for homeowner disaster recovery, affordable housing, property buyout and other programs.

The current HUD-approved action plans and draft amendments are available for review on the NCORR website. Public comments may be submitted by email to publiccomments@rebuild.nc.gov, or by mail to NCORR Public Comments, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, N.C. 27709.

Gov. Roy Cooper established NCORR after the September 2018 Hurricane Florence to make disaster recovery programs statewide more efficient and help communities rebuild smarter and stronger.

So far, the state has invested more than $3.6 billion in state and federal funding to support recovery from hurricanes Matthew, Florence, Dorian and Isaias. Learn more about NCORR programs at https://www.rebuild.nc.gov/.

The state is looking for input from the public on how to spend recovery and mitigation funds in areas of the state impacted by hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

The state Office of Recovery and Resiliency, or NCORR, will be accepting public comment until Jan. 7 on proposed amendments to three action plans for spending U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery and Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation.

The proposed amendments would include modifications to the Hurricane Matthew, Hurricane Florence and Mitigation action plans previously approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, and aim to simplify programs and spending across all three grants provided by HUD.

The total disaster recovery and mitigation grant funds total more than $947 million in federal  funding for homeowner recovery, affordable housing, property buyout, and other programs.

All three action plans and the draft amendments are available for review online. Public comments are strongly encouraged to be submitted by email to publiccomments@rebuild.nc.gov. Those wishing to submit comments may also do so by U.S. Postal Service to Attn: NCORR Public Comments, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, N.C. 27709.

The Cooper administration established NCORR following the September 2018 Hurricane Florence to streamline disaster recovery programs statewide and help communities rebuild smarter and stronger. So far, the state has invested more than $3.6 billion in state and federal funding to help the state recover from damage caused by hurricanes Matthew, Florence, Dorian and Isaias.

Learn more about NCORR’s programs at https://www.rebuild.nc.gov/.

Updated to include statewide awards

The Dare County Board of Commissioners approved during its regular meeting last week a $1 million grant from the state to help assuage the financial strain caused by last year’s Hurricane Dorian.

Like many counties and local and tribal governments, Dare County has been facing budget impacts caused by hurricane damage and applied for the  state-funded grant through the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, or NCORR, program, State Grants for Financially Distressed Local and Tribal Governments.

Governments can apply for grants of up to $1 million as short-term assistance to pay for everyday operating expenses or provide additional support for disaster recovery. Information on the grant application process is on NCORR’s ReBuild.NC.gov website.

“Our communities are committed to rebuilding smarter and stronger and these funds will help foster new partnerships and make North Carolina more resilient against future storms,” said Gov. Roy Cooper in a release.

Communities are also able to apply for zero-interest loans through NCORR, though the 2020 loan application period has closed. Another application period will be announced in the coming months for the revolving loans of up to $2 million. These loans are to help with disaster-related expenses while local governments wait for reimbursement from federal disaster response, recovery and resiliency programs such as those from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. If approved, the loan principal must be repaid upon receiving federal reimbursements.

Clawson said that he identified what items the county needed that met the criteria outlined in the application.

“One of them was a vehicle for emergency management, and another one was if you had Hurricane Dorian costs that had not been reimbursed by FEMA or the state, and we have both of those. And then the rest, the grant application allowed you to use non-hurricane related — just straight up operating expenditures — you can use debt service, you can do payroll, I picked payroll,” he said.

The county, which applied for the grant Sept. 9, will use $55,000 for an emergency management vehicle that has been requested but not included in the FY2021 budget, $166,456 for debris costs from Hurricane Dorian that was ineligible for reimbursement, per FEMA, and $778,544 for economic relief to general fund, to be used for general payroll obligations, according to the county.

County commissioners approved a budget amendment for the grant and the memorandum of agreement during the meeting.

More than 40 local and tribal governments have been awarded about $50 million in grants and loans to help with operating costs and recovery expenses since the NCORR program was launched last year.

“Hurricanes damage not only individual homes, but also buildings and infrastructure that are critical for community stability and welfare,” said NCORR Chief Operating Officer Laura Hogshead in a statement. “Our office is committed to building local government partnerships that will support long-term disaster recovery throughout the state.”

Carteret County also received $1 million in grant money earlier this month from NCORR because of the impact recent major storms had on the budget.

“As a result of the hurricanes’ negative economic impact on the County’s operating budget, the award is a pivotal resource for our County. FEMA reimburses local government for direct cost incurred from disasters. It does not reimburse local governments for lost revenues, and these revenues pay operating expenses and debt service obligations.” said Dee Meshaw, Carteret County assistant manager, in a statement from the county. “By alleviating the need to use general fund money to pay for these debts, it will allow the County to be more resilient against future storms and continue to financially support future projects and improvements for our community.”

Pollocksville is using the $500,000 grant awarded in 2019 funds to reduce debt service, retain the services of a full-time employee to help with disaster mitigation and resiliency, and to cover additional accounting expenses and financial services, according to NCORR.

“The grant has been a financial lifesaver for our town,” said Mayor James V. Bender Jr.

In late 2018, Cooper established NCORR in the Department of Public Safety after the state experienced two devastating hurricanes in as many years.

The North Carolina General Assembly established the state recovery grants for county governments, incorporated municipalities and tribal governments to provide assistance under the Hurricane Florence and Hurricane Dorian Presidential Disaster declarations, according to the state.

NCORR announced in January that more funding was available through the grant and loan program established in 2019.

Cooper signed legislation Nov. 18, 2019, directing $10 million for NCORR to disperse as zero-interest loans that governments can use for recovery-related expenses while waiting for reimbursement from various federal programs. Additionally, $5 million was set aside for local government grants to help communities impacted by Hurricane Dorian. Those funds supplement $9 million in grant and loan funds for local governments that Cooper signed into law on September 2019.

The agency during the first round of funding in 2019 awarded more than $22.4 million in grants and loans to 22 local governments struggling financially because of costs related to Hurricane Florence.

The grants can be used to cover operating budget expenses not related to a disaster, such as payroll and payments to vendors for goods and services not related to disaster response and recovery, where nonpayment would result in a negative financial outcome. The grants can also be used for disaster response and recovery expenses denied for federal reimbursement, disaster-related repairs to facilities and infrastructure denied for federal reimbursement and debt service payments.

The following are the NCORR grants and loans to date for Coastal Area Management Act, or CAMA, counties and towns and reason for funding:

Grants 2019

• Cape Carteret: $500,000 for administrative expenditures such as payroll and debt service payments due to disaster recovery.
• River Bend: $300,000 for inspection specialist and a public works technician, vehicle used for the inspections and enforcement of building ordinances.
• Atlantic Beach: $500,000 for debt service payments, part-time building inspector.
• Emerald Isle: $370,000 for debt service payments.
• Navassa: $375,000 for stabilization of water and sewer fund.
• North Topsail Beach: $250,000 for debt service payment to USDA.

Loans 2019

• River Bend: $1 million for FEMA projects for debris removal, repairs to building, emergency response.
• Beaufort: $1 million for FEMA projects for debris removal, emergency response, cemetery clean up, additional payroll.
• Boiling Spring Lakes: $2 million for FEMA infrastructure projects.
• Jones County $2 million for FEMA Projects for debris removal, emergency response, utilities repair, inmate housing.
• Pamlico County: $2 million for FEMA projects for debris removal.
• Emerald Isle: $2 million for FEMA projects for debris removal.

Hurricane Florence Grants

• Belhaven: $97,500 for part-time building inspector.
• Oriental: $86,593 for Public Works position for three years, vehicle for disaster recovery support.
• Vandemere: $80,167 for bobcat excavator.
• Navassa: $500,000 for payroll obligation, debt services obligations, vendor payments.
• New Bern: $328,500 for resiliency consultant, truck.
• Morehead City Fire-EMS: $174,000 for equipment for water search rescue team.
• River Bend: $363,000 for debt services, payroll obligations.

Hurricane Dorian Grants 2020

• Hyde County: $500,000 for administrative functions to assist with disaster recovery, affordable housing study and $2,214,000 for budget shortfalls, individual assistance costs, housing recovering contractors.
• Dare County: $1 million for disaster expenses denied by FEMA, general payroll obligations, emergency operations vehicle.
• Carteret County $1 million for debt service obligations.

Loans 2020

• Topsail Beach: $2 million for FEMA beach nourishment fund project.
• Hyde County: $2 million for FEMA debris removal from Hurricane Dorian.
• Pollocksville: $1.66 million for FEMA project for elevation of main sewer pumping station and also a project to relocate town hall/train station.

The following are the loans and grants awarded statewide as part of the program:

Grants 2019

• Fair Bluff: $500,000 for administrative positions to assist with disaster recovery for three years.
• Pollocksville: $500,000 for debt service payments, engineering support .
• Robbins: $500,000 for debt service payments, computer equipment, equipment for waste water treatment plant.
• Boardman: $200,000 for administrative expenses such as payroll, utilities, construction expenses for town hall.
• Jones County: $1 million for debt service payments, emergency management position to assist with disaster recovery.
• Maysville: $450,000 for debt service payments, general payroll , radio read meters.
• Lumberton: $500,000 for debt service payment for water and sewer fund.
• Bladenboro: $500,000 for administrative expenses such as payroll and debt service payments.
• Trenton: $405,000 for sewer construction, repairs to city buildings.
• Elizabethtown: $500,000 for debt service payments, code enforcement officer, economic development manager, consultant.
• Chadbourn: $375,000 for general payroll obligations, water sewer repairs, assistant town manager, backhoe.
• Tabor City: $25,000 for position to Support Disaster Recovery Coordination.

Loans 2019

• Fair Bluff: $700,000 Debt Services and FEMA HMGP obligations for the town.
• Boardman: $130,000 FEMA HMGP Project obligations.
• Jones County: $2 million for FEMA projects for debris removal, emergency response, utilities repair, inmate housing expenses.
• Lumberton: $2 million for FEMA projects for debris removal.
• Robbins: 1,600,000 for various FEMA projects to include wastewater treatment repair, emergency response, and pump station repair.

Grants Florence 2020

• Marion: $245,773 for funds for administrative functions to assist with disaster recovery, affordable housing study.
• Tabor City: $ 475,000 for position to support disaster recovery coordination.
• Cerro Gordo: $358,085 for administrative expenses such as payroll, bonds, utilities water and sewer fund expenses.
• Jones County: $1 million for repairs to the water pump station that was denied by FEMA.
• Town of Fair Bluff: $500,000 for drainage equipment.
• Hoke County: $235,215 for equipment for water search rescue team.
• Rose Hill: $188,000.00 for debt services, payroll obligations.
• Wallace: $500,000 for debris removal, debris management consultant, and community development officer.
• Wilson County: $406,000 for debt services.
• Red Springs: $500,000 for consulting services, debt service obligations, payroll obligation.
• Pembroke: $280,050 for disaster recovery coordinator.
• Clarkton $96,000 for excavator.
• Maysville: $500,000 for payroll obligation, debt services obligation.
• White Lake: $155,000 for position to support disaster recovery coordination.

Loans 2020

• Princeville: $2 million for various FEMA projects to include town hall repairs, senior center construction and repair costs.
• Lumbee Tribe of NC: $2 million for construction and engineering costs for FEMA projects.
• Marion: $450,120 for FEMA project for Lincoln Avenue bridge reconstruction.
• Elizabethtown: $2 Million For FEMA Project for repair of local cemetery.
• Red Springs: $1,024,608 for FEMA projects for debris removal, emergency protective measure, repairs to buildings.
• Jones County: $2 million for FEMA project for buyout.

RALEIGH — The North Carolina General Assembly overwhelmingly approved a new coronavirus relief package that also includes hurricane, tornado and earthquake assistance.

In a brief, two-day session, the legislature passed Thursday the 52-page bill by wide margins in both chambers, clearing the Senate first in a 44-5 vote and followed by the House, which approved the bill 104-10.

The bill includes $335 checks for families with children, a $50 per week boost in unemployment benefits and more funds for broadband expansion, health care supplies, food banks, schools and universities.

Also in the bill is $44.5 million in disaster relief, most of it state matches for federal aid for those affected by recent hurricanes, as well as $24 million in help for communities in Alleghany County damaged in the recent earthquake.

An additional $750,000 was set aside to be used for the state match for assistance to communities affected by the deadly tornado in Bertie County spawned by Hurricane Isaias.

“None of us have faced a health crisis quite like this,” Rep. Donny Lambeth, R-Forsyth, one of the bill’s main authors, said Thursday during floor debate. “Some have lost loved ones, others have been separated from family, others have lost jobs. Yet we are a state that has faced hardships before, from hurricanes, fires, droughts, earthquakes and tornadoes, and each time we come back even stronger. This time we will do it again, more determined and stronger than ever. We will not let this pandemic defeat us.”

Despite the lopsided vote, the way the bill was assembled drew a sharp rebuke from Democrats, who said they were cut out of negotiations in another opaque process that eliminated open hearings and limited public input.

The disaster funds in the bill include the following:

• $27,796,610 for the state match for Hurricane Florence federal disaster assistance programs.
• $13,203,390 state match for federal disaster assistance programs related to Hurricane Matthew.
• $2,779,661 for the state match for federal disaster assistance programs related to Hurricane Dorian.
• $3.5 million for the state match for federal disaster assistance programs related to Hurricane Isaias.
• $300,000 to provide a grant to Bladenboro for the town’s demolition, reconstruction and repair of public infrastructure and public buildings damaged in Hurricane Florence.

The bill also allows for $750,000 for direct state assistance to Bertie, Chowan, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, Northampton and Washington counties for help in recovery from the powerful tornado that struck near Windsor during Hurricane Isaias, killing two people, injuring dozens and damaging several homes.

Parks, aquariums get boost

The legislature also approved $19.7 million in state funds to the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources for state parks and attractions and supporting nonprofits, with $2.1 million going for trail construction, increased trail maintenance and safety and health maintenance needs for trails and other park amenities that have been heavily used as North Carolinians took to the outdoors during the pandemic.

Funds for support organizations include the following:

• $1.5 million to the North Carolina Aquarium Society.
• $1 million to the North Carolina Museum of History Foundation to support the North Carolina Museum of History, the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, the Mountain Gateway Museum and Heritage Center, the Museum of the Albemarle, the Museum of the Cape Fear, the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort and the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Southport.
• $1 million to the Roanoke Island Historical Association.
• $1 million to the Tryon Palace Foundation.
• $300,000 to the Friends of the North Carolina State Museum of Natural Sciences.

The General Assembly formally adjourned for the year Friday and legislators are not scheduled to return until a new legislature is sworn in Jan. 13, 2021.

The departure came with a caveat, however, since there is still a chance that Congress could approve additional federal coronavirus relief this year. Should that occur and require action by the General Assembly to allocate it, the state constitution allows the governor to call the legislature back into session.

Even though the COVID-19 pandemic has caused some challenges with daily management operations, the state Office of Recovery and Resiliency, or NCORR, officials said in a release Monday that it is on schedule to deliver Community Development Block Grant—Disaster Recovery funds to hurricane-impacted areas.

“Despite the challenges of a pandemic, rebuilding and recovering from two hurricanes occurring within 23 months of each other is vital for North Carolina,” said Gov. Roy Cooper. “The experienced team we’ve assembled will continue to streamline the delivery of recovery dollars to the people who need it most.”

NCORR has been on pace since September 2019 with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, for spending the funds awarded to North Carolina for Hurricane Matthew.

The office has committed as of July 10 a total of $184.1 million to homeowners, small businesses, local governments and the N.C. Housing Finance Agency in areas impacted by the storm. Through the ReBuild NC program, the office currently has 252 homes under construction with an additional 381 homes already completed.

North Carolina was the first of the 2018 disaster grant recipients to receive HUD approval for an action plan to allow the office to move forward with using Hurricane Florence funds to help the state recover.

NCORR opened June 15 a new application period for homeowners who need assistance with home repairs due to damage from Hurricanes Florence and Matthew through its Homeowner Recovery Program. Using the $542 million in funds awarded for Hurricane Florence recovery, the program will help homeowners repair, reconstruct or elevate homes damaged by either storm.

Cooper established NCORR following Hurricane Florence to streamline disaster recovery programs statewide and help communities rebuild smarter and stronger. The office is part of the Department of Public Safety and administers programs that support disaster recovery and resiliency.

North Carolina has spent more than $3.5 billion in state and federal funding to date for hurricanes Matthew and Florence recovery.

Updated  3 p.m. Monday to include the opening of the ReBuild NC Homeowner Recovery Program

The North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency opened Monday a new application period for eligible homeowners who suffered damage from hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

Through NCORR’s ReBuild NC Homeowner Recovery Program, homeowners may be eligible for assistance if they owned and occupied a home during these disasters. If homeowners have received assistance from other sources, they may still be eligible for help through the Homeowner Recovery Program, according to officials. Homeowners who have already applied to ReBuild NC do not need to reapply.

“The damaging impacts of Hurricanes Florence and Matthew can still be seen in many North Carolina communities today,” said Gov. Roy Cooper. “The Homeowner Recovery Program can help homeowners rebuild smarter and stronger to make them more resilient against future storms.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the application is online and the website has been redesigned to include additional resources for homeowners.

Additionally, NCORR is looking for feedback on proposed amendments to previously approved spending plans for grant funds in areas of the state affected by hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

North Carolina received $236 million in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s, or HUD, Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery, or CDBG-DR, funds for Hurricane Matthew recovery. The state has already awarded $185.4 million of that funding to help communities rebuild.

The public comment period for Substantial Action Plan Amendment 6 for Hurricane Matthew CDBG-DR is open until June 24. The public comment period for Substantial Action Plan Amendment 1 for Hurricane Florence CDBG-DR is open until July 10.

Both action plans and the draft amendments are available for review on the ReBuild NC website. Public comments may be submitted by email to publiccomments@rebuild.nc.gov or by U.S. Postal Service to NCORR Public Comments, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, N.C. 27709.

Cooper established NCORR after Hurricane Florence. The office administers programs that support homeowner recovery, affordable housing, mitigation, buyout, local government grants and loans and resiliency. Through its ReBuild NC program, NCORR has committed $185.4 million in Hurricane Matthew recovery funds to help storm survivors. To date, North Carolina has provided more than $3.5 billion in state and federal funding for Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Florence recovery.

Learn More

• Subscribe to NCORR and ReBuild NC updates

North Carolina’s action plan to spend $542 in Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds for Hurricane Florence has been approved.

The state Office of Recovery and Resiliency announced Thursday that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, approved the plan that was submitted and approved first out of 27 grantees for this federal disaster recovery allocation.

“Many North Carolina families are still struggling from the devastation caused by Hurricane Florence, and even in the midst of a pandemic we’re the first state in the country to receive approval on a plan to start drawing down these funds. I’m proud of our team working so hard through these challenging times to get people the help they need as quickly as possible,” said Gov. Roy Cooper in a statement.

Approval of the action plan is a required step in a technical process that all grantees must follow. The state must now receive a federal grant agreement from HUD before it can spend the funds to help storm survivors.

Hurricane Florence made landfall Sept. 14, 2018, and caused an estimated $22 billion in damages statewide. Cooper established the recovery and resiliency office following Hurricane Florence to streamline disaster recovery programs statewide and help communities rebuild smarter and stronger. The office administers programs that support homeowner recovery, affordable housing, mitigation, buyout, local government grants and loans, and resiliency.

Through its ReBuild NC program, office has committed $189.7 million in Hurricane Matthew recovery funds to help storm survivors and remains on pace to administer all funds within federal guidelines. To date, North Carolina has spent more than $3.5 billion in state and federal funding for hurricanes Matthew and Florence recovery.

NAGS HEAD — In a heartfelt message of thanks, Hyde County Commissioner Tom Pahl, who represents Ocracoke on the board, spoke Thursday to a packed Outer Banks Community Foundation luncheon held at Jennette’s Pier.

Within 24 hours of Hurricane Dorian’s devastation of Ocracoke and the southern end of Hatteras Island, the foundation launched the Outer Banks Disaster Relief Fund. To date, the fund has received more than $1.5 million in donations with $1.2 million earmarked for Ocracoke and the balance donated for relief operations on Hatteras Island.

“There’s so much that you have done for us. You so rose to the need in ways that just take our breath away,” Pahl said. “Not just those first few weeks but daily since the beginning.”

Speaking on behalf of Ocracoke, which suffered the most damage, and neighboring Hatteras Island, Pahl went on to say, “I come bearing a message of gratitude … from everyone who has benefited so greatly from the Outer Banks Community Foundation Dorian Relief Fund. My message is simple and heartfelt. Thank you, we were all brought to tears by your generosity.”

His message was more than one of thanks. After telling a story about how important it is to be human in the face of disaster, he went on to describe what he sees in people that allows them to overcome even the most remarkable obstacles and to thrive.

“We’re human. We’re vulnerable. We bend but we don’t break,” he said. “We’re Ocracoke strong.”

The phrase, “Ocracoke strong,” has been emblazoned on hats and clothing items being sold to raise money for the village’s recovery and appeared on signs around the village soon after the storm as a statement of the islanders’ resiliency.

“Resilience is what will get us through the years to come. Resilience is to be human,” Pahl added.

He described in detail Hurricane Dorian’s devastating flood waters, telling the more than 200 guests that hundreds of residents of the village are still living in temporary housing, dozens of homes are being elevated and many homes—especially older ones—have been bulldozed.

“While that hurts, especially because some of those are family homes that have been in the family for two, three, four generations. Most of them are going to be rebuilt and rebuilt higher off the ground, achieving resilience,” he said. “While that will take years, we’ve started the process and we’re not going to stop.”

He also noted the importance of making resilience integral in Ocracoke’s and other Outer Banks communities’ planning.

“Change is constant on this sandbar. We can and we must make this place resilient.

“It’s going to cost money to do it,” he added. “The good news is that we don’t need new sources of money. What we need is to redirect our priorities, statewide and nationally to solve these problems. It’s an issue of how we allocate our resources.”

The public can submit comments through 5 p.m. March 8 on how the state will use more than $500 million in federal funds to implement disaster recovery programs throughout areas impacted by the storm.

ReBuild NC is looking for feedback on the state’s draft action plan for administering $542 million in Hurricane Florence recovery funding provided to the state through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery, or CDBG-DR, program. The draft action plan is available for review on the Rebuild NC website. Printed copies of the draft plan are also available by calling 984-833-4344.

“This funding will make a tremendous difference for people whose lives were forever changed by Hurricane Florence,” said Gov. Roy Cooper in a statement. “I encourage North Carolinians in the impacted counties and beyond to submit their feedback on the plan so that we can provide the best possible recovery programs for storm survivors.”

Public comments can be submitted by email to publiccomments@rebuild.nc.gov or by U.S. Postal Service mail to: ReBuild NC, Attn: Florence Action Plan, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, N.C. 27709.

ReBuild NC is the state’s long-term disaster recovery agency administered by the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency. In addition to assisting hurricane survivors with home repairs and reconstruction, the office administers programs that include resiliency, affordable housing, mitigation, buyout, and local government grants and loans.

The North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency can now move forward with developing a draft action plan for more than $542 million in Community Development Block Grant — Disaster Recovery funding for Hurricane Florence.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, released details of a federal register notice the governor’s office announced Tuesday. The HUD draft on the Federal Register is available online.

When HUD approves a final action plan, the new funds will allow the recovery and resiliency office to expand its delivery of home repair, reconstruction, elevation and other recovery programs through the agency’s ReBuild NC program.

“This is an important step by the federal government to get additional funds to families still recovering from Hurricane Florence. North Carolinians have waited for these funds since 2018 and we will continue to push for federal legislation to help the federal government to speed up this process and get assistance to the people who need it,” said Gov. Roy Cooper in a statement.

The federal register notice identified these 10 counties as the most impacted and distressed areas due to impacts from Hurricane Florence: Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Duplin, Jones, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender and Robeson counties. The four impacted zip codes identified by the federal register notice include 28352 in Scotland County, 28390 in Cumberland County, 28433 in Bladen County and 29571 in Pamlico County.  Federal regulations require that the state spend 80% of the funding in those locations.

State residents have waited for the publication of spending guidelines since congress voted to allocate funding for disaster recovery on Oct. 5, 2018, and June 6, 2019, according to the governor’s office. Cooper has worked to reduce the length of time it takes to receive and disburse federal funds to families who need them and has made specific recommendations to the Trump Administration to streamline policies.

The Office of Recovery and Resiliency administers the state’s HUD disaster recovery and mitigation funding, as well as a state-funded grant and loan program to assist local governments.

To date, North Carolina has spent $3.3 billion in total state and federal funding to help survivors of hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

State officials expect a draft action plan to be complete next month, when it will be published and made available for a 30-day public comment period. After the public comment period, HUD will take up to 45 days to review the action plan before funds can be spent. Visit the website for the latest information on ReBuild NC activities statewide.

Numbers show that the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency has helped storm survivors on the road to recovery and prepares the state for a more resilient future in the year since its inception, Gov. Roy Cooper’s office announced Thursday.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Florence in September 2018, Cooper established the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, or NCORR, to streamline recovery programming and assistance.

“The Office of Recovery and Resiliency has made tremendous progress in getting disaster money out to the people who need it, but recovery is always a long-term process for storm survivors,” said Cooper in a statement Thursday. “We know that a changing climate means we have to rebuild not just stronger but also smarter, and our state is focused on innovative ways to better withstand future storms.”

The following is a list of the year in numbers provided by Cooper’s office:

• NCORR has committed more than $156.9 million in Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds to help rebuild impacted communities, an increase of 972% from this time last year.
• To date, NCORR has issued 1,261 homeowner award letters to storm survivors. This equates to a 719% increase in awards since December of 2018.
• One year ago, 19 storm survivors’ homes were under construction. Today, the number of storm survivors’ homes with construction initiated or construction completed has increased to 541.
• NCORR stood up a state-funded grant and loan program with the goal of providing financial assistance to communities needing cash flow to start federally reimbursable programs or address local capacity needs. In 2019, the program disbursed more than $7.9 million in grants and over $22.2 million in loans to 21 communities.

NCORR is preparing to launch new Hurricane Matthew programs that will include a homeowner buyout program to relocate individuals out of harm’s way and a small rental program to tackle the lack of affordable housing in impacted communities.

The state has used more than $3.2 billion to help state residents recover from hurricanes Matthew, Florence and Dorian. As of Thursday, the state currently does not have access to the $542 million it will receive for Hurricane Florence recovery and is waiting for the Department of Housing and Urban Development to publish the Hurricane Florence Federal Register notice to grant North Carolina access to those additional funds.

North Carolina and Federal Emergency Management Agency officials announced Thursday more than $54.9 million in hurricane- and tropical storm-related public assistance grants have been approved for Emerald Isle and Holden Beach.

The grants are to reimburse expenses to renourish public beaches in the coastal towns which were damaged by storm surges during Hurricane Florence and Tropical Storm Michael in 2018. Emerald Isle is to replenish with more than 2 million cubic yards of sand and more than 377,000 square yards of plants damaged during Hurricane Florence. The sand equals more than 20 times the amount of concrete in Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium and the volume of plants covers 78 acres, according to the announcement. Holden Beach will replenish more than 389,000 cubic yards of sand damaged during Tropical Storm Michael.

FEMA’s Public Assistance program provides grants for state and local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations to reimburse the cost of debris removal, emergency protective measures and permanent repair work. Public Assistance is a cost-sharing program. FEMA reimburses applicants at least 75% of eligible costs, and the remaining 25% is covered by the state. The federal share is paid directly to the state, which disburses funds to agencies, local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations that incurred costs.

FEMA’s combined share for the Emerald Isle and Holden Beach projects is more than $41.2 million and the state’s share is more than $13.7 million.

The state and FEMA have approved more than $72 million to restore North Carolina beaches since the 2018 storms. In September 2019, more than $18 million was approved to restore beaches in the towns of Indian Beach and Pine Knoll Shores.

Update: Gov. Roy Cooper on Monday signed into law House Bill 200.

Copublished with Carolina Public Press

RALEIGH — The state House and Senate approved Thursday $180 million in disaster recovery funding along with an array of policy changes as the General Assembly wrapped up work for the year.

The storm recovery bill was hammered out by House and Senate negotiators who dialed back some of what the House approved but left in place a significant boost to the state’s Dorian recovery efforts.

The two chambers initially agreed for the need for about $122 million in state funds needed to match federal disaster aid for Hurricanes Matthew, Florence, and Dorian and Tropical Storm Michael. Without the additional funds, accounts providing the 25% state share for debris removal, infrastructure repair and other work were expected to run dry by the end of the month.

Everything beyond that was part of an ongoing negotiation until a deal was locked down on Wednesday.

The final version of the bill, which passed both House and Senate with only one dissenting vote, includes $1.7 million for Ocracoke School repairs, money for flood control around Lake Mattamuskeet and additional state help for local governments to speed up Dorian recovery.

Rep. Bobby Hanig, R-Currituck, said the bill marks an important step in the journey back from disaster.

“Ocracoke has a long road to recovery, and this will be instrumental in that recovery,” he said.

The bill’s passage came as a relief to Ocracoke residents as they prepare for yet another weekend of high winds and heavy swells.

Peter Vankevich, co-publisher of the Ocracoke Observer, said there’s relief the bill has passed but also an immediate worry that some of the progress on the island’s roads could be set back if the storm forecast for this weekend is bad enough. It could slow the final bit of progress needed to reopen N.C. 12.

“You get two days of 30-knot winds and a lot can happen here, he said.

Vankevich was one of several who greeted Ocracoke resident Kelley Shinn when she returned home Thursday after visiting Raleigh to take the island’s case directly to legislators. Shinn met with Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Henderson, and joined a group of other Ocracoke supporters outside the Legislative Building Wednesday to raise awareness about the island’s needs.

Shinn said she was glad to see the funding in the bill was similar to the higher House levels, compared to the Senate version, and included the key items for Ocracoke and Hyde County. Residents will want to dig into the details on the funding and what programs and services it will go for, she said.

“I think we are ever hopeful, but still cautious,” Shinn said. Transparency, she said, will be important at all levels.

Ninth-generation Ocracoke resident Trudy Austin agreed and said she was confident Gov. Roy Cooper, who visited the island shortly after the disaster, will sign the bill.

Austin said Shinn’s trip provided inspiration in that people are listening.

“The island’s pretty excited about what she did, going there and standing up for us,” Austin said.

Recovery on the island will continue to depend on a mix of state and federal aid. Last month, the Federal Emergency Management Agency rejected the governor’s request for federal Individual Assistance, saying the disaster had not reached necessary damage thresholds. A program to provide state individual assistance grants to fill that gap is expected to begin soon, said Keith Acree, a spokesperson for the Department of Public Safety. Acree said individuals who did not qualify for help through a Small Business Administration grant program would be able to apply for the individual assistance grants.

The state is also in the process of finalizing a $600,000 grant to Hyde County. Half of the funds will go to rental assistance and for the purchase of 35 travel trailers for temporary housing. The other half will go for project management assistance for countywide recovery programs.

Resiliency planning

The bill contains some of the House version’s resiliency initiatives along with policy revisions clarifying the role and authority for the recently created state Office of Recovery and Resiliency.

It leaves out proposed funding aimed specifically at resiliency planning for the state’s 20 coastal counties. Also on hold is a $32 million update to the state’s topographic mapping program and a $5 million appropriation for  buyouts of hog farms in the 100-year floodplain.

Bill co-sponsor McGrady said he was surprised that Senate negotiators agreed to as much as they did, considering the Senate version focused almost solely on the needed matching funds. McGrady said he had been promised that the buyout funds and resiliency initiatives would be up for further discussion when the legislature returns in January to work on additional recovery legislation.

Other policy provisions in the bill include additional flexibility for local governments to allow them to combine costs and projects and reallocate funds from individual storms.

The bill also implements a legislative review panel’s recommendation for new state systems, responsibilities and oversight for disaster recovery under the Office of Recovery and Resiliency.

A provision in the bill giving the legislature explicit authority to determine the distribution of money from legal settlements drew a sharply worded statement from the governor’s office just before the vote on the bill that said the provision was an attempt to get around a court case regarding funds from the Volkswagen emissions testing fraud settlement.

The bill “uses disaster victims as political pawns,” Governor’s Office spokesperson Megan Thorpe said in the statement.

Sen. Bill Rabon, R-New Brunswick, responded in a statement that the governor had his facts wrong and the provision “simply re-affirms existing state law.”

The statement from the governor’s office did not contain an explicit veto threat and McGrady told House members that he understood that although the governor objected to the specific provision, he supported the recovery bill.

Also on Thursday, both chambers passed separate Department of Transportation funding and oversight bills covering recent outlays for disaster spending and funding some resiliency work and planning studies.

The spending includes $2 million for work expanding living shorelines around critical transportation infrastructure.

Funding highlights for House Bill 200 include the following:

• $70,812,336 to the Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Fund to provide state match for Florence federal disaster assistance programs.
• $11,197,013 for state match for Hurricane Matthew related federal disaster assistance programs.
• $4,176,245 for state match for Hurricane Matthew related federal disaster assistance programs.
• $17,800,000 for state match for Hurricane Dorian-related federal disaster assistance programs and similar state assistance that may supplement federal assistance or cover housing repairs and rehabilitation for those who do not qualify for federal assistance.
• $17,600,000 for the state match for additional federal funds for the state’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund.
• $5 million to replenish the state’s Emergency Response and Disaster Relief Fund for future storms.
• $5 million for expansion of flood-mitigation studies
• $4.8 million for water and breach level monitoring systems for 1,510 high- and intermediate-risk dams.
• $15 million to the state Office of Recovery and Resiliency, including $10 million for a bridge loan program for local governments affected by Matthew, Michael, Florence or Dorian to kickstart FEMA and Hazard Mitigation Grant projects and $5 million in grants to local governments for Dorian disaster recovery.
• $15 million for Golden LEAF grants for infrastructure repair.
• $5 million for stream debris removal.
• $5.2 million for repairs to storm damage at Elizabeth City State University.
• $1.7 million for repairs at the Ocracoke School.
• $1.8 million to Hyde County for a pump station at Lake Mattamuskeet.
• $50,000 for restoration work at Coastal Reserve sites damaged during Dorian.

Updated to include the public hearings dates announced Nov. 18 by Rebuild NC.

ReBuild NC is looking for input on how the state should spend $168 million to assist areas affected by hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

Under federal guidelines, the money can be used to assist areas impacted by hurricanes Matthew and Florence to fund projects that will mitigate and reduce future disaster risks, as well as address the needs of communities impacted by past disasters.

Public hearings will be held at 6 p.m. Dec. 3 at Goldsboro City Council Chambers, 200 N. Center St. in Goldsboro and at 6 p.m. Dec. 5 at One Harbor Church, 214 Turner St., Beaufort.

The public can provide comment on the draft action plan until Dec. 23. Comments may be submitted to publiccomments@rebuild.nc.gov or by mail to Attn: Mitigation Action Plan, P.O. Box 110465, Durham, N.C. 27709.

“North Carolinians who have seen unprecedented storm damage over the last couple of years know we must rebuild stronger and smarter. I encourage storm survivors to weigh in during the public comment period so we can continue to get assistance to those who need it,” said Gov. Roy Cooper in a statement.

ReBuild NC is administered by the N.C. Office of Recovery and Resiliency. The draft Action Plan is available for review on the Rebuild NC website or printed copies can be obtained by calling 984-833-4344.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allocated the funds the Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation funding to the state.

President Trump approved Friday Gov. Roy Cooper’s request for a major disaster declaration for 14 eastern North Carolina counties affected by Hurricane Dorian.

The approval allows Brunswick, Carteret, Craven, Currituck, Dare, Duplin, Hyde, Jones, New Hanover, Pamlico, Pender, Sampson, Tyrrell and Washington to receive support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Public Assistance program, providing reimbursement to local governments for costs of debris removal, lifesaving emergency protective measures and the repair, replacement or restoration of disaster-damaged publicly owned facilities. Certain private nonprofit organizations can also be eligible for reimbursement.

“North Carolina’s coastal communities – particularly Ocracoke and those on the Outer Banks – were hit hard by Hurricane Dorian and it’s critical that they have access to FEMA Public Assistance and the federal resources necessary to recover. This is a positive step and we continue to urge our federal partners and North Carolina’s congressional delegation to work to expedite approval of our request for Individual Assistance for families whose homes were destroyed as well,” Cooper said in a statement.

North Carolina requested public assistance Sept. 13. Cooper also requested on Sept 21 a major disaster declaration for individual assistance, which if approved, would provide grants to residents who suffered damage from Dorian and could open the door to additional FEMA recovery programs, like temporary housing.

The individual assistance request remains under review and state officials have urged federal agencies and North Carolina’s congressional delegation to work to expediate federal approval.

Cooper and state officials surveyed the recovery process underway on Ocracoke Island Thursday. Cooper’s office said Ocracoke faces unique challenges and the state continues to provide critical support services to the island including the following:

• A team of emergency managers to support Hyde County officials in coordinating response and recovery efforts.
• Airlift of food, water and emergency personnel to island.
• Two Urban Search and Rescue task forces that provided the initial search of island, helped evacuate injured and assisted with donations and supply management and other tasks in days following the storm.
• Emergency fuel supplies and repairs to get fuel service available.
• Damage assessment teams to document the need for federal help.
• N.C. Office of Emergency Medical Services is providing a mobile medical clinic staffed by physician and eight-person medical team.
• Mental health counselors who have made hundreds of contacts with residents in need.
• Food preparation and feeding by volunteer organizations with more than 10,000 meals served.
• Laundry and shower units from Baptists on Mission.
• National Guard cleared roads and removed boats from roadways.
• Four Alcohol Law Enforcement agents assisting Hyde County Sheriff’s Department in addition to other counties sheriff’s deputies.
• Cleanup and disposal of dead fish and marine life by N.C. National Guard.
• National Guard personnel and equipment to assist with transportation and donations management.
• 50 portable toilets and 32 handwashing stations.
• Several volunteer groups supported by the state are at work on the island mucking out houses.
• N.C. Department of Insurance working with insurers to remove flooded vehicles from island.
• Distribution of relief supplies from fire department being managed by local government, with help from volunteer agencies and local volunteers.
• A central receiving and distribution point has been established on the mainland to manage the flow of supplies and donated goods onto the island.
• The Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Health Service Regulation will leave and maintain the mobile disaster hospital assets while the Ocracoke health center is being repaired.
• N.C. Department of Transportation and the Ferry Division are maintaining additional ferry routes between Hatteras and Ocracoke-Silver Lake to address public concerns.

Learn More

• Support for Ocracoke’s recovery

RALEIGH — Funds for buyouts and repairs, bridge loans for local governments, repairs at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, environmental cleanup and a major resiliency study are all part of a disaster recovery package that is expected to be considered this week by the North Carolina General Assembly.

The House was expected to take up the bill Wednesday. If approved, it would move on to the Senate.

The House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday reviewed the legislation, which duplicates language in the budget passed in July that Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed over concern about teacher pay, the lack of a Medicaid expansion provision and about 10 other areas of disagreement.

Although a veto-override vote has been on the legislative calendar since then, legislative leaders had yet to assemble enough votes for an override. Last month, they opted to start moving less controversial parts of the budget, breaking them out into “mini-budgets.”

The disaster recovery funding, a compromise worked out earlier this year between the House and Senate versions, is the latest in the series.

“They’re the same projects, the same money,” Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Henderson, a main House budget writer, told the committee Tuesday.

The bill includes more than $112.6 million in funding, mainly in response to Hurricane Florence and Tropical Storm Michael in 2018. It also contains rules on how grants from the state’s disaster recovery funds can be spent and extends expedited Coastal Area Management Act emergency permits through Oct. 21, 2020.

McGrady said the legislature would take up another round of disaster funding to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian, but it’s too early to say when that would happen given that the storm was less than a week ago.

“It’s way too early to assess the damages that have occurred,” he said.

The legislature moved quickly after 2016’s Hurricane Matthew, convening to pass legislation more than a month after the storm, but at the time the full range of damage assessments wasn’t ready and follow-up legislation was required.

The new bill includes about $5 million in funding that the administration can use as needed to meet some of the costs incurred during Dorian recovery and any future disasters.

The legislation also earmarks $22.68 million for the Department of Environmental Quality, including $8 million for disaster-related infrastructure and cleanup needs. The total also includes water and wastewater infrastructure, coastal management planning and dam safety, and $11.5 million for the Coastal Storm Damage Mitigation Fund to finance beach and coastal infrastructure repairs.

DEQ would also receive $175,000 to continue the UNC Institute of Marine Sciences’ water quality program testing program that works in partnership with the state Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division.

The bill sets aside $27,868,000 for more than a dozen targeted appropriations from the state disaster recovery fund set up after the storms. They include the following:

• $68,000 to Morehead City for the renovation and dredging of Pelletier Creek.
• $300,000 to the Bladen County Kelly Dike District for engineering and planning for repairs to Kelly Dike, which spans both Bladen and Pender counties.
• $500,000 to Pender County to repair damage to the county courthouse caused by Hurricane Florence.
• $1 million to Elm City for disaster recovery projects.
• $3.3 million to Carteret County to support the Bogue Sound Project that involves 74 acres, 20 acres of which is undeveloped waterfront, that the Marine Corps had sought for more than 10 years to prevent residential development near its auxiliary airfield.

The UNC system would receive $10.16 million, including $8 million for repairs and renovations at UNC Wilmington; $2 million for UNC Chapel Hill’s North Carolina Policy Collaboratory to study flooding and storm resiliency; and $160,000 to expand the ModMon water quality monitoring program in sounds and rivers.

The state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services would get $1 million for stream debris removal and the Wildlife Resources Commission would get $1 million to “inspect, investigate, and remove” derelict vessels.

The bill also includes the first tranche of funds in a new state program to aid low-income homeowners in purchasing flood insurance and sets aside $5 million for mitigation, relocation, buyout assistance to local governments and infrastructure repairs and $8 million to help move families out of floodplains. Another $9 million would go for grants and loans to assist local governments that have need immediate cash flow assistance to cover recovery operations while federal funds are still being processed.

NORTH CAROLINA — Through the coming weeks, state officials will hold a series of community disaster information sessions in more than a dozen communities to provide updates on recovery resources that are available in hurricane-affected areas of eastern North Carolina, the state Department of Public Safety announced Friday.

Gov. Roy Cooper’s office, the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, North Carolina Emergency Management and the state departments of Environmental Quality and Health and Human Services have partnered to provide the information sessions to be held from 6-7:30 p.m. at the following locations:

• Monday, Aug. 26: Lumbee Tribe Southern Spirit Community Building, 1872 Back Swamp Road, Lumberton.
• Tuesday, Aug. 27: Rural Empowerment Association for Community Help (R.E.A.C.H.), 2389 West Wards Bridge Road, Warsaw.
• Tuesday, Aug. 27: St. Luke AME Zion Church, 91 Main St., Maysville.
• Thursday, Aug. 29: First Baptist Church, 521 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Bladenboro.
• Thursday, Aug. 29: St. Peter AME Zion Church, 617 Queen St., New Bern.
• Tuesday, Sept. 3: St. Stephens AME Church, 501 Red Cross St., Wilmington.
• Tuesday, Sept. 3: Mattamuskeet Early College High School Cafeteria, 20392 US 264, Swan Quarter.
• Thursday, Sept. 5: Faith Tabernacle of Praise, 413 NC 101, Beaufort.
• Thursday, Sept. 5: Columbus County Dream Center, 403 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, Whiteville.
• Monday, Sept. 9: First Baptist Church, 302 Moore St., Fayetteville.
• Monday, Sept. 9: Johnson Chapel AME Zion Church, 1882 Lincoln Road NE, Leland.
• Tuesday, Sept. 10: St. James Pentecostal Church, 210 Montague Road, Currie.
• Tuesday, Sept. 10: St. Augustus AME Zion Church, 318 North St., Kinston.
• Thursday, Sept. 12: St. Julia’s AME Zion Church, 112 Kerr St., Jacksonville.
• Date TBD: Missionary Baptist Association, 296 N. Trent Road, Merritt.

Learn More

• Hurricane Florence Recovery

RALEIGH− The state Department of Public Safety announced Wednesday the leadership chosen for the new state Office of Recovery and Resiliency.

The three individuals named were selected “to lead the state’s initiative to help storm-affected communities rebuild smarter and stronger in the face of future natural disasters and long-term climate change,” according to the announcement

Jessica Whitehead has been named as chief resilience officer and Marlena Byrne and Amanda Martin have been named as a deputy chief resilience officers.

The Office of Recovery and Resiliency, under the Department of Public Safety, was established by Gov. Roy Cooper following Hurricane Florence. The office administers funds received by the state through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grants for Disaster Recovery Program, in partnership with the N.C. Department of Commerce.

The team has been tasked with improving collaboration between governments, nonprofits, the private sector and academia to develop resiliency solutions while creating safe and affordable housing solutions.

The office provides disaster recovery coordination with services that include recovery funding oversight, program applications processing, construction and vendor management, and public outreach and education, among other responsibilities, according to the release.

“The science tells us we can expect to see a continued increase in the frequency and severity of hurricanes and the flooding that follows. North Carolina has got to plan now to make our communities more resilient to future storms,” said state. Department of Public Safety Secretary Erik Hooks in a statement. “We can’t afford to wait for another Matthew or Florence to take action.”

Whitehead served for 11 years as the coastal communities hazards adaptation specialist for North Carolina Sea Grant. She is a member of the Independent Advisory Committee on Applied Climate and co-chairs the Science and Technical Advisory Committee of the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership and recently began a term on the American Meteorological Society’s Board of Outreach and Pre-College Education.

Byrne, whose primary area of focus will be infrastructure projects, is an environmental and land use lawyer with extensive experience as an adviser for large scale public infrastructure, planning and capital improvement projects, as well as private development projects. She was a deputy city attorney for the City and County of San Francisco for 13 years, advising on urban planning, land use and historic preservation, as well as environmental, government, administrative and constitutional law.

Martin, whose primary area of focus will be housing projects, is a city planner specializing in resilient community and economic development. For the past three years, she ran the Southeast Disaster Recovery Partnership, where she oversaw capacity building and planning projects in four states, conducted applied research and built a network of recovery and resilience professionals across the Southeast and Caribbean.

“Hurricanes Matthew and Florence underscored that as North Carolina builds back, we need to find ways to build back smarter and stronger,” said Whitehead. “We must improve North Carolina’s resilience, and doing so now will be cheaper in the long run as weather events become more severe and our climate changes.”

To date, recovery spending for Hurricane Matthew has been more than $1.14 billion and for Hurricane Florence, $1.58 billion.

RALEIGH — The House passed its version of the state budget last week, including in it another substantial round of spending on disaster relief and recovery.

The disaster recovery program was one of the last sections to be added to the House budget. It now heads to the Senate, which is working on its own version of the two-year spending plan.

While there are differences between each chamber’s budgets, House Speaker Tim Moore said last week there’d been ongoing cooperation on budget targets.

The disaster recovery section of the bill draws $84.7 million from the Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Reserve, which was set up in the wake of last year’s devastating storm. The largest pool of money in the recovery plan is $26.5 million, to be disbursed through the Golden LEAF Foundation as grants to local governments and to water and sewer authorities for water, wastewater and stormwater repairs and upgrades. The bill also authorizes Golden LEAF funds to be used for hazard mitigation programs.

Among other appropriations are a range of resiliency programs, most of which are set up under the Department of Public Safety’s new Office of Resiliency and Recovery. The office was set up last year to coordinate and consolidate ongoing disaster recovery programs from 2016’s Hurricane Matthew and last year’s storms, Florence and Michael.

The resiliency plans focus on several buyout and mitigation programs, including $13 million for the new State Acquisition and Relocation Fund to expedite 214 home acquisitions in areas that repeatedly flood and provide gap funding to help residents who accept a buyout to purchase new homes. Another $10 million would go for relocation and buyout assistance for local governments and $10 million more would go for the repair, reconstruction or purchase of 100 residences deemed ineligible under Federal Emergency Management Agency and Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery grants.

Local governments would also be eligible for an additional $13 million in grants to improve disaster recovery capabilities and cash-flow loans for communities awaiting federal reimbursements.

Also in the budget is $2 million a year for two years for a flood insurance pilot program that would provide subsidies for about 1,667 residential properties in high-risk areas.

Volunteer programs helping homeowners with repairs would receive $2 million under the plan.

Bridget Munger, a spokesperson for the Office of Recovery and Resiliency, said many of the properties under consideration for buyouts and repairs had already been identified, but others were awaiting a final set of guidelines from federal agencies that would determine the areas where federal appropriations would be targeted.

In addition to the DPS funding, the Department of Environmental Quality would receive $13 million for infrastructure and environmental cleanup needs and $100,000 for the Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project, a project led by the North Carolina Coastal Federation to remove lost crab pots that create hazards to navigation and marine life in the state’s sounds.

The Division of Marine Fisheries would receive an additional $1.5 million for resiliency projects and $1 million would go to the Wildlife Resources Commission for derelict vessel removal.

Conservation Partnership

The House’s plan also sets aside $3.3 million for land acquisition as part of the Bogue Sound Project. The project involves 74 acres that include 20 acres of undeveloped waterfront on Bogue Sound, land the Marine Corps had sought for more than 10 years to prevent residential development near its auxiliary airfield.

The Coastal Federation is partnering with Carteret County and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point on the planned purchase with part of the property to be used for a public boat ramp and nature park area.

Cherry Point is applying for half of the total $7.47 million purchase price, or about $3.74 million, through a Defense Department program, Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration. REPI funds cooperative agreements with landowners to keep land uses compatible with nearby military operations.

Once purchased, ownership of most of the property would transfer to the county under an agreement with the federation allowing its environmental education programming on the preserved areas of the land and involvement in the boat ramp’s design to incorporate features to protect the designated outstanding resource and open shellfishing waters from polluted stormwater runoff. The federation plans to purchase 5 or more acres as a future site for its headquarters and a coastal nature center.

About 60 acres, including nearly the entire shoreline and 18 acres of wetlands, is to be set aside permanently for conservation. The Marine Corps plans to place an easement over the entire property preventing residential construction in the encroachment zone for Bogue Field.

The partnership also involves the Onslow Bight Conservation Forum, which in addition to Cherry Point includes representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina Department of Cultural and Natural Resources and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The group has conserved more than 71,000 acres since 2001.

DEQ Lab, Emerging Contaminants

One area where House and Senate plans have differed widely in the past several budget cycles is in spending for DEQ.

The House budget proposes increases for the department this year for work on emerging contaminants and an extensive $30 million renovation and upgrade to the department’s water and air quality laboratories at its Reedy Creek facility in Raleigh.

DEQ’s lab request was fully funded, but an additional $6 million and 37 positions requested to handle the growing volume of work on GenX and other emerging contaminants was trimmed to $600,000 and seven new positions.

DEQ spokesperson Megan Thorpe said this week that the funding provided for emerging contaminants was a disappointment.

“While other states made multi-million-dollar commitments to water quality monitoring equipment and staff when facing similar threats to the water supply, the House budget instead neglects DEQ’s resource gaps and sets aside gluttonous earmarks for pet projects.”

The House also didn’t provide an additional $1.5 million requested by the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill-based North Carolina Policy Collaboratory to continue its statewide work on emerging contaminant testing, but did agree to extend its work another year with a special provision extending the Collaboratory’s work testing waters around all public water intakes and wells used for public water systems for another year.

That funding is likely to be included in the budget developed by the Senate, which pushed for the creation of the Collaboratory in 2016 and has included funding for it in each budget since.

Other coastal items in the budget include the following:

• Carteret Community College Aquaculture Program – $125,000 each year for a Shellfish Aquaculture Demonstration Center, to be set up through a collaboration between North Carolina Sea Grant and Carteret Community College.
• Fort Fisher Historical Site Visitor Center – Provides $8 million for another round of funding for a $20.9 million upgrade to the visitor center.
• Water Resources Development Projects – Provides $11 million for the nonfederal share of navigation, water management, flood mitigation and beach renourishment projects.
• Passenger Ferry Lease – Authorizes up to $1 million for the state Ferry Division to fund leasing a passenger ferry for the Ocracoke passenger service while the state ferry under construction is completed.
• Ferry Maintenance – Provides an additional $8.5 million over two years for increased projected operations and maintenance expenditures.
• Cape Fear Utility Lines – Provides $11 million to the State Ports Authority over two years to elevate by 41 feet the power lines across the Cape Fear River near the Wilmington port to allow an overall clearance of 212 feet to accommodate larger ships.
• Wind Study – Authorizes $300,000 for the ports authority to conduct a study of state ports and transportation infrastructure for potential to support the supply chain for offshore wind industries.

RALEIGH — Local governments can now receive financial help from the state to help recover from Hurricane Florence.

Gov. Roy Cooper’s office announced Thursday that the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency had launched two programs to assist local governments struggling financially in the aftermath of the September hurricane.

“Communities are working to clean up and rebuild following Hurricane Florence and some local governments need help to get them through this extraordinary time,” said Cooper in statement. “Grants and loans are available to towns, cities and counties so they can continue to meet the needs of their residents while recovering from storm damage.”

More than $7 million in grants and loans already have been disbursed and more is available, including grants of up to $1 million to eligible local governments to provide short-term assistance with everyday operating expenses, such as general payroll, certain non-disaster-related vendor payments, and debt service.

Grant funds can also be used to provide additional capacity for disaster recovery by funding up to two time-limited positions, contracting for disaster recovery services, and purchasing a vehicle.

Eligible local governments can also apply for no-interest loans of up to $2 million to help with disaster-related expenses while waiting for reimbursement from federal disaster response, recovery and resiliency programs, according to the release. Approved local governments would repay the loan principal amount upon receipt of federal reimbursement.

Both programs are ongoing and use funds from the State Disaster Recovery Act. There is no deadline for applications, but the organization will stop taking applications once all funds are awarded.

Several communities have already received grants and loans totaling more than $7 million to help with operating costs and recovery expenses.

Pollocksville, Fair Bluff, Cape Carteret and Robbins each received $500,000 in grant funds and River Bend received $300,000 in grant funds. Loans disbursed included $2 million to Fair Bluff, $1.6 million to Robbins, $1 million to Beaufort and $800,000 to River Bend.

Learn More

• Assistance for Local Governments

RALEIGH — North Carolina has added a new tool to help the state and citizens track disaster recovery efforts as communities across eastern North Carolina continue to recover from Hurricane Matthew, The North Carolina Department of Information Technology announced Tuesday.

Rebuild.nc.gov, a new online resource built by the state’s Department of Information Technology  in partnership with the Governor’s Hurricane Matthew Recovery Office and the Department of Public Safety, allows easy access to detailed funding information for disaster recovery including information by county.

The site was initially built to track Hurricane Matthew recovery efforts. The expanded and improved site will track efforts for any natural disaster that strikes the state going forward.

Information will include aggregated data about the number of requests for assistance received for various programs and the total amount of aid provided. The site will also provide detailed spending data by funding source, agency and county.

Having that level of detail easily available will provide immediate information and additional transparency on the use of disaster recovery resources, according to the press release. The state can also use the data to establish targets for relief efforts and track progress toward reaching those goals.

“Recovering from disasters is a long and challenging process for individuals and for the communities themselves,” Public Safety Secretary Erik Hooks said in a statement. “The more detailed information we can provide to people quickly, the better they can help to manage their recovery.”

The site will also include public safety information about long-term recovery efforts, such as access to mental health programs, loan programs or grant programs.

The Government Data Analytics Center housed within the Department of Information Technology will feed data to the site, while the Department of Information Technology’s Digital Services Team will manage its operations.

“Technology is nothing more than a tool to improve lives,” Eric Boyette, State Chief Information Officer and Secretary of the Department of Information Technology, said in the statement. “I can’t think of a better way to use technology than to try to improve the way we help people rebuild after a disaster. I’m proud my team was able to work with the governor’s office and Emergency Management officials to build this resource.”

Learn More

• Rebuild.nc.gov

RALEIGH — The Federal Emergency Management Agency has halted paying out the $134 million owed to dozens of North Carolina counties for repairs after Hurricane Matthew, WRAL reported.

The recent aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida has pushed recovery from Hurricane Matthew, which took place 11 months ago, to the back burner.

FEMA alerted emergency management directors in 50 North Carolina counties this week of the temporary hold, as well as officials in other states where a federal disaster has been declared, such as Western states after wildfires.

Most of the individual claims for Matthew recovery money have already been paid out. The money being held up would reimburse cities and counties for infrastructure repairs and upgrades.

FEMA is required by law to pay for the repairs but the freeze could tie up federal recovery funds for months.

Learn More

• Full Story on WRAL

RALEIGH — North Carolina has been awarded a $4.5 million grant from the federal government for Hurricane Matthew relief, Gov. Roy Cooper announced Thursday.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded the funds, which are designed to help some of the most-affected victims navigate long-term recovery.

The Disaster Case Management Grant to North Carolina Emergency Management requires no matching donations from the state. Cooper said in a press release that the grant, which was created in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, was the first of its kind to be received by North Carolina.

The state reports that more than 80,000 people have registered for FEMA assistance since Hurricane Matthew. North Carolina has received $88.4 million in federal disaster relief for homeowners and renters and $80.8 million from the Small Business Administration.

Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry said the department is identifying experienced case managers to work with faith-based and volunteer organizations to assist those in need. The state said case managers are expected to be in place by February.

Learn More

• The deadline for Hurricane Matthew survivors to register with FEMA for disaster assistance is 11:59 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23. Apply online at fema.gov/disaster/4285 or call 800-621-FEMA.

RALEIGH — Gov. Pat McCrory signed a $200 million disaster recovery bill into law yesterday to aid in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew and wildfires in the western part of the state.

Another disaster recovery bill is expected to be passed next year. Lawmakers said the current bill will cover expected needs until then.

According to a press release from the McCrory administration, highlights of the Disaster Recovery Act of 2016 include:

• $29 million for short-term housing not covered by Federal Emergency Management Agency or grants.
• $40 million for local governments to fund repairs to water and sewer systems, roads, sidewalks, drainage and residential infrastructure, among other local needs.
• $5 million for economic development and stabilization to help affected businesses.
• $11.5 million for sustainable community rebuilding.
• $76 million to cover the state share of disaster relief to directly help residents and replenish the state emergency response and disaster relief funds.

McCrory said funding for short-term housing was important because federal funding for hotel stays would end in early January.

The bill also prohibits the use of state funds to rebuild homes within the 100-year floodplain.

McCrory signed the bill in his home, the executive mansion in Raleigh, surrounded by mayors, legislators, members of his Hurricane Matthew Recovery Committee and Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry.

Learn More

• Read the bill

RALEIGH — The General Assembly passed legislation Wednesday providing $200.9 million for the recovery from Hurricane Matthew in the east and wildfires in the west, and then promptly opened a new special session aimed at dialing back some of the powers of incoming governor Roy Cooper and loosening environmental rules.

In the course of a few minutes around 2 p.m., House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, closed the hurricane and wildfire relief special session called by Gov. Pat McCrory and then gaveled in an almost unprecedented fourth special session of the year.

House Democrats are protesting the session that continues Thursday.

Repeatedly asked about the purposes of the session, Moore said it would be a two-day session open to any bill a member deemed of importance. House Rules chairman Rep. David Lewis, R-Harnett, later told a group of reporters that at least part of the session would be devoted to reasserting powers ceded to the executive branch in previous years.

Between the announcement and a bill-filing deadline for the session later in the evening, 21 bills were filed in the House and seven in the Senate, from a bid to end toll roads to a special holiday for teachers and employees to puppy mill legislation that’s been a longtime McCrory goal.

Many of the bills were aimed at making adjustments prior to Jan. 1, 2017, when Cooper takes office.

Those scheduled for hearings and potential passage as early as Thursday include a bill changing the structure and partisan mix in the state and local boards of elections and merging the elections board and the State Board of Ethics into one entity. Another bill makes several changes to the governor’s powers reducing the number of appointments the governor makes on the University of North Carolina system boards of trustees, reducing the number of state positions appointed by the governor from 1,500 under McCrory to 300.

Democrats vowed lawsuits over the legality of the session itself and many of the provisions stripping the governor’s powers.

Regulatory Reform Redux

Also on the list of potential bills is a new version of a 43-page omnibus changing dozens of regulations and environmental protections.

The bill, the Regulatory Reform Act of 2016, closely mirrors a compromise hammered out at the end of this year’s regular session that failed to come up for a vote after a House-Senate end-of-session agreement fell apart in the final hours, leaving roughly a half-dozen measures hanging.

The new bill, also called the Regulatory Reform Act of 2016, included dozens of provisions, but the version introduced in the House by Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Henderson, leaves out two key sections requested by the Senate: a set of wind energy restrictions championed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown, R-Onslow, and an end to the statewide electronics recycling program requested by Sen. Trudy Wade, R-Guilford.

Rep. Pat McElraft said McGrady had done a good job of crafting the bill and most of it was similar to measures approved by the House earlier this year.

“It’s pretty reasonable,” McElraft said. “I don’t think there’s anything in here that’s extreme at all.”

She said the Senate had still not signed off on the bill and there was a possibility it might not be taken up at all if it doesn’t gain traction in the other chamber.

Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, said that, although the bill is an improvement over previous regulatory reform bills, it still contained worrisome changes in coastal policy.

New sandbag rules put into place under the bill would allow much broader use and loosen controls on where they have to be placed and why. Another section of the bill exempts the use of shoal sands from quality requirements for beach renourishment.

Cassie Gavin , Director of Government Relations for the North Carolina Sierra Club said two major concerns in the bill are provisions that run counter to the purpose of the hurricane and flood relief legislation passed earlier in the day.

One would reduce buffers requirements and another would double the amount of damage to streams beds allowed during development.

“I think it’s especially concerning to see rollbacks on water quality protections when the special session was called to protect against flooding,” she said. The changes, some of which must be approved by the Army Corps of Engineers, would make matters worse for eastern North Carolina, she said.

Learn More

• Disaster Recovery Act
• Regulatory Reform  Act
• Senate bills filed Wednesday
• House bills filed Wednesday

RALEIGH – Gov. Pat McCrory plans to call a special session of the legislature within the next month to address Hurricane Matthew recovery plans, but the date and details of any request depend heavily on end-of-year action in Congress.

McCrory said that although the timing of the session hinges on the federal calendar, he expected to ask lawmakers to convene by late November or early December.

During the initial meeting Tuesday of the newly formed Hurricane Matthew Recovery Committee, the governor unveiled more details of how the state plans to deal with the long-term effects of the early October storm that caused billions of dollars in damage and is blamed in the deaths of 28 people, most of them trapped in cars swept away by floodwaters.

The committee, 33 members and growing, was put together in the wake of Hurricane Matthew to seek local input and help coordinate long-term recovery efforts in the 41 affected counties.

Although floodwaters finally receded in late October, Matthew’s effects linger in many parts of eastern North Carolina. About 300 roads remain closed and more than 1,000 homes are still without power.

On the immediate horizon is assembling cost projections and damage assessments ahead of the return of Congress the week after election. Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry said he is working to finalize initial assessments of needs for North Carolina. The state plans to submit a formal request for federal disaster assistance on Nov. 14.

With resources stretched at the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other federal relief programs due to a string of natural disasters this year, Congress is likely to either develop a separate, supplemental funding bill or fold the requests into the end-of-year budget omnibus.

McCrory said North Carolina will have to compete for funds with Louisiana and West Virginia, both hard hit by flooding, as well as other southeastern states with damage from Matthew. The governor said he has been in contact with South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley about areas of collaboration. If congressional action is delayed, the state would still need to move forward this year, McCrory said, and not wait for the 2017 session, which won’t begin until later in January.

State Budget Director Drew Heath said the state is in good financial shape in the short term with about $22.1 million available in two main disaster funds.

Heath said the state will start paying out reimbursement requests from state and local agencies in the next few weeks. He does not expect the state to run out of recovery money before Congress and the state legislature reconvene.

State legislation would expand local school calendar flexibility and include funding for agencies that are using reserve money to fund recovery efforts, including the Department of Transportation, Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The governor also needs the legislature’s approval to dip into the state’s so-called rainy day fund to cover costs not met by the federal aid or existing emergency funds.

Under the recovery plan, the state Department of Emergency Management would coordinate federal assistance, conduct damage assessments and work with local officials. The Hurricane Matthew Recovery Committee would be responsible for working directly with communities on fundraising for housing, small business recovery and resiliency planning. In some cases, the governor said, communities will have to decide whether it is worth rebuilding in flood-prone areas.

Meanwhile, federal aid programs to North Carolina continue to expand.

Housing remains a key concern. In the aftermath of the storm more than 3,700 residents were housed in 109 emergency shelters. That number has dropped to 248 in four shelters.

Elizabeth Turner, FEMA’s federal coordinating officer for North Carolina, said the agency is looking an array of options to move thousands more out of hotels and other temporary solutions.

“The most important thing right now, absolutely, is housing,” she said. More than 1,500 people are living in hotels, she said.

Over the past two weeks FEMA has been opening assistance offices and hiring temporary workers at several locations on the coast. Turner estimates that more than 1,000 government workers and contractors are on the ground in the disaster area.

On Tuesday, six coastal counties were added to the list eligible for federal Disaster Food and Nutrition Services. Residents who suffered losses from Matthew in Brunswick, Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Halifax and Pasquotank counties are now able to apply for food assistance.

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