Governor Reynolds and the flood task force.
Members of the governor’s flood recovery task force say there are confusing and in some cases unknown details about what federal help may be available for Iowa flood victims.
Governor Kim Reynolds convened the task force this morning. “I know a lot of this is fluid and I know a lot of times it’s frustrating,” Reynolds said near the end of the 45-minute meeting. “I don’t think we’re unique. I think that tends to be part of the process, but we are determined to just plow through that and start knocking down barriers as much as we can and doing everything we can to simplify the process.”
It’s not yet known how much of the $3 billion disaster aid package that cleared congress earlier this month will be sent to Iowa flood victims. FEMA administrators notified state officials today that flood-related damage that’s occurred through June 15, 2019, will be included in the federal disaster declaration the president issued in late March, “which is really good news so we’re not starting over and going through all the paperwork and just delaying getting counties hopefully on the public assistance, possibly the individual assistance,” Reynolds said.
FEMA public assistance helps cities, counties and the state rebuild taxpayer-owned property, like streets and buildings, that was damaged by the flooding. Individual assistance is made available when FEMA determines private property losses reach a certain threshold.
A meeting has been scheduled July 2 in Glenwood to help homeowners navigate FEMA’s judgement on whether a flooded home may be renovated or must be destroyed. Farmers say there’s still confusion about what federal payments will make up for flood-related losses.