The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced on Monday, May 13, 2019, that Hawai‘i will receive $66.9 million in new federal disaster relief funding. The new Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funding will help state and local governments rebuild impacted communities, especially in low- and moderate-income areas, and provide resources to help businesses recover. Sen. Brian Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, worked with federal agencies and state and county officials to ensure Hawai‘i submitted a strong application to receive the maximum amount of funding. The new funding allocation was part of the $1.7 billion housing disaster recovery package Congress passed last year.

“As we continue to recover from the series of natural disasters that hit our state, these new federal grants will be a huge help,” said Sen. Schatz. “And while this is good news for Hawai‘i, it is not our only chance at additional federal funding. I will continue to fight for federal resources at every opportunity to help Hawai‘i recover.”

With the nearly $67 million in housing grants announced today, Hawai‘i has now been allocated more than $429 million in federal relief funding to help the state recover from the historic storms in April 2018, Hurricane Lane, and the eruption of Kīlauea on Hawai‘i Island including: