Funding comes after pressure from Senator Reverend Warnock and as Georgia localities were readying for lawsuits from contractors seeking payment for work done in the wake of Hurricane Helene
In September, Senator Warnock released a report finding the Trump Administration was shortchanging Georgians half a billion dollars in disaster relief aid
Following the Senator’s September report, the Senator found the number increased to $600 million
Following this announcement, localities in Georgia are still waiting for nearly half of the outstanding payments the federal government said it would cover; Senator Warnock will continue fighting until the administration delivers Georgia the recovery funding they were promised
Senator Warnock: “After months of putting pressure on this administration to deliver for Georgians, I am proud to have secured over $300 million in federal funding owed to Georgia”
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) announced he secured $314 million in federal funding for outstanding payments owed to Georgia counties and entities in the wake of Hurricane Helene. The money was released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) following months of pressure from Senator Warnock to get Georgia communities, particularly in rural parts of the state, the money they were promised for recovery efforts following Helene’s destruction.
“After months of pressuring this administration to deliver for Georgians, I am proud to have secured over $300 million in federal funding owed to Georgia. Hurricanes and natural disasters are not political; they do not care if you voted red or blue, and Georgia counties and cities went right to work recovering from Helene’s destruction with the understanding the federal government would fulfill its promises and pay their share,” said Senator Warnock.“It should not have gotten to this point, and there is still more work to be done. I will continue fighting until Georgia’s communities, particularly in rural Georgia, get every cent they are owed.”
This month, Senator Warnock released a statement after new evidence emerged showing that the Trump Administration owed $600 million in Hurricane Helene recovery aid to Georgians. In September, the Senator released a report finding that nearly $500 million in promised federal funding for Hurricane Helene recovery efforts remained unpaid. The funding, part of a disaster recovery bill championed by Senator Warnock in 2024, is meant to reimburse local communities for funds spent on recovery. Despite bipartisan Congressional support for the immediate delivery of disaster recovery funds, the distribution of aid has been stifled by bureaucratic red tape and chaos in the Trump Administration.
A list of Georgia counties and localities receiving federal funding can be found below (this is not a comprehensive list of entities receiving funding):
| Locality | Funding Amount |
| City of Adel | $1,066,649.61 |
| Atkinson County | $3,628,939.06 |
| Bryan County | $2,540,113.27 |
| Bulloch County | $4,273,770.80 |
| Chatham County | $5,938,094.98 |
| Coffee County | $18,347,974.62 |
| Columbia County | $2,494,603.24 |
| City of Douglas | $2,010,612.90 |
| Emanuel County | $18,042,928.3 |
| Georgia Department of Natural Resources | $1,094,543.62 |
| Glascock County Board of Commissioners | $2,465,906.57 |
| Glynn County | $1,950,190.62 |
| City of Hephzibah | $2,494,653.23 |
| Jefferson County | $7,446,387.07 |
| Johnson County | $8,861,551.20 |
| Lanier County | $11,484,928.86 |
| McDuffie County | $5,043,089.41 |
| Telfair County | $2,158,273.29 |
| Toombs County | $21,875,355.2 |
| City of Valdosta | $14,795,727.56 |
| Ware County | $5,088,544.75 |
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