Allegany County commissioners ratify flood-related procurements, hear closed‑session update on FEMA appeal

Allegany County commissioners on Thursday ratified a set of procurements tied to flood recovery and received a closed‑session briefing on the county’s options after FEMA denied disaster relief.

The county approved “ratification number 8,” a batch of 13 projects the county staff said totals about $463,000; the presenter said cumulative flood‑related procurements and expenses have reached about $3.4 million. During a closed session disclosed at the meeting, attorneys from the firm Rifkin, Weiner & Livingston briefed commissioners on the likelihood of ongoing state support for the Senator George Edwards Fund and on legal options to challenge FEMA’s denial of the county’s relief application.

The ratification drew little debate and carried on a unanimous voice vote. Jason Bennett, the county administrator, said the county has exhausted lottery proceeds reserved for recovery and that, without state or federal aid, the county may need to borrow. “We’ve now spent our lottery proceeds that we haven’t had in reserves. They’re spent down completely as a result of the flood,” Bennett said.

Why it matters: county officials said the scale of repairs remains large and partly indeterminate; closing the gap in funding will influence whether county officials seek borrowing or rely on anticipated state or federal assistance. The closed session signaled continuing legal and lobbying steps to try to overturn or supplement FEMA’s denial.

Commissioners’ discussion and staff estimates County staff told the board that the ratification before the board was the third batch of procurements and that earlier batches and current obligations bring the county’s expended and committed total to roughly $3.4 million. Adam Patterson, who presented the procurement item, described the ongoing work: the batch under consideration included 13 projects and the presenter estimated total recovery expenditures — combining completed but not invoiced work, active jobs and projects with estimates in hand — could reach between $6 million and $7 million.

Bennett and another commissioner stressed the strain on local funds. Bennett said the county submitted $33.7 million in damages to FEMA and that much of that loss is county‑level; he added the county is continuing to track potential FEMA or state reimbursements but will otherwise be drawing down fund balance. “If none of that comes in at all, right now we’ve tapped out,” Bennett said.

Closed session briefing: Senator George Edwards Fund and FEMA appeal In a public statement after the closed session, County Attorney Beaman said the commissioners met in closed session with attorneys Bridal Rifkin and Mike Johansen of Rifkin, Weiner & Livingston and with staff to receive legal advice on two matters. First, commissioners received information about the availability of the Senator George Edwards Fund for projects intended to attract or retain business in Allegany County; commissioners directed staff to continue monitoring the fund’s status. Second, commissioners received legal advice on appealing FEMA’s denial of Allegany County’s request for disaster relief after May 2025 flooding. Beaman said the State of Maryland is taking the lead on the appeal; commissioners also directed staff and consultants to continue exploring lobbying to state and federal officials as an alternative or supplement to litigation.

Action taken The board approved the procurement ratification (agenda item A) by voice vote. The motion to ratify was made and seconded; the board voted “aye.” The consent agenda later approved additional items tied to recovery and infrastructure (see “Votes at a glance” article for a full list).

What commissioners said Commissioner Brown criticized the broader political handling of disaster funding and urged state and federal officials to separate politics from assistance. “This is just being used as a big political football somewhere between Annapolis and D.C.; that’s just a shame,” Brown said. Bennett and others said they remain hopeful the state will pursue relief and that appeals and follow‑up may yield additional funding.

Next steps and uncertainties County leaders said they will continue to monitor the Senator George Edwards Fund and the state‑led appeal of FEMA’s denial. They also said staff will continue to field procurements while tracking the county’s fund balance and potential need for borrowing. No formal borrowing measure was proposed at the meeting.