Missouri struggles to pay for natural disasters

Last week, Missouri governor Jay Nixon ordered his state budget director to put aside an additional $100 million to help the state’s disaster stricken areas recover.

Governor Nixon has already ordered $50 million to be withheld, but Linda Luebbering, the state budget director, worries that the $150 million is not enough.

“Sitting here today, we don’t know if that $150 million will be adequate,” Luebbering said.

“Ultimately, if those costs go significantly higher, we may have to consider using the state’s “Rainy Day Fund” for disaster recovery costs”, she continued. “At a minimum, we need to keep that open as an option.”

The state’s Rainy Day Fund contains about $500 million, but the most the government can use is $250 million. In order to begin using those funds, Governor Nixon would have to make a request and both branches of the state legislature would have to approve it with a two-thirds majority.

Like many other states, Missouri has been struggling with a tight budget and was forced to make difficult spending cuts. Luebbering said the Rainy Day Fund may become an option as Governor Nixon hopes to avoid making any additional cuts to state programs.

“Obviously, every year we make cuts (to the budget), the cuts become more challenging each year,” Luebbering said. “And so as we said, this latest round of reductions we had to do in June were the toughest yet.”

Missouri is still waiting to hear from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) about how much the federal government will contribute to disaster relief. In addition, the state is also still calculating the estimated costs to rebuild Joplin.

On 21 May, the Joplin, Missouri was leveled by the nation’s deadliest tornado in more than sixty years. The EF-5 twister killed at least 153 people and flattened much of the town.