PRESS RELEASE Governor Bobby Jindal Issues Letter Requesting Fully Funding CDBG and Disaster Loan Funds September 19, 2008 The Honorable Nancy Pelosi The Honorable Harry Reid The Honorable John Boehner The Honorable Mitch McConnell Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader Reid, Leader Boehner, and Leader McConnell: For the second time in three years the State of Louisiana has been devastated by back-to-back catastrophic weather events. Hurricane Gustav hit Louisiana on September 1, 2008, with damages estimated as high as $10 billion. Many Louisiana citizens were still without electricity when Hurricane Ike hit south and southwest Louisiana on September 12, 2008, producing storm surges higher than the record set by Hurricane Rita in 2005. Total damages from the two storms could exceed $20 billion. As these two disaster struck, the State of Louisiana was still in the midst of ongoing recovery efforts from two of the largest disasters in U.S. history – Hurricanes Katrina and Rita of 2005. To ensure a speedy and effective recovery from these events, and to ensure the long term recovery and existing federal investment relative to Katrina and Rita efforts stay on track, the State of Louisiana requests Congress’ full support for funding of the Community Development Block Grant Program and the FEMA Community Disaster Loan (CDL) Program, while it considers funding for the state of Texas and states in the Midwest. Hurricane Gustav caused major wind and flood damage throughout the state, from the southern coastal parishes through central and north Louisiana. Two weeks later, Hurricane Ike sent devastating tidal surges across the southern coastal communities, exceeding storm surges caused by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. Even homes built to FEMA’s Base Flood Elevations levels flooded as a result of these storms. In Louisiana, it is estimated that nearly 25,000 homes flooded, and many more suffered severe wind damage. Estimates for public infrastructure damage are currently at more than $1 billion. More than 1.9 million people heeded the call to evacuate for Hurricane Gustav. Many of these residents were unable to return to their homes and jobs for a number of days. Many of the same residents were required to evacuate just two weeks later due to Hurricane Ike. The storms caused tremendous damage, leaving communities without electricity and many houses uninhabitable. Thousands of residents have had to abandon their homes and seek not only short-term shelter but also longer term transitional sheltering. Initial damage models based on flood and wind damage vary, but have a midpoint between $5 and $6 billion. Over half of this will be uninsured losses from uninsured and underinsured properties. With housing stock losses concentrated in certain communities, Louisiana could have up to $3 billion in uncompensated housing losses. Of this, the state will need to design programs in concert with local communities to rebuild and recoup these losses. Approximately 31.5 percent of Louisiana’s housing stock is rental properties. Since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the state has suffered a severe shortage of housing, particularly affordable housing. Preliminary estimates indicate approximately $3 billion in uninsured housing losses, with over half of that amount likely being homeowners. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have taught us that repair costs generally outstrip insurance proceeds. Many households that evacuated or whose homes were damaged by the storms were near the edge of sustainability prior to the storms. In Louisiana, approximately 3,000 households are at risk. Much of the state’s public infrastructure and facilities were severely damaged from the storms. Damage estimates are more than $1 billion for both Gustav and Ike. While still preliminary, estimates show that a large percentage of the state’s K-12 schools received damage from the storms, with totals of more than $100 – $150 million in damages to these types of facilities. The state’s higher education facilities, inclusive of the community and technical college campuses, the University of Louisiana campuses, Southern University’s campuses and all of Louisiana State University’s campuses, estimate approximately $33.7 million in damages to physical facilities. The state’s other public facilities are estimated to have damages in excess of $100 million. Louisiana has heard from many of the storm-affected communities, and there is widespread concern that continued loss in tax revenues as a result of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike could have profoundly negative impacts on communities. The state of Louisiana is in the process of calculating information for communities to determine tax revenue loss. These priorities are among the many challenges still facing our state as we recover from Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, and do not represent an exhaustive list of recovery needs. Your immediate attention and appropriate action on these requests are greatly appreciated. Sincerely, ________________________ ________________________ _________________________________ Commissioner of Agriculture Mike Strain
cc: The Honorable Robert Byrd, Chairman, U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations ### |
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