HUD ALLOCATES NEARLY $120 MILLION TO HELP ALABAMA COMMUNITIES TO RECOVER FROM 2011 DISASTERS
Disaster aid part of $514 million to be targeted in hard-hit areas in nine states

From left, HUD Alabama Field Office Director Michael German, Birmingham Mayor William Bell and Birmingham Congresswoman Terri Sewell.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan today allocated nearly $120 million throughout the State of Alabama to help local communities to recover from severe storms, tornadoes and flooding in 2011. These grants, part of $514 million allocated among nine states nationwide, are provided through HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program to support long-term disaster recovery efforts in areas with the greatest extent of 'unmet need.'

HUD will allocate $49,157,000 to the State of Alabama to support long-term disaster recovery throughout the hardest-hit areas. HUD will also provide $43,932,000 directly to City of Tuscaloosa; $17,497,000 to the City of Birmingham; and $9,142,000 to Jefferson County to recover from severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding in the Spring of 2011. The funding announced today supplements the nearly $56 million HUD allocated throughout Alabama in January of 2012.

"In the last two years, many communities have had to deal with the reality of our changing climate and the increasing severity of natural disasters," said Donovan. "HUD is continuing to work closely with state and local partners to help them realize a locally driven vision for restoring and rebuilding housing, infrastructure, and businesses that have been affected."

"The Obama Administration is proud today to partner with the citizens of Alabama to achieve complete recovery from the horrendous tornadoes of 2011," said Ed Jennings Jr., HUD Southeast Regional Administrator. "These funds will serve as a catalyst for a better life for generations to come."

The Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, signed into law by President Obama on January 29th, included $16 billion in CDBG-Disaster Recovery funding. Eight days later, HUD announced a first round of aid totaling $5.4 billion to five states and the City of New York impacted by Hurricane Sandy. HUD will announce additional allocations throughout the year based upon the level of remaining needs to help other states and local communities impacted by natural disasters in 2011-2013.

HUD's CDBG-Disaster Recovery grants are intended to confront housing, business and infrastructure needs beyond those addressed by other forms of public and private assistance. Using a combination of data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Small Business Administration (SBA), HUD identified those states and local communities requiring the greatest assistance to recover from devastating tornadoes in the Southeast and Missouri; remnants of Hurricanes Irene and Lee in the Northeast and New England; severe flooding in parts of North Dakota; and destructive wildfires in Texas. 

HUD will shortly publish a Notice that will regulate the use of the funds announced today. State and local grantees will then finalize disaster 'action plans' describing how they intend to expend these funds to support disaster recovery and HUD will quickly review them.

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