Gov. Josh Stein announced his second Hurricane Helene budget proposal of $891 million on Monday at a press conference at Carolina Domes in Union Mills, Rutherford County, which was hit hard by the hurricane last September.
“They’ve been working really hard to recover ever since then,” Stein, a Democrat, told reporters. “As I understand, the words are that they are surviving but not yet thriving. And we want for them and all small businesses in western North Carolina to thrive.”
He first announced in January a partnership between the state, the Duke Endowment, and the Dogwood Health Trust that would contribute toward a new $35 million small business grant program known as the Western North Carolina Small Business Grant Program for western North Carolina.
In April, a new $55 million Small Business Infrastructure Grant Program was also announced.
Stein noted that while Carolina Domes was one of the 2,000 small businesses that received a grant through the Western North Carolina Small Business Grant Program, 5,000 were denied as the funds were quickly depleted.
In February, he submitted his first budget request to the General Assembly, for over $1 billion — to be used for housing, small businesses, farmers, infrastructure, and families. Stein said that while he was proud to sign his first piece of legislation in March — a $500 million Hurricane Helene Relief bill that went toward home reconstruction, and repair, and agricultural aid — the money is nowhere near enough for the ongoing need in the western part of the state.
“The $891 million I’m requesting will tackle the highest priority issue areas that we cannot afford to wait for an uncertain federal assistance,” Stein said. “It will move us forward on the path to recovery by standing up for small businesses, investing in housing, supporting debris removal efforts, repairing schools, and preventing wildfires.”
The budget proposal includes:
- $260 million to spur economic recovery by supporting businesses and local governments and promoting western North Carolina’s tourism industry, which accounts for $15 million of that figure.
- $239 million to strengthen critical infrastructure by repairing damaged schools, expanding debris clean-up, and investing in projects to safeguard against future disasters.
- $113 million to advance housing recovery and provide assistance to families who have struggled with rent, mortgage, and utility bills.
- $105 million to rehabilitate waterways and land used by farmers as well as fund wildfire prevention and response.
- $23 million to address food insecurity in western North Carolina and the needs of affected community colleges.
- $152 million for required state matching of federal disaster programs, investments in communication and disaster system improvements, and existing requirements that are not funded by state or federal dollars.
- $15 million for marketing and advertising in western North Carolina.
Stein also said that the budget calls for nearly $50 million in essential equipment and personnel to respond to wildfires and prevent them from breaking out, something that Agricultural Commissioner Steve Troxler has been asking for some time, including at April’s Council of State meeting.
“We’ve already seen a number of wildfire outbreaks across the state this spring, including in this part of the state,” Stein told reporters. “We recently learned from our federal partners that North Carolina has nearly eight times the amount of fuel on the ground than we had a decade ago. North Carolina is projected to have the highest risk of wildfires in the United States over the next year. That is a title we do not want.”
The final part of his budget request proposes appropriating over $100 million to match any federal funding that comes through, which is required as the Department of Public Safety projects that the state will need to invest about a billion dollars to unlock all of the needed federal assistance programs.
“My administration is in this for the long haul — I know that the legislature is as well — and I thank the General Assembly for what it has done today. But now is not the time for us to take our foot off the gas,” Stein said. “We have to continue to invest in western North Carolina so that it can come back stronger than ever, and sooner, the better. I look forward to partnering with the General Assembly to pass this budget proposal.”
During a Q&A, Stein said that of the funds his administration can allocate, about 80% have been spent, which prompted the additional appropriations request.
“There are some funds that are matching funds that have to be held in reserve; and there are some funds that were designed with restrictions on them that cannot be spent; and there were some funds that were, while well intended, there simply was not uptake. And what we have proposed in this budget will take about $45 million of previously allocated funds where there just simply is not demand for the program that was designed by the legislature to reallocate them to these other programs like the small business forgivable loan initiative,” he said.
In addition, he mentioned that he had been in regular contact with FEMA until recently, and hopes that with the agency’s new leadership, they continue to work in the same constructive fashion.
“I have just written a letter to the President’s FEMA Advisory Council urging them to improve FEMA, not eliminate it,” Stein said. “The talk about eliminating FEMA makes no sense because storms happen all across this country; they don’t happen in each state every year. So we can’t create a permanent infrastructure with the knowledge and expertise to respond to storms if we don’t have one for three or four years. They’re just sitting there doing nothing, whereas if we have a federal response that has that expertise and technical assistance, as well as the resources of the federal government, then they can help whatever local government, which state gets impacted by a storm down the road, so we want to improve FEMA, not eliminate it.”
North Carolina Secretary of Commerce Lee Lilley also told reporters the state is now in the process of financial certification and a grant agreement for the $1.4 billion Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Grant, which was approved by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) last month. It will be used to meet unmet needs in housing recovery, infrastructure, and economic revitalization.
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