Nearly $300 million in federal funds earmarked for Eastern Kentucky counties hit by flood
The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development will provide flood-affected counties in Eastern Kentucky with nearly $300 million in relief funds.
Twenty counties will be eligible for the funds, a press release from Sen. Mitch McConnell’s office Monday said. The state will receive the money first and then determine the grant amounts for individual communities.
The funding will come via the department’s Community Development Block Grant — Disaster Recovery program. The funding can be used for a variety of purposes, from helping local governments cover their share of costs from federal disaster programs to assisting communities looking to address their housing needs. According to McConnell’s office, the money was authorized by Congress via the Fiscal Year 2023 government funding bill.
“Federal funding is a crucial component to mitigating the destruction and uncertainty that ensues after a devastating flood,” McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, said in a statement. “I was proud to leverage my leadership position in the Senate to help swiftly secure this funding so that Kentucky’s communities and local governments have the resources they need to get back on their feet when disaster strikes our great state.”
Last July’s flooding killed 44 people across multiple southeastern Kentucky counties and a recent report from the Ohio River Valley Institute estimated that 8,940 homes in 13 counties experienced some level of damage. Over half of those homes had major damage and another 542 were destroyed.
The announcement of federal funding comes amid continued calls at the state level for more recovery funds for rebuilding housing after the flood, which ravaged an area already short on affordable housing.
Depending on the approach, researchers estimated that it would cost $453 million or $957 million to repair or replace homes damaged or destroyed by the flood. Counties eligible for the funding include Breathitt, Casey, Clay, Cumberland, Floyd, Harlan, Johnson, Knott, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Lincoln, Magoffin, Martin, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powell, Whitley and Wolfe.
Beshear makes $8.5 million announcement
Also on Monday, Gov. Andy Beshear made an announcement of $8.5 million in funds for six counties in Eastern Kentucky. That money is not necessarily linked to disaster recovery.
“We promised Eastern Kentucky that we would be there for them until every life and structure is rebuilt,” Beshear said in a statement. “Today, with the investments we’re making in local communities, supporting cleaner water, public safety, local nonprofits, tourism and more, we are rebuilding and ensuring prosperity for generations to come.”
Over $6 million will go toward installing thousands of feet of water and sewer lines in multiple counties. Johnson County and its county seat, Paintsville, will see the largest piece of the funding.
The Johnson County Fiscal Court will get the biggest chunk with $2.3 million from the Appalachian Regional Commission going toward installing over 20,000 feet of sewer line, a release from the governor’s office said. The line would provide sewer service to 70 homes, four businesses, three commercial properties and a future campground.
The state’s Cleaner Water Program will also dish out $1.3 million to the Paintsville Utility Commission to install over 3,000 feet of sewer line and 13,000 feet of waterline to unserved areas of Johnson County.
Water districts, local governments and multiple nonprofits from five other counties also received funding, the governor said in an announcement from the Mountain Arts Center in Prestonsburg.
“Today marks an important day for our Eastern Kentucky community; not only is the community receiving funding to help improve waterlines, tourism and nonprofits, but we are also celebrating the progress made on rebuilding after the devastating flooding,” said state Rep. Bobby McCool of Van Lear, in a statement.
This story may be updated.
