N.C. Gov. Josh Stein on Wednesday signed into law the largest Hurricane Helene recovery spending bill to date, saying it鈥檚 a step in the right direction for Western North Carolina.
State lawmakers earlier in the day approved the allocation of $524 million toward relief efforts, plus $217 million in relief funding for coastal towns that are still rebuilding from past hurricanes.
鈥淚 am incredibly proud that the first bill I will sign as governor is this Hurricane Helene relief package,鈥� Stein said at the Governor鈥檚 Mansion during signing. 鈥淭his bill shows that when we work together, we can get really good things done for the people of this state. It represents a promising start on getting aid out west.鈥�
Stein says his team will get 鈥渞ight back to work鈥� on the next round of funding needed for the state.
The bill has been a priority for the legislature since the session started in January.
N.C. Sen. Julie Mayfield (D-Buncombe) spoke at the bill signing and highlighted the bipartisan effort from both chambers to get funding out quickly for a region that, she says, often feels 鈥渇orgotten.鈥�
鈥淲e now know that Western North Carolina is cemented in the minds of our state's leaders, of our legislative colleagues, and of people all across the state. And I'm very grateful for that,鈥� Mayfield said.
N.C. Sen. Kevin Corbin (R-Macon) also spoke at the signing and thanked the House and Senate for working together to compromise on the bill.
鈥淚t's historic. And we've worked together, governor, in a bipartisan way to do this and I too echo [and] appreciate the governor's commitment to cleaning up and helping Western North Carolina recover from this terrible disaster,鈥� Corbin said. 鈥淲e stand here as a bipartisan group to help do that and Governor, we appreciate you for having us here tonight.鈥�
Corbin said nearly $800 million is allocated 鈥� for Helene relief, for Eastern North Carolina flood victims, for school funding, and for advertising.
鈥淭his is the largest recovery bill that's ever been passed,鈥� Corbin said.
Corbin, part of the joint conference committee that worked on the final version of the bill, told BPR the work is 鈥渁 marathon, rather than a sprint.鈥�
鈥淭his bill, while not enough to complete the needed recovery, is a great help to hundreds of farmers, homeowners, and businesses,鈥� Corbin told BPR in a text message. He said there will be another relief bill 鈥渋n pretty short order.鈥�
During the signing, Stein explained that when he found out that the Senate would approve the bill on Wednesday he asked if he could sign it into law the same night.
"I didn't want to wait until tomorrow to sign this bill, because it's that important," Stein said.
Mayfield spoke with BPR Thursday morning to reflect on the compromises made in the bill.
鈥淭his bill differs fundamentally from the previous three bills because this bill is the one that gets us to the place of starting to really fix things on the ground,鈥� Mayfield said.
鈥淓verybody's going to be able to identify something that's not in the bill that they wanted. I can certainly do that. You know, I would have loved more funding for home repair, but we're going to have more opportunities to do that,鈥� Mayfield said. She added that she also would have liked to see loans for small businesses and rental assistance that were in previous versions of the bill.
鈥淲e will have more bites at the apple to get those things,鈥� she said.
Stein requested over $1 billion for recovery funding from the legislature in . In December, then-Gov. Roy Cooper鈥檚 office estimated $60 billion will be needed to repair the damage caused by Helene.
Relief support from the federal government is also expected to fill in that gap.
鈥淭he scale of this storm is beyond our understanding: $60 billion. It is by far the largest storm this state has ever had to face and there's not $60 billion in the state coffers to pay for this,鈥� Stein said. 鈥淲e'll never be made whole, but the only entity that can truly help us make a meaningful impact on recovery is our federal government.鈥�
Stein said he is working with the federal government and FEMA.
Need help with housing after Hurricane Helene? Check out our guide.
What the disaster recovery bill includes
N.C. Rep. Dudley Green (R-Avery) gave an overview of the main changes to the bill in the House on Tuesday. Then the Senate unanimously approved those changes on Wednesday. He said one of the largest parts of the relief bill is $200 million for Helene-related crop loss and agricultural infrastructure structure.
鈥淐ommissioner Troxler has given flexibility in determining allocations for crop laws versus agricultural infrastructure,鈥� Green said.
The bill includes:
- $200 million for crop loss programs and agricultural debris removal
- $120 million for rebuilding and repairing homes
- $100 million for repairing private roads and bridges
- $55 million for small business infrastructure grants
- $20 million for debris removal
- $10 million for volunteers and nonprofits actively assisting in the disaster
- $10 million for fire department grants
- $9 million for learning recovery in the Helene-affected counties
- $4 million for travel and tourism marketing
The bill also extends the state of emergency and increases the number of counties eligible for school calendar flexibility due to missed school days.
Coastal debts paid
The bill also includes $217 million to support residents still recovering from hurricanes Matthew and Florence on the coast, according to Green.
N.C. Rep. Brendan Jones (R-Columbus) spoke in the House when the conference committee report was presented.
鈥淢embers, if you've been here anytime for nine years, I have been on this floor pleading about Eastern North Carolina鈥�,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淭his $217 million will put people back in homes. We still have folks in hotels, people living in mold-infested homes.鈥�
The House passed the measure with 115 members voting in the affirmative and one voting against the bill.
