In the first days of the federal government shutdown, North Carolina officials were wary of an already extensive recovery from Hurricane Helene hitting even more obstacles.
Over 43 days, the longest shutdown in history, state leaders rushed to prevent key federal programs from lapsing and ensure that rebuilding in the mountains could continue, even as Washington stood still.
Now, with the shutdown in the rearview mirror and federal workers back on the clock, North Carolina appears to have avoided any major stumbling blocks in hurricane recovery.
“Time is of the essence, always, with recovery,” Matt Calabria, who leads Gov. Josh Stein’s recovery office for western North Carolina, told reporters Friday. “So delays in getting reimbursements are material, to local governments in particular. But a lot of the broader … concerns that we had we’ve worked really hard to figure out how to avoid.”
Two programs paid for with federal dollars were set to lapse during the shutdown: one that provided crisis counseling, and another to hire displaced workers for recovery-related jobs. Both have since been extended.
U.S. Department of Agriculture county offices are reopening across the state. And the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, which oversees a $1.4 billion pool of money to rebuild homes destroyed by the storm, is back to full capacity after weeks of skeleton staffing.
North Carolina officials have not been able to use that HUD money, but have been able to lean on a separate bundle of state dollars to keep their homebuilding program, Renew NC, running.
“Our folks estimate that has cut months off the clock,” said Calabria.
Matt Calabria (left), who leads the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina, and Jonathan Krebs, Gov. Josh Stein’s advisor for western North Carolina, testify for state lawmakers on Hurricane Helene recovery efforts on Jan. 29, 2025. (Photo: Galen Bacharier/NC Newsline)While the state has managed to tread water during the shutdown, many local governments are struggling to stay afloat.
The already laborious process to get paid back for rebuilding costs slowed to a crawl during the shutdown, leaving cash-strapped communities desperate for repayment. FEMA assistance continues to flow — the agency announced $155 million in aid last week — but bureaucratic hurdles are frustrating local officials.
Kevin Leonard, executive director of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, said the federal repayment process had effectively created a “recovery gap.”
“Accountability should not become red tape,” Leonard told state leaders during a meeting of the governor’s advisory committee on Helene recovery. “It’s resulting in major cash flow strains across our cities and counties.”
Local governments would benefit, he said, from waivers that would allow them to bypass reviews for routine payments like debris cleanup. DHS requires any payment over $100,000 to be signed off on by Secretary Kristi Noem and be cleared by the Department of Government Efficiency. Leonard says that’s leading to longer waits.
Ryan Cody, the town administrator for Marshall in Madison County, said Friday it was “really frustrating” to navigate the extensive reimbursement justification process when the results are already tangible — in the form of parks, sidewalks and a water treatment plant. He asked state officials to search for solutions to get money “directly appropriated” so projects wouldn’t face further delays.
“We have advocated for not having to jump through those additional hoops,” Calabria said, emphasizing that conversations with federal officials are ongoing.
A flurry of deadlines are approaching for local leaders and groups to apply for more funding. Over the next two months, applications are due for local government capital grants, recreation projects, broadband repairs and volunteer-led rebuild grants.
And the state’s most expansive program — single-family home rebuilding and repairs — stops accepting applications at the end of the year. As of Friday afternoon, the program has almost 4,700 active applications, according to state data.
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