Hampton County approves local debris contractor, staff cautions on FEMA thresholds and county match

The Hampton County Council voted to approve Southern Disaster Services as the county’s debris-management contractor after the county’s emergency-preparedness official described procurement compliance and the fiscal challenges of disaster-response cost shares.

Suzanne Peoples told the council the procurement followed county policy and that the low bidder, Southern Disaster Services, is based in Greenville and has worked with other counties in the region. She said that, under new FEMA/state guidance, the statewide declaration threshold was recently set at $40 million and that Hampton County’s local threshold is expected to be "around $154,000," meaning counties must document and aggregate costs carefully to qualify for reimbursement.

Peoples warned councilors that counties may face higher local cost shares following changes in federal/state disaster cost-sharing rules and recommended placing a cap on staff-authorized activations so that vendors cannot run up costs without additional council oversight. She said the contractor generally supports hiring local workers during activations and noted Southern Disaster Services had worked under county contracts since 2016 with options to renew.

Council members asked whether the recommended vendor was trusted and whether funding for a potential 50% county match would be available in reserves; staff said they would confirm final match details with state emergency-management officials and the governor’s office. A motion to approve the Southern Disaster Services bid was made, seconded and carried by voice/hand vote.

Council also asked staff to return with confirmation on funding sources and any cap or activation limits the county should set before authorizing debris operations after a disaster.