Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Hazard Mitigation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Staff: hazard-mitigation grants tied to recent storms could add significant capital but require county match and approvals
Summary
Budget staff said Charlotte County expects large hazard-mitigation appropriations for storms including Hurricane Ian (~$102M identified) but cautioned awards and project approvals are ongoing and some appropriations remain unfinalized; grants carry match requirements that affect capital capacity.
Charlotte County budget staff told commissioners May 22 that federal and state hazard-mitigation grants tied to recent storms could contribute materially to the county's capital program, but such grants require project approvals and local matches that shrink otherwise available capital capacity.
Francine Lisby reviewed five storm events under consideration for hazard-mitigation funding (Ian, Idalia, Debbie, Helene and Melissa as presented) and said staff expect appropriations, including roughly $102 million linked to Hurricane Ian and about $4 million for Hurricane Idalia. She emphasized, however, that some appropriations remain unfinalized and each project must be approved before funds are available.
Lisby said the match requirement associated with hazard-mitigation grants consumes a portion of the capital-project capacity shown in the CNA. Staff identified potential federal or state sources (CDBG disaster-recovery pots and other federal funding) that might reduce the local match burden, but those opportunities are early and not guaranteed.
Commissioners asked whether the hazard-mitigation grant funding comes directly from the federal government or through a state pass-through; staff said the instance Lisby described would come via the Florida Commerce portion and added that because the county is not automatically entitled to those dollars it will have to compete with other applicants for portions of that pot.
Lisby concluded that staff have included the known hazard-mitigation appropriations and match in the CNA scenarios but will continue to refine estimates as appropriations and approvals are finalized. No action was taken at the workshop.
