FEMA to send Georgia more than $300 million in Hurricane Helene relief after accusations of delays

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ATLANTA (AP) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency on Friday announced it would send $350 million in funding to localities and electric cooperatives for relief efforts following Hurricane Helene and Tropical Storm Debby. The announcement comes two months after Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia released a report that nearly $500 million in Hurricane Helene disaster relief was unpaid.

Hurricane Helene swept across much of the Southeast in September 2024, devastating parts of Georgia, Florida, North Carolina and other nearby states with high winds and heavy rains.

Warnock posted on the social platform X earlier this week that the amount of Hurricane Helene relief funds FEMA was withholding had climbed to $600 million. The money will reimburse efforts such as debris removal, road fixes and utility repairs.

“Hurricanes and natural disasters are not political; they do not care if you voted red or blue, and Georgia counties and cities went right to work recovering from Helene’s destruction with the understanding the federal government would fulfill its promises and pay their share,” said Warnock in a statement. “It should not have gotten to this point."

Warnock said he would continue to push FEMA to deliver the additional funds. Last December, he led a bipartisan effort with a group of Georgia Congress members to send a letter to congressional leaders requesting at least $12 billion in federal supplemental disaster funding for Hurricane Helene. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp requested the aid shortly after the storm subsided.

Georgia farmers are also waiting on funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The agency and Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper announced in September that it would send $531 million to Georgia farmers. However, the aid amount wasn’t accompanied by a finalized agreement on how the state planned to disburse the block grant. Kemp announced Friday that the portal will open soon, once the USDA gives the program final approval.