Paid damages from the impact of Tropical Storm Irene in 2011 total more than $115 million, and the state is requesting $5 million more for storms that flooded the state this year.
The funding updates for the Irene recovery effort and this year’s flooding were announced at the Joint Fiscal Committee’s meeting Tuesday in the Statehouse.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will appropriate $22.5 million for Irene recovery in 2014. The federal assistance program paid Vermont $110.9 million through the year 2013. For 2013, the program provided $45 million.
The state’s Emergency Relief and Assistance Fund (ERAF) provided nearly $2.953 million in 2013 and has appropriated nearly $1.485 for 2014. As of this year, the state has funneled $4.3 million into the Irene recovery effort and is expected to provide a total of $5.8 million by 2014.
As money for Irene continues to come in, the state is assessing damages from persistent rainfall this spring and summer.
Damages from this year’s flooding are estimated at $5 million to $7 million.
The state has been granted federal aid for the Memorial Day storms. A request for assistance was sent to the White House on Monday for the June-July storms.
Vermont would still be responsible for 15 percent of the damage repair costs, approximately $750,000 to $1.05 million for both storms.
Damages are estimated to be $3.9 million for the June-July disasters. Damages are still being calculated for the Memorial Day storms, but are estimated to be $1.5 million.
That money will be used to repair roads, culverts, equipment and other clean-up efforts, said James Reardon, commissioner of Finance and Management.
Reardon said there are sufficient funds in the state’s ERAF account, approximately $5.6 million. However, this year’s weather patterns pose an unpredictable threat, he said.
Even though money is available, the state must keep good records for audits in order to retain future federal assistance funding, Reardon said, an audit process that will continue for years to come.
Reardon said he is preparing communities for an appeal if federal assistance is denied.
Joe Flynn, director of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, said not all decisions made by FEMA are subject to appeal. For example, individual assistance for this year’s flooding is unlikely.
“But the bottom line is this: When it comes to individual assistance, there needs to be categorically widespread damage to residences in the range of 100 to 150 or more,” Flynn said.
Because relatively few homes were damaged during this year’s storms, individuals will not qualify for federal assistance. The damage numbers are still being calculated, Flynn said.
