As state lawmakers debate how much money is needed for the latest Helene recovery package, Gov. Josh Stein鈥檚 administration is making the case for $1.07 billion to help western North Carolina rebuild.
The state House is expected to vote next week on a $500 million package that includes many of Stein鈥檚 recommendations, albeit in different amounts. House Rules Chairman John Bell, R-Wayne, cautions against spending too much state funding 鈥渂ecause if we're not careful, we'll actually lose out on federal funds that we can qualify for.鈥�
The Senate has not released its Helene funding bill yet, and Senate leader Phil Berger recently said he鈥檚 not sure what dollar amount will be included.
Matt Calabria, director of the newly created Governor鈥檚 Recovery Office for Western North Carolina (GROW NC), spoke with the 瓜神app Politics Podcast about Stein鈥檚 Helene funding proposal and the biggest needs five months after the storm.
This conversation has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
What do you see as the biggest priorities for funding in the governor鈥檚 plan?
鈥淭here's a lot of funding set aside for housing supports to help folks rebuild their homes, to provide housing that's affordable to folks, and also to provide rental assistance and utility assistance. Those are critical, because we know that it is so important for folks to have roofs over their heads and to be in safe, warm environments.
鈥淎nother thing that I would highlight is the $150 million for small business grants and business assistance. Those are tremendously important for any number of reasons, but we know that the backbone of western North Carolina's economy is small businesses who are of course hard-hit by Hurricane Helene, and so whatever we can do to rapidly put them back on their feet is going to be of critical importance.鈥�
How does the expected federal funding impact what the state can do or should do in the near term?
鈥淲hat is at stake is billions, if not tens of billions, of dollars in federal funds. We want to make sure that we take greatest advantage of the funding that's coming in, but we also want to make sure that North Carolina remains a priority in federal funding decisions that are made by Congress as well as agencies. We're also advocating for a fair amount of flexibility in our ability to utilize those funds.
鈥淭he reality is that we can't expect the federal government to come in and provide a panacea. We're going to try to maximize the funding, but at the end of the day, we've got to move quickly to get funding on the ground.
鈥淭ake HUD funding, for example: HUD has allocated $1.65 billion to western North Carolina for recovery efforts, but there is a months-long program that we have to go through to unlock those funds. So, if we want to move quickly, if we want to get money on the ground, if we want to get rebuilding, if we want to support small businesses and homeowners and others, it's going to take state funds.鈥�
What ways do you see your office differing from the N.C. Office of Resiliency and Recovery (Rebuild NC) that came after hurricanes Florence and Matthew, trying to learn from some of the lessons and the mistakes that were made?
鈥淚 think that's been front of mind for a lot of folks over the last several months, as the governor has come in and stood up his own programs. He created GROW NC on his first full day in office by executive order, and the idea behind it is for GROW NC to be a nerve center located within the governor's office that's highly visible to the governor.
鈥淗aving a centralized effort that is very visible to the governor and where he is very involved, I think is important because it enables us to have conversations that are cross-agency about what the needs are. And every single day, we're trying to figure out how we can go faster and how we can do things better.鈥�
You're relatively new in this job, it's your second month and the second month for GROW NC as a new entity. What drew you to taking on this role and making the shift from serving on the Wake County Commission?
鈥淚 was very happy being the chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, I always felt like I was able to do a lot of substantive work. So, when I got a call from the governor's office, I was ready to say no, but in the conversations that I had with folks, I realized the gravity of the set of issues we would be tackling. I've always made career decisions based on 鈥榳here can I do the most good?鈥�
鈥淭his is a common refrain for all of the people that we're recruiting. We've had so much interest from so many amazing, highly qualified people, I think because of a sense of mission around this.鈥�
Listen to the full conversation on the 瓜神app Politics Podcast.
