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Avery County approves $5.37 million in Hurricane Helene budget amendments
Summary
The Avery County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved two budget amendments Oct. 10 totaling $5,371,486 to cover Hurricane Helene debris removal, monitoring and rescue/recovery expenses; the county said expenses will be tracked for possible FEMA reimbursement.
The Avery County Board of Commissioners on Oct. 10 unanimously approved two budget amendments totaling $5,371,486 to fund Hurricane Helene response and recovery efforts.
Vice‑Chair Dennis Aldridge moved to adopt the first amendment for $4,000,000 to cover debris removal and monitoring, allocating $3,000,000 to Hurricane Debris Removal (account 105250.7900) and $1,000,000 to Hurricane Debris Monitoring (account 105250.7910), with an offsetting credit to Fund Balance — Appropriated (103990.0000). The motion was seconded by Commissioner Robert Burleson and approved 4-0.
The board then approved a second amendment of $1,371,486 to consolidate county rescue and recovery expenses into a FEMA tracking line (debit to 105250.3304) and credit Fund Balance — Appropriated (103990.0000), a measure the county said will make it easier to track costs for possible FEMA reimbursement. Aldridge moved the second amendment, Burleson seconded, and the vote was 4-0.
County officials emphasized the funding is to cover immediate response costs from Hurricane Helene and to create accounting lines that support reimbursement requests. The amendments specify account codes for debris removal/monitoring and for FEMA‑trackable expenses to aid future claims.
The board took no further votes related to project spending at the special meeting. Next steps noted in the meeting record include using the designated accounts to track incurred costs and pursuing standard reimbursement channels with state and federal disaster programs.
