Rep. Crenshaw Urges HUD to Approve Allocation Request for Harris County Flood Control Projects

WASHINGTON, May 28 -- Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, issued the following news release on May 27, 2021:

Congressman Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) today sent a letter to Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge urging the approval of an amendment to Texas's current State Action Plan that would ensure Harris County receives needed resources to complete flood mitigation projects.

In a call yesterday with Texas General Land Office (GLO) Commissioner George P. Bush, Crenshaw stressed the need to allocate resources to flood mitigation projects in the Houston region. Commissioner Bush announced yesterday he is requesting a direct allocation of $750 million for Harris County.

Crenshaw also stressed in his letter that, while this funding is critical, additional resources from a variety of sources will be necessary to prevent further flooding disasters in Houston.

"While this will not be the only funding required to mitigate flooding in the Houston region, it will be a major investment in preventing further flooding disasters," Crenshaw wrote.

Crenshaw is committed to securing additional resources for flood mitigation projects in the Houston region, and called on Secretary Fudge to approve the amendment request so that shovel ready mitigation projects can begin immediately with the current allocation request.

"There are numerous shovel ready projects that can commence swiftly, bringing much needed relief to the people of Harris County and saving federal taxpayer dollars by avoiding more expensive recovery efforts in the future. This funding will help our most vulnerable residents who have been waiting years for recovery funds," wrote Crenshaw.

The letter was also signed by Representatives Brian Babin (R-TX) and Michael McCaul (R-TX).

* * *

May 27, 2021

To: The Honorable Marcia L. Fudge, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th St. S.W. Washington, DC 20410

Dear Secretary Fudge,

We write to you in strong support of the Texas General Land Office's (GLO) recent announcement that it will be submitting an amendment to its state action plan under the Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) Program. On Wednesday, May 26, 2021, GLO Commissioner George P. Bush announced he is requesting a direct allocation of $750 million for Harris County, Texas.

These funds were originally appropriated by Congress in February 2018, in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-123), with $4.3 billion allotted for recovery aid to Texas for Hurricane Harvey. The State Action Plan, approved by HUD in 2020, established a competitive grant program for the first tranche. GLO's amendment request will include the additional funding specifically for Harris County with the remainder to be allocated using a competitive process across the state of Texas.

Houston has experienced seven federally declared disasters in six years, impacting hundreds of thousands of citizens. Harris County, which includes the City of Houston, is the only identified county in the State of Texas to experience consecutive flooding disasters in 2015, 2016, and 2017. In August of 2017, Hurricane Harvey paralyzed our region, dumping nearly 60 inches of rain, claiming 68 lives, and causing an estimated $125 billion in damages across the state.

In light of this record, a direct allocation is certainly warranted. While this will not be the only funding required to mitigate flooding in the Houston region, it will be a major investment in preventing further flooding disasters. There are numerous shovel ready projects that can commence swiftly, bringing much needed relief to the people of Harris County and saving federal taxpayer dollars by avoiding more expensive recovery efforts in the future. This funding will help of our most vulnerable residents who have been waiting years for recovery funds.

We strongly urge you to approve the amendment to the current State Action Plan to ensure that Harris County receives these funds. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Dan Crenshaw, Member of Congress

Brian Babin, Member of Congress

Michael McCaul, Member of Congress