‘It’s all hands on deck’

Jan. 30--TALLAHASSEE -- Triumph Gulf Coast Inc., the nonprofit corporation overseeing expenditures of some fiscal damages recovered from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, can direct that economic revitalization funding to Hurricane Michael relief, according to board chairman Don Gaetz, a former state lawmaker who sponsored the original Triumph legislation.

"The hurricane added devastating insult to historic injury," Gaetz said.

Gaetz's assessment of deploying Triumph resources to hurricane relief came just days before an upcoming Triumph board meeting to consider a proposal from board member Allen Bense -- like Gaetz, a former state legislator -- for using some Triumph money for hurricane relief.

Specifically, Bense, a former state House speaker from hurricane-devastated Panama City, wants to create the Triumph Gulf Coast Hurricane Recovery Fund. The fund would provide property tax relief, bridge loans and other assistance to local governments in Bay, Franklin, Gulf and Wakulla counties, all hit hard by Hurricane Michael.

The Triumph board will meet Feb. 8 in Panama City to consider Bense's proposal.

Overall, Triumph Gulf Coast has a broader territorial mandate for its oil-spill related work, covering Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and Walton counties in addition to Bay, Franklin, Gulf and Wakulla counties, where hurricane relief dollars would go. The Triumph Gulf Coast board is responsible for distributing $1.5 billion of the $2 billion the state will get over the next 12 years for the eight affected counties through the BP settlement.

"We don't need any legal changes to do that," Gaetz said in response to a question about using Triumph funds for hurricane recovery. "In my judgment, as the sponsor of the original Triumph legislation, and the legislation that provided the $1.5 billion in economic damages funding to Northwest Florida, there's no need for any statutory changes.

"Northwest Florida was slammed by the worst man-made disaster in American maritime history in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill," Gaetz said. "Then, we have been devastated by Hurricane Michael, one of the worst hurricanes to hit the United States. So it's all hands on deck to try to build and rebuild a resilient, diversified economy."

Making his point for "double-duty" Triumph funds, Gaetz argued with an example: "If it was important in Franklin County to provide opportunities for more young people to get and keep good jobs in that area before the hurricane, it is doubly important after the hurricane," he said. "And so hopefully, Triumph funding can double-down in its positive impact."

But even while advocating for using Triumph funds for hurricane recovery, Gaetz urged caution.

"The current statute says that Triumph funds should be used to supplement, not supplant, other sources of funding, including government," he said.

With regard to hurricane recovery, Gaetz added, "I think we need to be careful that Triumph doesn't become a 'junior legislature,' or try to take the place of the Congress, or stand in lieu of insurance companies."

Still, Gaetz sees Triumph funding as part of Hurricane Michael recovery efforts. Even with an additional $500 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance coming to the state, and efforts by state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis seeking timely payment of hurricane-related insurance claims, recovery costs remain daunting, Gaetz said.

For example, debris removal alone carries a $1 billion price tag, Gaetz noted.

"Hurricane recovery covers a wide and melancholy array of needs," Gaetz said. "That's why I say it's all hands on deck. All sources of funding -- charitable funding, state and federal government funding, Triumph funding, local government funding -- all have to be deployed."

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