HUD Awards Nearly $19 Million in Additional Aid for Texas Communities Recovering From Historic 2015, 2016 Floods

AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 1 -- The Texas General Land Office issued the following news release:

Texas General Land Office Commissioner George P. Bush is pleased to announce that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded nearly $19 million in additional funding to the state of Texas to assist in long-term recovery efforts following severe flooding events that occurred in 2015 and 2016. Of the total new funding, the state of Texas will be awarded $18 million, which will be administered by the General Land Office's Community Development and Revitalization (CDR) program. Additionally, a direct allocation of $978,000 will be awarded to the city of San Marcos.

"I would like to thank HUD Secretary Ben Carson and our Texas Congressional Delegation who worked diligently to secure additional aid to help Texas communities that are still recovering from tragic flooding," said Commissioner Bush. "More than three-quarters of our state's population lives in one of the counties affected by these historic floods. Because the U.S. has experienced fewer disasters than anticipated this year, additional funding is available for continued recovery efforts in Texas."

On May 5th, President Trump signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 2017, which included $400 million to support recovery from major disasters in 2015 and later. This most recent award comes because of the CAA, which directed HUD to allocate $263.3 million for future disasters. Because this year produced fewer disasters than anticipated, the remaining funds may now be awarded among previously affected communities.

The GLO estimates a combined loss of more than $2 billion in unmet long-term recovery needs from the 2015 and 2016 Texas floods. Impacts tied to business interruption, economic losses, unemployment, property tax revenue decreases, agricultural losses and other measures that are difficult to quantify are not considered when making allocations. The Texas counties affected by the 2015 and 2016 floods represent 76 percent of the Texas population or 20.9 million people. This population total is greater than that of 48 states.

The CDR program of the GLO administers the Community Development Block Grants for Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) on behalf of the state of Texas. Funds totaling approximately $4 billion have been allocated for recovery following Hurricanes Rita, Dolly, and Ike, the 2011 wildfires, and the 2015 and 2016 floods. While the current allocation of CDBG-DR funds is well below the previously identified $2 billion in unmet needs, the GLO and the CDR program remain committed to helping Texans recover in the most effective and efficient means.

These grants can be used for a wide variety of activities including housing redevelopment, business assistance and infrastructure repair. HUD will publish a notice in the Federal Register that will define the criteria for the use of these funds and CDR will keep impacted communities informed on developments.

Recently, GLO-CDR made $25.6 million available to eligible entities in 112 counties effected by the 2015 Floods. Applications for this funding are due by November 10, 2017. Additional information on the current application process and long-term disaster recovery is available at TexasRebuilds.org.

About GLO Community Development & Revitalization

The CDR program of the Texas General Land Office administers the Community Development Block Grants for Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) on behalf of the state of Texas. Funds of approximately $4 billion have been allocated for recovery following Hurricanes Rita, Dolly, and Ike, the 2011 wildfires, and the 2015 and 2016 floods. These grants can be used for a wide variety of activities including housing redevelopment, business assistance, and infrastructure repair. CDR will keep impacted communities informed on developments.