New Jersey Announces Federal Action Plan Spending $228M on Ida Recovery

On January 17, 2023, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced the approval of an action plan distributing more than $228 million in federal emergency funds to homes and communities impacted by Hurricane Ida. As part of the Federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (“CDBG-DR”), the plan’s goal is to aid with the continued recovery from Ida, which hit New Jersey in September of 2021. 

Approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”), the plan enables the state to better assist in the restoration of damaged homes, provide rental assistance to displaced people, support communities, buy out homes in flood-vulnerable areas, and finance future infrastructure programs to protect from future storms. 

Action Plan Fund Allocation 

$153M in Low- and Moderate-Income Housing: As part of the plan’s main goal, 70% of funds will benefit low- to moderate-income households. This includes various grant programs for restoring damaged homes, subsidizing energy-efficient housing in flood-risk communities, providing interest-free and forgivable loans for rental repairs, buying out homes in residential flood-prone communities, and offering rental assistance and legal consoling.  

$58M in Community Infrastructure: To highlight vulnerabilities exposed by Ida, the plan calls for two programs aimed at helping communities becomes more resilient to future floods as well as cost share with FEMA to further rehabilitate affected structures. 

$6M to Mitigate Future Floods: Finally, the plan lays out funding for the planning and execution of current and future efforts to better mitigate floods and boost disaster resilience.  

“The state of New Jersey thanks HUD for its review and approval of our Ida Action Plan and for partnering with us in a collaborative working relationship as we continue recovering from Hurricane Ida,” said Governor Phil Murphy in a press release on his website. “New Jersey’s communities are still dealing with the effects Hurricane Ida left behind. But with federal approval of our Action Plan, we will continue moving forward with the job of repairing from Ida and building more resilient communities, preparing us for the next storm.” 

For further details on the fund’s allocation, grant distribution and FAQs the full Hurricane Ida action plan can be found on the NJ.gov.