News

There's a $30 billion hole in Helene recovery funding

By LUCAS THOMAE, Carolina Public Press, Published: November 28, 2024

Without question, Tropical Storm Helene generated historic costs for North Carolina in terms of structural damages, disruptions to government operations and loss of life.

Calculating just how expensive the storm was — and also figuring out who is footing the bill — is a trickier equation to solve for state officials. More than half of the estimated costs associated with Helene, upwards of $30 billion, have yet to be funded by either the state or federal government.

A preliminary damage and needs assessment published by the Office of the State Budget and Management on Oct. 23 estimated $48.8 billion in direct or induced damages from the storm, and recommends investing another $4.8 billion for strengthening and mitigation efforts for a total cost of $53.6 billion.

That number dwarfs the expenses incurred by Hurricane Florence in 2018 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016, which cost about $17 billion and $5 billion respectively. The total bill for Helene will likely increase once the complete damage and needs assessment is released by OSBME. The preliminary report, for example, did not include any estimates for the costs to tribal and federal lands because field assessments were still ongoing when it was published.

The preliminary report projected Nov. 19 as the publication date of the final assessment, but governor’s office spokesperson Jordan Monaghan told Carolina Public Press on Monday that it will be released “in the coming weeks.”

Preliminary report reveals details of Helene costs

The Oct. 23 report estimated $12.2 billion in damages to residential housing in the 27 counties included in the federally declared disaster area. That number may be adjusted as data from FEMA individual assistance claims, FEMA public assistance claims and insurance claims are made available. Individuals can submit individual assistance claims to FEMA until Wednesday, Nov. 27.

According to the report, nonagricultural businesses and nonprofit organizations suffered $2.8 billion in physical damages to structures, equipment and vehicles. The storm also caused an estimated $13.1 billion in economic losses as a result of business disruptions.

As for North Carolina farms, Helene caused $2.6 billion in crop losses and another $557 million in expenses for land restoration, debris removal and repair to agricultural infrastructure, the report says.

Other notable items from the report include:

• $1.4 billion in damages to electrical infrastructure
• $3.7 billion in damages to water and sewer systems and distribution pipes
• $6 billion in damages to state highways and bridges
• $1.7 billion in damages to municipal roads and bridges
• $1.4 billion in costs for government operations and recovery efforts
• $844 million in costs for public education facilities and operations
• $724 million in costs for health care facilities and other health and human services needs

According to the report, North Carolina expects to receive at least $13.6 billion in federal support and another $6.3 billion in aid from the private sector and other sources to help pay for its recovery.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, in his capacity as the state budget director, requested that the state invest $3.9 billion in recovery efforts. The Republican-dominated state legislature must appropriate and allocate all state spending, and up to this point it has provided only around $900 million in relief via three spending bills.

That means more than $30 billion in estimated costs from the hurricane have no funding source, and no clear answers are in sight for how that deficiency will be made up.

Political battle over recovery costs

Last week, as the state legislature debated over a $227 million relief bill that included a controversial overhaul of the state board of elections, Gov. Cooper was in Washington petitioning President Joe Biden and other federal officials for an additional $25.6 billion in aid for the state.

“Hurricane Helene was the deadliest and most damaging storm our state has ever faced, and Western North Carolina needs our help to rebuild,” a press release from Cooper read. “There is a long, complex and expensive recovery ahead that will be difficult to accomplish without significant and immediate funding from federal and state governments.”

The press release went on to criticize the state’s General Assembly both for its seemingly inadequate hurricane relief bills and also its recent veto override of a bill that expanded funding for private school vouchers.

“The state legislature has failed to approve meaningful funding for Western North Carolina while making plans to lock in billions of dollars for taxpayer-funded vouchers for unaccountable, unregulated private schools in the near future,” the press release read.

It’s uncertain whether the state legislature will appropriate more money for hurricane relief anytime soon. The most recent bill, titled the Disaster Recovery Act of 2024 – Part III, was criticized by some as a power grab that takes powers away from Council of State positions that will soon be filled by recently elected Democrats. Although included in the relief bill, the measures are not related to recovery efforts.

State Rep. Lindsay Prather, D-Buncombe, was one of the lawmakers who spoke out against the bill on the house floor.

“When the time comes for so many of you to visit your favorite mountain restaurant or rent your favorite cabin for a summer weekend, there’s a good chance it’s not gonna be there anymore, and you’re gonna wish that you’d done more today,” Prather said.

“Western North Carolina needs your help now. This is a transparent power grab pushed through by a supermajority that’s not happy with the recent election results, and you’re calling it a disaster relief bill. This is shameful, and Western North Carolina isn’t going to stand for it.”

Helene-related death count

Unfortunately, another measure of costs cannot be value in dollars, the loss of human lives. Helene was the deadliest tropical system to hit North Carolina since 1857, killing at least 103 people. Below is the latest tabulation of county-by-county fatalities, as confirmed by the state Department of Health and Human Services as of Nov. 21.

• Ashe, 1
• Avery, 5
• Buncombe, 43
• Burke, 1
• Catawba, 1
• Cleveland, 2
• Gaston, 1
• Haywood, 5
• Henderson, 10
• Macon, 2
• Madison, 4
• McDowell, 1
• Mecklenburg, 3
• Mitchell, 2
• Polk, 1
• Rowan, 1
• Rutherford, 4
• Wake, 1
• Watauga, 2
• Wilkes, 1
• Yadkin, 1
• Yancey, 11