No senators voted Monday against the bill to provide up to $85 million in flood relief. The bill, which was passed overwhelmingly by the House of Delegates on Sunday, was sent to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s desk.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Legislation to provide $85 million to cover West Virginia’s share of an estimated $339 million in recovery costs from the June 23 floods in central and southeastern counties is on its way to the governor, after the Senate approved the measure (HB 201) on a 32-0 vote Monday.
The supplemental appropriation includes $55 million from the state’s Rainy Day emergency reserve funds, $21 million in unappropriated state Lottery funds and $9 million that was not spent in the recently ended 2015-16 state budget year.
That money will go into the Civil Contingency Fund, allowing Gov. Earl Tomblin to pay the state’s match for Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster recovery funding.
All $85 million will be needed if the state remains at a 25 percent match, but that likely will drop to a 10 percent match, once FEMA verifies that flood recovery costs have topped a $253 million threshold.
“This will take care of it as it stands currently, but we hope to reach these thresholds,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch Carmichael, R-Jackson, told fellow senators.
If the state reaches the 90-10 match, a future governor and Legislature would have to act to put the roughly $50 million in unspent matching funds back into the Rainy Day fund, Carmichael said.
Afterward, Tomblin thanked the Legislature for its prompt action approving the flood recovery appropriation.
“The damages of this flooding were far-reaching, and the recovery process will take years,” Tomblin said in a statement. “By maximizing federal support and continuing to do our share, we can make that process much smoother for impacted communities, businesses and families.”
Prior to the vote Monday, senators from hard-hit counties spoke about the need for flood recovery funds.
“I can tell you this is a real challenge and a change for our area,” said Sen. Ron Miller, D- Greenbrier, who said the region’s key industry of tourism is down nearly 50 percent since the floods.
“We still have people living in tents. We have people living in campers,” he added.
“This piece of legislation will allow us to rebuild and capture FEMA dollars that will allow us a brighter day,” said Sen. Greg Boso, R-Nicholas, who said the hard-hit town of Richwood is “essentially a ghost town.”
Sen. Chris Walters, R-Putnam, praised the first responders and National Guard that came to the aid of families caught in the floods. He also praised the hundreds of volunteers who came from across West Virginia and from other states to assist in clean-up efforts.
However, Walters said he could not share in the praise of FEMA, noting that FEMA assistance is capped at $33,000 per family and, to date, only 188 of the more than 4,000 families who had houses destroyed or severely damaged have received the maximum award.
Sen. Herb Snyder, D-Jefferson, said he appreciated the enormity of the recovery effort while driving to Charleston, when he passed the Crossings Mall at Elkview, and saw that the hotel and all the stores and businesses there were dark.
“I don’t want the public at large to get the idea it’s all over, and everything is fixed,” he said of passage of the flood recovery appropriation.
Sens. Jeff Mullins, R-Raleigh, and Roman Prezioso, D-Marion, were absent Monday.
The Senate adjourned until 11 a.m. Tuesday, when it will take up the confirmation of 114 appointments made by Tomblin since the previous special session, in June.
On Monday, the Confirmations Committee questioned Teresa Maynard, nominated for chief hearing examiner of the Office of Administrative Hearings in the Department of Transportation, the agency that conducts driver’s license revocation hearings.
Maynard resigned earlier this month as Mingo County prosecuting attorney, after losing a reelection bid in the May primary vote.
Responding to allegations that she had not aggressively prosecuted certain individuals in Mingo County, Maynard said, “That’s absolutely not true.”
Maynard said, as prosecutor, she had increased convictions for child abuse and had established a child advocacy center in the county.
Noting that she has been in her current position for only four days, Maynard told senators, “I feel I have the skills to do this job.”
The third day of the special session will coincide with previously scheduled legislative interim meetings Tuesday. The House of Delegates, which passed the flood relief bill Sunday by a 92-1 vote, adjourned on Monday.
Reach Phil Kabler at [email protected], 304 348-1220, or follow @PhilKabler on Twitter.
