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Governor asks president for emergency wildfire relief funds
Washington state officials are formally requesting a major disaster declaration from the president to unlock millions in critical federal assistance for communities devastated by recent wildfires.
SPOKANE - Washington state officials are requesting a Major Disaster Declaration from the federal government following the wildfire devastation on communities in Spokane.
Governor Bob Ferguson, alongside Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown, Lt. Gov. Denny Heck and Congressman Michael Baumgartner held a press conference in Spokane Monday, updating residents on Washington's efforts to submit the federal "Major Disaster Declaration" for Spokane.
The Spokane Mayor opened the press conference, sharing the timeline with the public that it's been two months since the fires burned regional communities.
Mayor Brown emphasized that the city, county and tribal staff have worked tirelessly to assess damage and complete the "Major Disaster Declaration" application.
What does a "Major Disaster Declaration" help with?
The formal request for federal aid would provide both "Individual Assistance" for displaced residents and "Public Assistance" for damaged municipal infrastructure and parks.
Governor Bob Ferguson discussed more in-depth what the difference between FEMA Individual and Public Assistance requests would cover.
Dig deeper:
FEMA Individual Assistance was requested for Spokane, Benton, Stevens and Okanogan counties and the Spokane tribe.
The estimated $11.2 million total in assistance, could directly yield up to tens of thousands of dollars per individual if it were approved.
The Yakima Nation and Colville Reservation are applying separately for FEMA Individual Assistance.
FEMA Public Assistance was requested for 11 counties in Washington to aid with debris removal and emergency protective costs. Asotin, Chelan, Columbia, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, Okanogan, Spokane, Stevens, Whitman and Yakima counties are estimated to have a recovery value over $117 million if the funds are granted.
"While the impact in monetary terms is significant, the damage goes far beyond the numbers. Whole neighborhoods are gone, and communities have been changed forever. Federal financial assistance is critical to help these communities recover and rebuild. My team and I are laser-focused on helping people recover from this disaster," Governor Ferguson said.
By the numbers:
Governor Ferguson shared a detailed damage assessment and regional impact. There were 649 primary residences destroyed across all four counties and the Spokane Tribe.
Four of these residences were majorly damaged, 15 were minorly damaged and 2,523 sustained lower level exterior damage.
The total financial loss exceeded $188 million and nearly 369,000 acres burned.
Spokane County suffered the highest losses with 615 primary residences destroyed.
Over 65,000 residences were evacuated, essential services and medical sectors were impacted and disrupted.
Washington committed over $150 million across six state agencies for wildfire response.
On the Spokane Tribe of Indians Reservations, seven primary residences were destroyed and 4,000 acres were burned on the reservation.
Gov. Ferguson announces three immediate executive and policy actions
Gov. Ferguson announced three immediate executive and policy actions, which he attributed to the Lieutenant Governor's report.
First, Gov. Ferguson urged WA's Building Code Council to use its emergency rulemaking authority to use older energy codes to allow flexibility to homeowners who are rebuilding after the fires, rather than the current rules.
The governor's office clarified that the flexibility would apply only to homeowners who owned their properties at the time of the fires, not if they sell the property and a new owner wants to build.
The goal of this urgency to the Building Code Council is to make it more affordable for people to rebuild.
Secondly, Gov. Ferguson announced proposing legislation that would offer sales and use tax rebates for rebuilding costs following the disaster.
Third, Gov. Ferguson announced signing a new amendment to his emergency proclamation to refine the action his administration will take.
This amendment includes directing the Department of Ecology to expedite debris removal through a permit exemption, waiving state fees on building permits and eliminating the cap on grants for emergency public works impacted by the wildfires.
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The Source: Information in this story came from Monday's press conference and a press release from Governor Bob Ferguson's office.