The Louisiana Recovery Authority has set on course a process for the allocation of federal disaster money.
Here is the press release from the LRA dealing with allocation of funds, the process to be undertaken for the allocation of the money and those general projects that would likely be funded.Also, the LRA dealt with the perplexing problem of how to deal with those individuals who sold their properties prior to the creation of the LRA, post Katrina and Rita:
The Louisiana Recovery Authority's Board of Directors Tuesday took the next step in recovery from the 2008 hurricanes by approving for public comment the state's plan for using its share of federal disaster recovery dollars soon to be allocated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for recovery from hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
Congress recently allocated $6.5 billion in Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) to states for recovery related to 2008 disasters, including hurricanes Gustav and Ike and the flooding in the Midwest. HUD administers these funds and reduced the allocation to the states to $6.1 billion due to a budget cut.
"Today's action sets in motion the plan that will ultimately guide how Gustav and Ike recovery dollars are spent. We are empowering local governments to prioritize their recovery needs and the state stands ready to act on its allocation of funds and support local efforts to rebuild," said Paul Rainwater, LRA executive director.
The plan can be viewed by clicking here. As required by HUD, the state will publish the plan for a formal public comment period for 10 days. The LRA board will offer its final approval of the plan, including the first round of funding allocations, in December before forwarding the plan to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget for approval.
The state will set aside 25 percent of its total allocation for projects dealing with rental housing, agriculture and fisheries recovery, and hurricane protection. These will be competitive projects that parishes within the disaster area will be able to compete for.
The bulk of the funds will be allocated to the parishes based on their level of damage. Louisiana estimates it could get up to $1.5 billion of federal CDBG Disaster Recovery funds. The first third of the allocation will be made Friday, November 28, 2008. Parishes will select from a menu of options and decide how they will spend the funds.
Anticipated areas of funding include:
Housing
Housing Incentive Program
Housing Relocation Program
Additional Compensation
Workforce Rental Housing and Multi-family Units
Small Rental Properties
Homelessness Prevention
Infrastructure
Provide additional funding for projects that repairs or rebuilds damages from hurricanes Gustav and Ike; or hardens existing structures or infrastructure to prevent damage from future disasters.
Hurricane Protection and Coastal Restoration
Agriculture and Fisheries Recovery
Assist agricultural and forestry producers and support businesses to rebuild critical infrastructure.
The Agricultural Commissioner will disburse funds to fisheries, ranching and forestry industries.
Economic Development
BusinessRecoveryBridge Loans
Assistance for Impacted Small Businesses
Business Recovery Grants and Loans
Employee Retention Credit
Technical Assistance and Planning Capacity
Sold Homes Program
The Board also voted to extend the timeframe for Road Home applicants who sold their homes prior to receiving aid from the program until August 29, 2007. The state took public comment on this amendment to the Road Home action plan this month and with LRA board approval it now goes before the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget on Thursday and then to HUD for approval.
When the original Road Home action plan was written and approved in 2006 it included a provision to pay grants for applicants who sold their homes at a loss prior to the launch of the Road Home, but only if the program had funds remaining after paying compensation and elevation grants. The state recently made "sold home" applicants eligible for program funding and has started processing their applications and scheduling closing appointments for their grants. Around 1,600 "sold home" applicants appear eligible for aid currently. The change could provide aid to an additional estimated 700 applicants and cost around $20 million, which the state has included in the Road Home budget.
The proposed change would extend the timeframe that applicants could have sold their homes by one year, allowing homeowners who sold their home prior to August 29, 2007, without receiving assistance from the Road Home to become eligible for assistance. Currently, applicants must have sold their homes before August 29, 2006, which is the official launch date of the Road Home program.
Applicants still must have applied to the program prior to its July 31, 2007, application deadline and completed their first appointment by December 15, 2007. Regulations attached by Congress to the use of the final allocation of Road Home funds do not allow for any new Road Home applications to be taken.
Louisiana Land Trust Disposition Plan
In other action, the board approved the Louisiana Land Trust property disposition plan for St. Tammany Parish. The LLT is the entity that temporarily holds, maintains and insures properties the state purchases through the Road Home when homeowners select "option 2" or "option 3" under the program. The LRA board must approve parish plans for using the properties before their titles can be transferred to the parishes for redevelopment. As of the end of September, the LLT owned 9,000 such properties, including 137 in St. Tammany parish.
St. Tammany's plan focuses on creating open green space, using the space for infrastructure needs and also for a "Lot Next Door" program that would allow neighbors to extend the size of their lots.
The board has previously approved plans for Cameron, Jefferson, Orleans, St. Bernard and Terrebonne parishes.
Use of Katrina/Rita CDBG Funds
The board also approved a resolution that would request that Congress grant flexibility to Louisiana for how it uses its last allocation of CDBG funds allocated after Katrina and Rita. The third allocation of $3 billion, approved by Congress at the end of 2007, includes stipulations about how the money can be spent.
According to language in the bill that allocated the funds, all money must only be used on activities outlined in the original Road Home action plan. Should money remain after the program is complete, the state will not be able to use it for other recovery purposes without a waiver of flexibility from Congress. The state's top priority for these funds is ensuring that all Road Home grants are paid and that applicants who were underpaid receive the compensation due from the program.
So far, the Road Home has disbursed more than $7.3 billion to 119,563 homeowners. The state anticipates between 9,000 and 10,000 additional homeowners may get aid, not counting those homeowners who are only eligible for elevation awards and those who sold their homes prior to the program's launch. The program also may disburse up to another $500 million in elevation funding and the state may pay out additional grants to homeowners who have appealed their Road Home awards. To that end, the Office of Community Development has doubled the number of staff members working on the state appeals panel that handles Road Home appeals.
In addition, Louisiana has requested guidance from HUD about the Individual Mitigation Measures program and if the state can break the $150,000 grant cap on Road Home awards to pay homeowners $7,500 grants to protect their homes from future hurricanes by installing things like storm shutters and roof tie downs. This program is budgeted for $650 million.
Depending on the outcomes of these aspects of the Road Home program, the state could be left with between $300 million and $500 million that it will seek to reallocate to address pressing Katrina-and-Rita-related recovery issues, which could include providing funds for FEMA ineligible projects, economic development and other housing needs..
Presentations, resolutions online
Documents from the LRA's monthly meeting are placed online after its meetings at lra.louisiana.gov. To view and download documents from the November meeting, click here
Wait until you see the budget cuts for the next year, and the next year, and the next year...................... The 'Hurricane Budget Fest' gravy train is about to fall off its tracks....... Instead of sticking their fingers in the light socket to see how much of a charge they could get, perhaps they should have been putting a light bulb in instead....... Oh wait, I wrote something along the lines of that corny "How many _*_*_*_* does it take to screw in a light bulb" joke somewhere a long time ago...... Imagine that....... Written by
on 11/19/2008
REPORT SPAM OR ABUSE
