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GOSEP outlines emergency costs from New Orleans events and seeks reimbursement; committee hears cyber and school‑safety updates
Summary
The governor’s emergency office detailed an estimated $62.2 million of current‑year costs tied to New Orleans events and other disaster responses and said it anticipates federal reimbursement; the office also discussed the state cyber assurance program and school‑safety grant distributions.
Senate Finance received an overview of emergency response spending and program work from the governor’s office of homeland security and emergency preparedness (GOSEP). Fiscal staff and GOSEP described about $62.2 million of current‑year costs that arose from the New Orleans events around January 1 and other recent responses; the administration has proposed options to pay near‑term bills while awaiting federal reimbursements.
Chaz Nichols of Senate Fiscal Services detailed the estimate. The administration has identified $45.3 million tied to an executive order responding to New Orleans events, with additional items for FEMA debt payments and other response costs that bring a current‑year total estimate to about $62.2 million. Nichols said federal reimbursement is expected but the timing and rate (percent reimbursed) remained uncertain.
Nichols and GOSEP staff noted funding options include state general fund, the state emergency response fund (which held roughly $55–56 million in fund balance as discussed in testimony), and other budget maneuvers while awaiting federal recovery dollars. Senators asked whether the rainy‑day fund could be used temporarily; fiscal staff said legal and procedural steps would be required and that their office would provide guidance.
GOSEP also described ongoing work on cyber threats and school safety. The agency oversees a statewide cyber program that supports state and local agencies, including stabilization and remediation when local governments or school districts suffer cyber incidents. Fiscal staff said the program receives recurring funding and that GOSEP was pursuing federal matches and additional resources in the cyber and school‑safety areas.
Why it matters: The January New Orleans events produced near‑term emergency needs that have already driven multi‑million‑dollar state payments. Committees will decide whether to cover those costs from state resources while federal reimbursements are pending; separate but related, cyber protections and school‑safety grants remain active state priorities.
