Pallone Joins Storm and Fire Survivors in D.C. to Demand Disaster Relief Funding, Permanent Recovery Solutions

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. (NJ-06) joined storm and fire survivors at the U.S. Capitol to push for comprehensive and equitable disaster recovery solutions. Pallone joined advocates, organized by the New Jersey Organizing Project, in calling for the permanent authorization and full funding of the U.S. Department of House and Urban Developments (HUD)’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program and swift passage of the $98.6 billion disaster supplemental request submitted to Congress by the Biden Administration in November.

“Our recovery system is broken and families are waiting far too long for help,” said Congressman Pallone. “The White House’s disaster supplemental outlines the urgent resources needed to address recent and past disasters, from Hurricanes Helene and Milton to the Maui wildfires. Passing this funding package, alongside permanent authorization of the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program, will ensure survivors can rebuild faster and more equitably. Think of FEMA as the first responder who puts out the fire, and Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program as the team that rebuilds the house.”

The White House’s $98.6 billion request includes funding for recent disasters like Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the Maui County wildfires, and Midwest tornadoes, as well as addressing unmet needs from prior disasters. The funds would also support infrastructure, housing recovery, and other critical needs to help impacted communities rebuild stronger.

The Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program bridges gaps in federal disaster aid, helping communities recover homes, infrastructure, and local economies. Currently, Congress must authorize funding after each disaster, creating delays that leave survivors in limbo. Permanent authorization would eliminate these delays, ensuring resources are immediately available after disasters strike.

In September, Pallone and bipartisan lawmakers sent a letter to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell urging the Biden-Harris Administration to apply the agency’s updated disaster aid rules retroactively to cover all disasters declared since January 2021, ensuring survivors of recent catastrophes receive equitable support. At today’s event, survivors from New Jersey and across the country, including Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Texas, North Carolina, and Louisiana, shared stories of delayed recovery and bureaucratic hurdles.

"Disaster survivors need immediate resources after a disaster. As a Hurricane Ida survivor, I’ve endured three years without heat, with no lifeline to recover. If recent FEMA assistance changes had been in place, I could have secured temporary housing while repairing my home. Congress must act now to make these FEMA changes retroactive and help survivors of disasters since 2021, like my family and me, finally rebuild and recover,” Julia Morales Abbud, Hawthorne NJ, Hurricane Ida Survivor. 

"After a disaster, which itself is horrific and traumatizing to go through, help and funding needs to come urgently, or families and communities will continue to see the negative consequences for years. My family and I have been struggling to get by and keep a roof over our heads with what we have, and to add to it, we’re eating the cost of a rental on top of a mortgage on a still unlivable, storm-damaged home. Making these changes retroactive for New Jersey Hurricane Ida survivors, who are still living in crisis, will be a game changer. If we could have gotten rental assistance I might not have had to move away from family. The framework for help is in place, Congress just needs to get it across the finish line and make the changes retroactive,” Colleen Kane, Lambertville NJ, Hurricane Ida Survivor.