Appropriations committee holds open $30 million disaster‑match expansion, seeks details on available federal funds

The House Appropriations Committee on March 12 kept open a proposal to broaden a disaster‑match appropriation so it could be used as the state match for a wider set of federally declared disaster funding sources, not only FEMA. The provision—discussed as a possible $30 million authority for matches—was described by staff as intended to let the state pair existing appropriations with multiple federal programs (for example, Federal Highway emergency relief) that follow federal disaster declarations.

Committee members asked staff for two pieces of information before closing the item: how much federal disaster funding is currently available that would require state matching, and whether the $30 million figure is the right scale given historical use and remaining balances. Staff reported that roughly $28 million remained available as a state match from prior appropriations but that they needed to confirm totals and the range of eligible federal programs. A committee member said, “I would like to hold this open because it's a big number,” and the group left the provision open pending a staff report showing how much federal disaster dollars exist to be matched and how much of the state appropriation has already been spent.

Why it matters: expanding the matching authority could enable quicker deployment of federal funds for roads, bridges, and other disaster recovery needs by allowing state agencies to provide the required non‑federal share. Committee members said they wanted to be sure the appropriation aligns to actual federal opportunities and does not create an unallocated pot that would sit unused.

Next steps: the committee held the item open and asked staff to verify remaining federal match opportunities, current carry‑forward balances, and whether a lower dollar level would be sufficient. The item will remain on the committee’s open list until those figures are provided.