CUOMO ANNOUNCES FUNDS AVAILABLE TO NEW JERSEY TO HELP STATE RECOVER FROM HURRICANE FLOYD

WASHINGTON - In a move to help New Jersey recover from Hurricane Floyd, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo today announced the early availability of about $43 million in HUD assistance that would have normally gone to New Jersey in early 2000.

The accelerated Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) assistance will be made available in November to the following governments in these approximate amounts: Bergen County - $12.5 million. Essex County - $7.3 million. Middlesex County - $2 million. Morris County - $2.5 million. Somerset County - $1.5 million. Union County - $6.2 million. The State of New Jersey - $10.9 million. The State will distribute its share of the HUD funds to Hunterdon, Mercer and Passaic Counties.

President Clinton declared a major disaster for nine New Jersey counties after Floyd caused extensive flood damage to homes and businesses throughout the northern half of the state last month, making it possible for HUD to accelerate the delivery of the funds New Jersey was scheduled to receive early next year from the CDBG Program.

"HUD is committed to doing all it can to help families in New Jersey who have been hurt by Hurricane Floyd and to help rebuild their communities and businesses," Cuomo said.

CDBG funds are used annually by communities for a variety of public uses, including disaster recovery. The HUD assistance can be used to: repair homes and businesses; repair and rebuild public buildings and facilities, such as water and sewer facilities; and to pay for clearance and demolition of structures damaged by the storm.

In addition, the Federal Housing Administration, which is part of HUD, has imposed a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures of FHA-insured home mortgages, to prevent people hit hard by the storm from losing their homes. HUD will also make available the FHA Section 203(h) mortgage insurance program for disaster victims. This provides 100 percent financing for individuals or families whose homes were destroyed or substantially damaged in the storm. FHA will also ease other mortgage insurance program requirements. A copy of the FHA Mortgage Letter can be accessed on the web at: www.hud.gov/fha/mletters/mltrmenu.html.

Content Archived: January 20, 2009