Washington, D.C. - In a major victory for Southeast and East Texas, U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R- The Woodlands) announced today that the Hurricane Supplemental bill will include all three of the region's Hurricane Rita recovery top priorities; 90-10 cost share for local governments cleaning up after the affects of Hurricane Rita, money to reimburse local schools who opened their doors to thousands of Hurricane Katrina students, and a more fair process to distribute the $1 billion set aside for Community Development Block Grants (CDBG). Brady spent the last several days lobbying his fellow lawmakers for Texas' equal treatment in personal phone calls, late night meetings, and constant monitoring of the conferees progress on the final agreement.
"At last, Congress has recognized Hurricane Rita's needs and will treat Texas storm victims fairly. The 90-10 funding, CDBG, and the school funding are going to go a long way in making our local governments whole," said Brady who has spearheaded federal funding recovery efforts for the House and recently hosted a delegation of local leaders in Washington in meetings with Congressional leaders, the White House, and agency heads. "With critical help from our county and community leaders who told the story of Hurricane Rita, Texas is going to get the help it needs. This was a team effort I am proud to be part of."
Texas' share of the $1 billion CDBG funding set aside in the bill will be determined by HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson. Conferees did not set aside specific allocations for individual Gulf Coast hurricane affected states but will use needs based criteria for determining awards for rebuilding housing and local infrastructure. Congressman Brady is confident Texas will receive a more equitable share after assurances from Secretary Alphonso Jackson during his tour of East and Southeast Texas in April. These awards would be in addition to the $74 million in CDBG funds already distributed to East and Southeast Texas Council of Governments.
The conference report also included an amendment which raised the federal reimbursement rate for Hurricane Rita damage claims in Texas to a 90 percent federal, 10 percent state rate. House and Senate conferees agreed to keep the amendment in the final version of the bill in closed door negotiations held since late Tuesday night. The new reimbursement rate will save the 23 Hurricane Rita affected Texas counties nearly $200 million.
The $235 million in education funding will go directly to school districts to help cover education costs associated with Hurricane Katrina victims who relocated to Texas.
The House and Senate both plan to vote for final passage of the hurricane funding bill in the coming days, and Brady who secured support from the White House for the provisions expects the President will sign the bill into law.
