"The State of Texas is committed to ensuring our local governments and non-profits have the resources they need to assist their communities throughout the recovery process following Tropical Storm Imelda," said Governor Abbott. "Texas is grateful for the support our federal partners have shown by approving our request for Individual Assistance, and the approval of Public Assistance would further enhance and expedite the recovery of our communities. I respectfully ask that our partners at FEMA reconsider their decision, and provide this much-needed supplemental support to keep Texas on a path to recovery."
"The addition of FEMA Public Assistance is necessary to achieving the goal of long term recovery in Texas," reads the letter from Chief Kidd. "The repeated onslaught of flooding and record-breaking catastrophic events has left Texas with an incredibly arduous task of long term recovery. Supplementary federal assistance is necessary to enable our citizens and local governments a complete recovery from this disaster."
One of the non-profit’s hit hardest by the rejection of additional funds is the Austin Disaster Relief Network, which has been working on the recovery since the 48 inches of rain started falling last October. Their Executive Director Daniel Geraci says a lot of the homeowners in the six hardest hit Texas Counties are just sitting and waiting for the help to come. “You know, what I saw was way beyond what we normally see for a good-sized disaster. And this was one of these ones that you checked off in your head as a no brainer. Like for sure this will get FEMA funding.”