By james art By Gary D. Robertson, Associated Press
Thursday, October 24, 2024 | 8:28 p.m
RALEIGH, NC — North Carolina state lawmakers signed a measure Thursday to provide more than $600 million more for Hurricane Helene recovery and relief and also ordered some storm-hit counties to open more polling places to deal with the crowds and traffic jams during the early voting period.
In a one-day session, the Republican-controlled Legislature unveiled and approved two measures related to the catastrophic flooding and damage that state officials say has led to 97 deaths. The administration of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper said Wednesday that Helena likely caused at least a record $53 billion in damage and recovery needs in western North Carolina.
Two weeks ago, the General Assembly approved what was described as a preliminary $273 million package, with legislative leaders promising that much more would follow in the coming months. The initial relief money was intended largely to cover the state’s matching share to meet federal requirements for disaster relief programs.
On Wednesday, Cooper proposed his sweeping request for $3.9 billion in storm relief and mitigation, with just over $1 billion in grants for businesses, farmers and utilities. Thursday’s relief bill falls short of most of his recommendations. GOP leaders said they had just received the governor’s proposal earlier in the week and would consider it more carefully in the coming weeks. The Legislature returns for more business on Nov. 19.
“The assessment of what needs to be done is still ongoing,” Senate Leader Phil Berger told reporters. “What we’ve done is deploy an adequate amount of resources right now to deal with some of the more immediate things that have some time sensitivity.”
The spending measure, approved unanimously, takes another $604 million from the state’s nearly $4.5 billion savings reserve and moves it into the Helene relief fund. Lawmakers also found $77 million from other funds and reserves for other items.
The relief bill now headed to Cooper’s desk includes $50 million in loans to small businesses in affected areas, $100 million in loans to local governments for emergency water and sewer repairs, and another $5 million to address the needs of the mental health of public school students and their families in the region.
The state also found other funds to provide tuition grants to students affected by the storm, including aid for students enrolled for the spring semester at the University of North Carolina at Asheville.
Some Mountain Democrats said the relief measure didn’t go far enough and called for more help, faster. Businesses already burdened with loans need grants now to survive, said Democratic Sen. Julie Mayfield of Buncombe County. Mayfield said an eviction moratorium or massive rental assistance is also needed to prevent workers from losing their housing, which would force them to leave the area.
“Speed matters,” Mayfield said, her voice cracking with emotion. “The people and the economy of our region hang in the balance at this moment – this moment – not in November, not in December, not next year, but now.”
But Republican Sen. Ralph Hees of Mitchell County — like Buncombe, one of the hardest-hit counties — said the Legislature is getting more money to respond to the hurricane than lawmakers have done for previous storms. Hise said the damage is so widespread that it will take more than just state government to complete the recovery. The federal government, nonprofits and churches will be key players, he said.
“There’s a lot of fear of what’s going to happen in the future and how do we stop that right now,” Hise said. “But we have to deal with our immediate needs first.”
The ballot measure, approved by a wide margin, directs election boards in 13 mountain counties to ensure that there is at least one early in-person voting location for every 30,000 registered voters in each county as soon as possible.
The directive is expected to affect only Henderson and McDowell counties, according to lawmakers and the State Election Commission. Early voting began on October 17, with Henderson and McDowell – both Republicans – opening only one voting site each.
Another location in McDowell County did not reopen due to hurricane damage. Henderson County officials had announced before the legislation that a second site would be open for several days next week.
With the passage of the bill — which becomes law without Cooper because it affects a small number of counties — Henderson County would have four sites, said Sen. Tim Moffitt, a Henderson County Republican. McDowell County is still expected to have a runner-up finish.
On the opening day of early voting in Henderson County, officials closed lanes of a major highway to help move traffic and golf carts ferried voters from an auto parts store to the only polling place. But some House Democrats have questioned the appropriateness of adding early voting locations in Henderson after the county’s election commission had previously decided Helen would only have one this fall.
Nearly 1.89 million people statewide had voted in person by Wednesday, according to the State Board of Elections, or 126,000 more than at the same time in 2020. Early in-person voting runs through Nov. 2. Republicans have put more emphasis on early voting this fall than in previous election cycles.