The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will provide Eastern Kentucky communities with $297,994,000 through the Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program.
The announcement was made by U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.
These HUD long-term recovery funds will help Eastern Kentucky recover from last summer’s devastating floods, which took more than 40 lives and damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and businesses.
The following 20 counties are eligible to receive CDBG-DR funding: Breathitt, Casey, Clay, Cumberland, Floyd, Harlan, Johnson, Knott, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Lincoln, Magoffin, Martin, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powell, Whitley and Wolfe. Kentucky will receive the funds initially and then determine grant amounts for individual communities.
The CDBG-DR program provides highly flexible funds for long-term recovery in communities affected by natural disasters.
According to HUD, these funds can be used for a variety of purposes, including helping local governments cover their cost share of federal disaster recovery programs from other agencies, such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Federal Highway Administration.
Communities also can use these funds to address their unique housing needs and promote economic development.
