Senate Votes to Refill Disaster Relief Fund Dorgan Says

Press Release

Millions of dollars in disaster relief for North Dakota, which had been hung up because the nation's Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) was nearly out of money, moved one step closer to becoming law, U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) said Thursday.

The Senate finally provided the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with the $5.1 billion requested by the President for disaster relief. The funding was included in the Supplemental Appropriations bill passed by the Senate yesterday.

"Unfortunately in North Dakota, we've witnessed first-hand how devastating natural disasters can be. I've been pushing so hard to convince my colleagues that refilling the FEMA disaster relief fund should be done immediately," Dorgan said. "Americans depend on disaster relief to support emergency response and recovery efforts in the wake of a disaster. After months of prodding, I'm pleased to see this supplemental funding finally pass the Senate."

The DRF pays to reimburse local and state governments for damages suffered during a disaster. Without these supplemental funds, the DRF was expected to run out of money in June and had already restricted payments to emergency service and debris removal measures only.

In North Dakota state officials estimated that there would be $75-80 million in damages and mitigation projects resulting from the state's four active disaster declarations that would potentially be on hold. The federal funding directed toward those damages could not be paid for until the DRF was refilled.

Since FEMA's announcement that the DRF was running out of money, Dorgan worked hard to appropriate supplemental funds for the vital relief program. Dorgan along with Senator Kent Conrad have been pushing the Senate Appropriations Committee to fully fund President Obama's supplemental request of $5.1 billion.

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