During a recent meeting of the 35th legislature's committee on disaster recovery, infrastructure, and planning, the Virgin Islands Office of Disaster Recovery (ODR) provided a comprehensive update on the territory's recovery efforts following recent disasters. Director Adrienne L. Williams Octolan highlighted significant progress since the last update in March, particularly in advancing the Rebuild USVI initiative and accelerating projects under the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program.

The ODR has successfully secured over $10.8 billion in obligations from FEMA, surpassing earlier projections of $8 billion. This marks a substantial increase from January 2019, when obligations for permanent projects were only $517 million. In 2024 alone, more than $3.2 billion has been obligated, which is $596 million more than the total secured in 2023. The total obligated funds for disaster recovery now stand at $13 billion.

Key projects highlighted include significant investments in educational infrastructure, with funding allocated for the Roy Lester Schneider Hospital and several schools, including Charlotte Amali High School and Ulla Muller Elementary School. The ODR has expended approximately $3.4 billion in federal recovery dollars to initiate and complete various projects.

The meeting also addressed FEMA's updated cost-sharing requirements, which now mandate a 5% match for standard permanent projects and a 2% match for specific projects. This adjustment is expected to yield an additional $1 billion in federal cost share for the territory.

As of now, only 31 of approximately 1,500 FEMA Public Assistance projects remain to be obligated, a significant reduction from over 800 projects tracked in June 2020. The ODR commended FEMA for its collaborative approach and innovative strategies to enhance resilience in the territory.

Overall, the meeting underscored the ODR's commitment to effectively utilizing federal funds to support recovery and rebuilding efforts across the Virgin Islands, with a focus on completing large-scale projects that address the community's ongoing needs.