(BIVN) – New Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery is on the way to Hawaiʻi, says U.S. Senator Brian Schatz.

Senator Schatz made the announcement in a Monday news release, saying that he worked with state, county, and federal agencies to ensure Hawai‘i received its fair share. The new funding reportedly brings total federal disaster relief funding for Hawai‘i to more than $429 million.

The Schatz media release stated:

Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced 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. U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), 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. 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,” said Senator Schatz.

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 Kilauea on Hawai‘i Island…

According to Schatz, those funds include:

• $12 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in individual assistance to help people who have lost their home;
• $206 million from FEMA in public assistance to help local and state governments clean up and repair public infrastructure such as facilities, parks, and water lines;
• $93.1 million from the Department of Transportation to help rebuild roads and highways;
• $47.2 million from the Small Business Administration in subsidized loans to help individuals and businesses pay for repairs not covered by insurance;
• $4 million from the Department of Labor in Disaster Unemployment Insurance to help those who lost their job temporarily or permanently because of a disaster and are not eligible for regular unemployment benefits; and
• $187,000 from the Economic Development Administration to provide technical assistance for economic development activities in disaster impacted areas.