© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Biden asks Congress for about $100 billion in disaster relief funding

Flood waters cover the main streets of Tarpon Springs, Fla. after Hurricane Helene passed offshore on Sept. 27, 2024.
Joe Raedle
/
Getty Images
Flood waters cover the main streets of Tarpon Springs, Fla. after Hurricane Helene passed offshore on Sept. 27, 2024.

President Biden asked Congress on Monday for more than $98 billion in emergency funding to help cover the costs of recent natural disasters, including Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton.

The majority of the money would go toward the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Agriculture Department, but there are requests for 16 agencies, including Housing and Urban Development and the Transportation Department to help repair housing and rebuild infrastructure.

Congress last passed disaster funding two years ago. Since then, the two hurricanes tore through the southeast, killing more than 200 people and causing millions of dollars of damage,

Shalanda Young, the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, told reporters that the Biden administration continues to provide federal support after the devastating fires in Maui, tornadoes across the Midwest and the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.

There were also severe storms in Alaska, Connecticut, Louisiana, New Mexico, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Illinois, Young said. "It is absolutely critical that these communities know that their government has not forgotten them."

The largest chunk of funding — about $40 billion — would be for FEMA's disaster relief fund, so that it has enough money to last through the coming year. The White House is also requesting $24 billion for the USDA to help farmers hit by disasters, and for school lunch programs and food banks in affected regions.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told reporters that 2024 has been "a year of records." In 2024, there have been 172 disaster declarations, she said, compared to 113 the previous year.

"We saw the second-busiest spring tornado season ever recorded," she said. "And we've seen, overall, a 50% increase in disaster activity."

Copyright 2024 NPR

Corrected: November 18, 2024 at 2:55 PM EST
A previous version of this headline said the request was about $100 million. In fact, it is about $100 billion.
Franco Ordoñez is a White House Correspondent for NPR's Washington Desk. Before he came to NPR in 2019, Ordoñez covered the White House for McClatchy. He has also written about diplomatic affairs, foreign policy and immigration, and has been a correspondent in Cuba, Colombia, Mexico and Haiti.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

Related Content