A meeting between New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno and Vice President Kamala Harris took place in Washington on Tuesday.
The topic centered on rebuilding the power grids in both New Orleans and the state of Louisiana.
The two aimed to have the Biden Administration shoulder the cost for building back a better, more resilient, power grid able to stand up to hurricanes and other potential natural disasters caused by climate change.
The vice president has been a longtime leader on climate action and has fought for strong investments in climate resiliency dating back to her days as California attorney general and senator.
"Vice President Harris is committed to helping the nation build stronger and more resilient infrastructure, and I know she will continue to be a strong partner for and supporter of New Orleans," said Council President Moreno. "We discussed a variety of needs for our city and state, including power restoration costs from Ida and long-term investments in grid hardening to protect us into the future. We'll continue to work together to rebuild our city and state better than they were before."
Council President Moreno traveled to Washington D.C. this week with Councilmember Joe Giarrusso and also met with members of Louisiana's Congressional Delegation on behalf of New Orleanians facing climate and economic risks now and into the future. Hurricane Ida restoration costs now total more than $4 billion across Louisiana and almost $150 million in New Orleans alone.