U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody announced that she helped secure more than $64 million in FEMA assistance for Charlotte County as Florida communities continue to recover from the major hurricane.
Moody announced the funding at the Charlotte County Emergency Operations Center in Punta Gorda. The funding will support 28 restoration projects in the county, including waterways, roads, traffic signal systems, debris removal and improvements to Charlotte Harbor.
The money is part of about $2 billion in FEMA assistance and helped secure funding for the state overall, Moody said. These projects are related to recovery from Hurricanes Debbie, Helen, Milton, Idalia, and Ian.
“Florida has been waiting since 2017 for disaster relief funds needed to recover from hurricanes,” Moody said. “I have been in the Senate for less than a year and a half, and I have worked hard to bring nearly $2 billion in unpaid FEMA funds back to Florida. I will continue to fight to make our disaster recovery process more transparent, efficient, and accountable while providing Floridians with the federal assistance they need.”
In addition to Charlotte County’s funding, neighboring Lee County has secured more than $57 million and Collier County has secured more than $4.2 million, Moody said. An additional $14.4 million was set aside for a joint project involving Charlotte County and other Southwest Florida counties.
Moody’s Office announced that more than $1.8 billion in FEMA public assistance funds have been secured across the state of Florida. This funding will support more than 500 recovery projects through FEMA’s Public Assistance and Hazard Reduction Assistance programs.
This funding will be distributed to state and local governments for disaster recovery projects such as emergency costs related to repairing educational facilities, restoring critical infrastructure, debris removal, and protecting life and property.
Moody also called for changes to FEMA’s aid process. She introduced the TRACK Act, the Recovery Assistance and Claims Knowledge Transparency Act, which was subsequently signed into law.
The measure requires FEMA to provide status tracking tools on its website so disaster victims can more easily monitor the progress of their claims.
