COOPER Accountability Act set to close out NCORR operations with final round of funding

The North Carolina General Assembly has introduced the COOPER Accountability Act (House Bill 222), aimed at closing out the remaining disaster recovery operations for Hurricanes Matthew and Florence. 

The bill allocates $217 million from the State Emergency Response and Disaster Relief Fund to the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency (NCORR) to complete outstanding homeowner recovery projects from Hurricanes Florence and Matthew. The proposal passed the Judiciary 1 committee on Tuesday afternoon and now heads to Appropriations and Rules.

Though Hurricane Matthew hit North Carolina in 2016 and Florence hit the state two years later, there are still families across the state waiting for a home. NCORR was created in 2018 to assist in the rebuilding process following the storms, but its financial mismanagement has resulted in ongoing failures.  

With a focus on efficient fund use and stricter oversight, the funding ensures that NCORR will wind down its operations while providing monthly reports on the final stages of the recovery process. During the committee meeting on Tuesday, Rep. Brenden Jones, R-Columbus, said that Gov. Josh Stein has pledged the funds will be sufficient to complete all remaining recovery projects in eastern North Carolina.

“Today we’re presenting to you the Closing Out of the Operations and Providing Emergency Relief bill to you,” said Jones. “This is no surprise. We’ve been dealing with this for many years. I will not bore you with everything in here, but the highlights are, Governor Stein came and he asked for $217 million. He has guaranteed us that this will finish the project.”

It’s official the C.O.O.P.E.R Act has passed the House Judiciary Committee.

We’re one step closer to getting Eastern NC the funds that they need! #ncpol pic.twitter.com/hu3PTBkO1m

— Rep. Brenden Jones (@BrendenJonesNC) March 4, 2025

“We have put a lot of accountability in here because the previous administration, well, honestly, we couldn’t trust them,” said Jones. “Money is missing, and we’re not going through that again. So this time, we’re gonna hold accountable. We’ve got plenty of safeguards in here. We’re gonna wrap this up. We’re gonna make the people of eastern North Carolina whole again, and we’re ready to move forward helping the governor wrap this up.”

In a major shift from the Cooper administration, Jones added that legislators feel good about Stein and the staff he’s put in place and look forward to working with him to help finally bring an end to NCORR. 

SEE ALSO: End in sight? NCORR disaster recovery labeled ‘taxpayer sham’ 7 years later

In an effort to prevent further mismanagement or delays, the act mandates robust auditing and monitoring measures. NCORR will be required to track and report on expenditures, obligations, and other financial details, providing real-time updates to the legislature to guarantee transparency. The state auditor is tasked with conducting comprehensive financial and performance audits of NCORR’s activities related to disaster recovery.

On his first day in office, Stein signed executive orders to aid in the recovery of western North Carolina following Hurricane Helene, but he sidelined NCORR’s involvement in the latest recovery and formed a new office to lead recovery called the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina (GROW NC).

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