Louisiana Disburses $3.1 Billion in FEMA Project Funds

The Louisiana government has handed out more than half of the $6 billion it got from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to give to hurricane-affected local government in the state. The funds were earmarked for public assistance projects.

The Associated Press is reporting that the nearly $3.1 billion Louisiana has doled out so far has gone to emergency response, debris removal and permanent rebuilding.

Mark Riley, deputy director of disaster recovery at the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, told AP that surpassing the $3 billion disbursement marked a great accomplishment for the state.

“State officials said that in the last year, payments for long-term bricks-and-mortar reconstruction have begun to accelerate as applicants complete post-storm recovery and move into rebuilding work,” AP reports. “In the heavily damaged parishes of Orleans, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, St. Tammany and Jefferson in southeast Louisiana, payments have more than doubled for long-term permanent rebuilding work such as repairs to roads, schools and public buildings.”

FEMA’s Public Assistance program works with state and local governments to fund recovery measures such as the rebuilding of buildings, roads, bridges, and water and sewer plants.