Shaheen, Hassan Join Schatz and Colleagues in Calling on President Biden to Update Request for Supplemental Disaster Funding, Help Granite State Communities Recover

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) joined U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) and eight of their colleagues in a letter to President Biden urging the administration to reevaluate and resubmit its request for supplemental disaster funding to help states like New Hampshire recover from recent natural disasters. U.S. Senators Peter Welch (D-VT), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Laphonza Butler (D-CA), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) cosigned the letter.

In part, the Senators wrote: “Last October, the Administration requested $23.5 billion for disaster recovery. Since then, the need for recovery resources in our communities have grown and evolved […] This funding is essential for our constituents to move forward in rebuilding their homes, lives, businesses, farms, and communities.”

The senators continued: “We request that the Administration reevaluate the nation’s outstanding disaster recovery funding requirements and resubmit a request for supplemental appropriations that reflects the current reality. A better understanding of the country’s current urgent needs would inform Congress’s work and we recommend that the Administration act as quickly as possible.”

The full text of the letter can be found here.

Last year, Shaheen and Hassan led the entire New Hampshire Congressional delegation in sending a letter to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell in support of New Hampshire communities following severe flooding and wind damage in December 2023. That request was granted in February of this year. The delegation has consistently sent additional letters in support of New Hampshire disaster declaration requests submitted by the state.

Earlier this year, Shaheen touredthree sites along Ocean Boulevard (Route 1A) to view storm damage and receive updates from local and state officials on the status of ongoing repairs. Her visit came after severe storms and flooding in January, in which businesses, homes and infrastructure across New Hampshire’s Seacoast faced catastrophic damage.   

Shaheen has been fighting for Congress to provide disaster relief for farmers in New Hampshire. Last week, she joined a letter to Senate leadership calling for Congress to provide needed disaster relief through specific agencies, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Last year, Shaheen took to the floor to urge Congress to provide disaster assistance for Granite State farmers who were impacted by a late-season frost that severely impacted orchards, which was declared a disaster by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. Shaheen also visited Apple Hill Farm in Concord, where she met with farmers from across the state and learned more about the impact of unpredictable weather, specifically late-season frosts, on Northeast growers.

Senator Hassan also recently visited areas along Route 1A to hear from first responders about flood damage. Senator Hassan hosted Hampton Police Chief and Hampton Deputy Director of Emergency Management Alex Reno as her guest of honor for President Biden’s State of the Union Address. Chief Reno’s leadership has been integral to recovery efforts on the Seacoast after the January flooding. Senator Hassan has also directly negotiated nearly $1 billion in critical funding for coastal resiliency in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, funding that includes $492 million for the NOAA National Coastal Resiliency Fund and $491 million for the NOAA Community-Based Restoration Program.

###