RALEIGH, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — The first bill Josh Stein signed into law as North Carolina governor was a Hurricane Helene relief package worth more than $500 million. The package was about half of what Stein originally requested from state lawmakers, but those legislators promised more help is on the way.
“This bill shows that when we work together, we can get really good things done for the people of this state,” said Stein during a bill signing ceremony in Raleigh on Wednesday night.
The biggest portion will go to farmers, $200 million to cover crop losses. $120 million will help pay for a home reconstruction and repair program while $20 million will be used to pay for debris clean up. $9 million will be used to pay for a learning program to make up lost schooling time for students in western North Carolina.
Remaining dollars will go toward helping people get rehoused after being displaced by previous storms in eastern North Carolina. House Speaker Destin Hall said the General Assembly is already planning to pass another relief package.
“This is the fourth bill we’ve passed on Helene Recovery,” Hall explained. “It’s not the last one, passing this today, it’s going into law. Tomorrow we’ll begin working on the next round of relief for Helene because it’s going to be a long recovery with incredible devastation in western North Carolina.”
Western NC is also still waiting on federal aid which will cover the lion’s share of recovery costs. Stein said he continues to work with the state’s DC delegation to get money to the state.
“It’s really complicated because the federal government has appropriated funds but it hasn’t allocated funds and even when it has allocated funds, it has not distributed the funds,” he said.
