Haywood County says $15.8M in FEMA projects submitted; $15.2M still unreimbursed

Haywood County Finance Director Christian Owen told the Board of Commissioners the county currently has $15.8 million in projects in FEMA's portal related to Hurricane Helene and has received $623,000 in reimbursements so far.

"As of right now, we have 15,800,000 in total projects. We have only received 623,000 in reimbursement," Owen said, adding that the largest single item is a $13.8 million waterway debris project that currently shows a status of "pending, application completion." He warned that FEMA's repeated requests for information — often 30 to 50 boilerplate questions per notice — create extra steps that could substantially delay obligation and payment timelines.

Owen walked commissioners through project categories the county has submitted, including Category A debris, Category B lodging and meals, and emergency protective measures, and described the detailed labor and equipment accounting FEMA requires. He said some debris projects have been "obligated" by FEMA and routed to state review, but other large items remain stalled as they move through FEMA processes.

Commissioners pressed for perspective on the local fiscal impact. One commissioner noted that with the county's tax rate, the unreimbursed sum equates to a meaningful share of the local tax burden and urged continued advocacy with federal officials. Owen said answering RFIs is a multi-department effort involving finance, emergency management and other staff and that the county may need to request deadline extensions due to incomplete work and ongoing documentation efforts.

The board did not take further action beyond hearing the update and thanking staff for ongoing work to compile documentation.