Missouri Governor pledges $25 million for flood relief
On Tuesday, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon pledged $25 million in state aid to help cities and counties rebuild following crippling floods throughout the southern half of the state; it is unclear whether the state will be forced to make budget cuts in order to afford the disaster spending; on Monday President Obama issued a major disaster declaration for five Missouri counties; under the declaration residents of the five counties are eligible to apply for federal assistance for the costs of temporary housing, home repairs, and loans to cover uninsured losses
On Tuesday, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon pledged $25 million in state aid to help cities and counties rebuild following crippling floods throughout the southern half of the state.
Governor Nixon said that the money will help local governments pay for flood response and rebuilding projects in addition to the state’s cost of deploying nearly 800 National Guard members.
The money is not included in the state’s current budget or in the budget that was passed last week for the next fiscal year, which starts 1 July.
Linda Luebbering, the governor’s budget director, said that it is unclear whether the state will be forced to make budget cuts in order to afford the disaster spending.
On Monday President Obama issued a major disaster declaration for five Missouri counties including Butler, New Madrid, and St. Louis. These counties were the hardest hit by the severe storms and tornadoes that swept through the state last month
Under the declaration residents of the five counties are eligible to apply for federal assistance for the costs of temporary housing, home repairs, and loans to cover uninsured losses. The federal government will also pay as much as 75 percent of the costs to repair local and state government buildings.
In response to President Obama’s announcement, Governor Nixon said, “I appreciate the president taking swift action on the request that I made just four days ago, so that Missouri families can more quickly recover from the severe storms, tornadoes and record flooding that have affected parts of our state.”
Nixon continued, “As the flood waters recede and more damage assessments can be done, we will ask the federal government to expand this disaster declaration to provide similar vital assistance to other impacted communities and families.”
Beginning 19 April, the state was struck by a series of strong storms, tornadoes, and flooding. On 22 April, Governor Nixon declared a state of emergency and activated state resources to assist local authorities struggling to cope with the natural disasters.
