Georgia officials agree to spend $100 million on Hurricane Helene aid for farms and forestry

By JEFF AMY The Associated Press

FILE - Vehicles move slowly around trees that have fallen after Hurricane Helene moved through the area, Sept. 27, 2024, in Valdosta, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Mike Stewart]

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s state government is diverting $100 million to spend on loans to farmers and cleanup after Hurricane Helene.

The Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission voted unanimously Friday to spend the money, which had been set aside for construction projects or paying off existing debt.

Officials last month estimated that the storm, which caused extensive damage in the eastern half of the state after a Sept. 26 landfall in Florida, caused $6.46 billion in economic losses in the state’s agriculture and forestry industries.

Cotton, pecan and chicken farmers took severe losses, as did owners of private timberlands. Lt Gov. Burt Jones and others have called the damage a “generational loss.”

The Georgia Development Authority, a state agency that lends money to farmers, will get $75 million to provide disaster relief loans to farmers and associated businesses in the agricultural industry. The other $25 million will be spent to clean up timber losses and other debris, said Garrison Douglas, a spokesperson for Gov. Brian Kemp.

Because Georgia has been flush with surplus cash, it has been paying for construction projects using cash, instead of the traditional method of selling bonds to borrow money. The $100 million was being held for future spending, but it hadn’t been allotted to any project that is already underway, Douglas said.

Because Georgia ended last year with a $2 billion surplus, lawmakers may be able to replace the $100 million when they amend the current budget during the 2025 legislative session that begins in January.

The state did not spend similar money after 2018’s Hurricane Michael. Helene’s damage to agriculture has been estimated as more than twice as costly as Michael. The earlier storm was followed by a federal fight over aid that delayed help to farmers. Georgia itself spent more than $470 million on loans and recovery after Michael.

“This is something we learned we could do,” Douglas said of the $100 million. Kemp and other state leaders say they will consider additional relief both when the General Assembly meets in January, as well as through administrative measurers before then.

“We’ll continue to work with stakeholders on all levels to direct resources and support to the hardworking Georgians devastated by this storm,” Kemp said in a statement Friday.

Kemp, Georgia state House Speaker Jon Burns and others have been urging Congress to act quickly on a relief package for Hurricanes Helene and Milton. They are asking Congress to give block grants to states that the states can then give to farmers for recovery purposes. Burns is urging similar block grants that states could spend to repair damaged infrastructure and help private businesses and citizens.

“This measure will provide necessary financial relief to farmers and foresters as we continue to work alongside our federal partners to secure every available asset and resource for the Georgians impacted by this disaster,” Burns said in a statement.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Thursday that it has already spent $1.3 billion on direct aid to people following Helene and Hurricane Milton. FEMA has spend more than $1.1 billion on debris removal and emergency protective measures.

Georgia’s government itself can’t give direct aid to people and private businesses because its state constitution bans what it calls gratuities — what most people would call gifts. Georgia Agribusiness Council President Will Bentley told a state Senate committee on Monday that a constitutional amendment is needed to allow direct disaster aid.

Besides Kemp, Burns and Jones, other commission members who voted for the spending included state Auditor Greg Griffin, Attorney General Chris Carr, Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper and state Treasurer Steve McCoy.

The Georgia Development Authority is scheduled to meet Monday in Macon to begin spending the $100 million.