West Virginia was awarded about $87 million through a federal grant to use toward flood relief, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., announced Monday evening.
The $87 million comes from a disaster relief program through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Block Grant, according to a release from Capito’s office. It’s in addition to the $17 million the program dedicated in October to help the Mountain State recover from the historic June floods.
In September, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin asked President Barack Obama to provide the state with $310 million from the Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery program to help with flood relief. A spokeswoman for Tomblin previously explained that the governor purposefully asked for a high amount to try to secure the most money possible for the state.
When the $17 million was awarded, Capito and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va, vowed to work to get more money directed to help with flood relief in their home state.
“I will continue to fight to ensure that West Virginia receives its fair share of federal disaster recovery funding so we can rebuild the strong, sustainable communities our people deserve,” Manchin said in a statement at the time.
Capito’s release Monday states that, as a member of the Appropriations Committee, she led efforts to secure the funding for the disaster relief program. The continuing resolution passed the Senate and was signed into law by Obama on Dec. 10.
“Last week, Senator Capito urged HUD Secretary Julian Castro to dedicate a significant portion of the funding to victims in West Virginia,” the release states.
Capito said, “I made a strong commitment to West Virginians who were devastated by the floods that ravaged our state in June. The funding that I secured and supported as part of the continuing resolution will help West Virginia families and businesses who have unmet needs continue down the path to recovery.”
