Hawaii state and county officials have asked Congress for about $1 billion to help cover Maui’s wildfire recovery costs in the short term.
Gov. Josh Green’s administration had budgeted $199 million for such costs, but expects $561 million could be needed in a “worst-case” scenario, Honolulu said. -The Star-Advertiser reported on Wednesday.
The budget debate comes more than six months after the Aug. 8 wildfires killed 101 people, destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and left thousands homeless.
Maui Police confirm identity of 101st wildfire victim, 76-year-old who came by boat from California in the 1970s
One of the main reasons for the spike in costs is higher-than-expected costs to fire survivors who have been deemed ineligible for federal assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
FEMA pays 90% of the cost of housing eligible survivors in hotels, with the state paying the remaining 10%. FEMA is not paying for the 820 ineligible surviving families.
LAHAINA, MAUI, Thursday, August 17, 2023 – Aerial view east of town as a devastating wildfire sweeps through the town, leaving homes and businesses in ruins. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
People ineligible for FEMA assistance include illegal immigrants, immigrants from Freely Associated States states, and some condominium owners.
The state agreed with FEMA’s ineligibility decision for only 29 households and is appealing the rest.
At $1,000 per household per day, 820 households would cost the state $820,000 per day, or $24.6 million per month.
State Budget and Finance Director Luis Salaveria said actual spending could be lower because the state is contesting FEMA’s eligibility determination.
“This situation has been very fluid from the beginning,” he told the Senate Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday.
Senators are considering asking state agencies to cut spending by up to 15% to balance the budget as a result.
The state has a rainy day fund with a balance of about $1.5 billion. But officials have been reluctant to take advantage of the program because it helps them secure good credit ratings, which reduces long-term financing costs for capital improvement projects.
Maui County estimates wildfire recovery costs will be approximately $600 million over the next three years. On Monday, the state informed the Green administration that it wants the state to pay $402 million of the total.
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The money will be used to pay for infrastructure, housing and emergency response costs.
