Republican Gov. Phil Scott has asked the White House to approve a third major disaster declaration for the state for 2023 after seven of Vermont’s counties experienced yet another bout of flooding in mid-December.
The Dec. 18 and 19 floods came just a few months after the state was rocked by historic flooding in July and August. Though the winter floods were not as devastating, the result was a one-two punch to many municipalities still reeling from the summer deluge.
“As Vermont continues to recover from last year’s flooding events, it is clear more federal support will be needed to help communities rebuild,” Scott said in a press release announcing his request on Tuesday.
Scott asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency and President Joe Biden to issue a major disaster declaration for damage to public infrastructure incurred in December in Essex, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Windham and Windsor counties.
If granted, the declaration would unlock federal funds to help local governments recoup 75% of eligible costs such as debris removal, public infrastructure repairs and staff overtime compensation.
According to the Governor’s Office, federal assessors have calculated $1.9 million in flood-related costs incurred by local municipalities in December, meeting the feds’ minimum requirement of $1.2 million. The seven counties were also found to have exceeded minimum per-capita requirements for flood-related damages.
In addition to public assistance, the Scott administration requested federal dollars from FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which provides 75% reimbursement for projects designed to reduce future natural disaster damage to public infrastructure.
“(I)t will be critical to make improvements to ensure greater resilience to future severe weather events, that we know will become increasingly common,” Scott said on Tuesday. “My team is committed to working with federal and local partners to do this work.”