Tens of billions in Hurricane Helene aid to start by March 21
ATLANTA - Tens of billions in aid for victims of Hurricane Helene should start flowing later this month, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins pledged Wednesday, but delays are already making it hard this year for some farmers to plant crops.
Congress set a deadline of March 21 to hand out the money when it ed a $100 billion disaster relief package on Dec. 21. The late September storm cut a swath from Florida’s Big Bend across eastern Georgia and upstate South Carolina before causing historic flooding in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee.
‘They were inseparable’: Helene recovery continues, but families can’t forget
As recovery continues, some families can’t come back from what they lost because what was lost is irreplaceable.
The National Centers for Environmental Information says Helene is the seventh-most expensive disaster in the United States since 1980, causing an estimated $78 billion in damage and 219 deaths.
At a news conference in Atlanta on Wednesday, Rollins pledged the aid would begin to be disbursed before the deadline.
“That money will begin to move in the next few weeks,” she said.
VA eliminates office helping minority veterans with benefits
The Department of Veterans Affairs, a huge employer in the Augusta area, has eliminated an office created to help minority veterans.
That’s not a moment too soon for Chris Hopkins, who farms near Lyons in south Georgia. Helene wiped out half the cotton Hopkins was growing on 1,400 acres. He said he began planting 300 acres of corn this month and plans to start planting cotton in late April.
MORE FROM NEWS 12
Trump 2.0: Latest on the new istration
- Trump istration withdraws nomination of David Weldon for CDC director
- Trump threatens retaliatory 200% tariff on European wine
- Judge hopes to rule on Trump order banning transgender people from military
- Affordable housing threatened as Trump halts $1 billion program
- Trump says Ireland cheats the U.S. as its leader s him to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day
- Court asked to intervene after email tells USAID workers to destroy classified documents
- EPA Lee Zeldin announces policy rollbacks
- Greenland’s election winners push back against Trump’s wish to take control of the island
Hopkins said the big losses forced him to dip into emergency reserve funds to pay off $200,000 in 2024 loans for seed, fertilizer and other materials. Some neighboring farmers hit hard by the storm still have unpaid debts from last year, he said, leaving them unable to borrow more to start planting 2025 crops.
“It’s desperately needed,” Hopkins said of federal aid. “What we’re seeing is that producers are almost in a holding or pause pattern because they can’t afford to pay their rent or their loans.”
Hopkins said farmers had hoped the money would come sooner, in January or February, so they could pay off creditors before planting season. He said some have sold equipment or even land to generate enough cash to get new crops started.
Augusta airport preps for influx of travelers ahead of Masters
Augusta Regional Airport is preparing to welcome an influx of visitors for the highly anticipated Masters Tournament.
“The general consensus in the farming and ag community is that it would have been much better earlier,” Hopkins said. “Ag producers are thankful for it by all means. But taking the full 90 days to get it is tough.”
In South Carolina, Republican legislative leaders decided to wait to approve Helene damage relief money in the state’s regular budget instead of an emergency bill in part because they expected federal officials to get relief money out quickly.
Most but not all of the disaster relief bill is earmarked for Helene. It includes $21 billion to help farmers, $8 billion to rebuild damaged roads and highways, $12 billion in grants to help communities and individuals recover, and $2.2 billion in low-interest loans for businesses, nonprofits and homeowners.
Officials have estimated that Helene caused property and economic damage to the agriculture sector totaling $5.5 billion in Georgia and $4.9 billion in North Carolina.
Ga. universities offer free applications in hopes to bring in more students
Augusta University and Augusta Tech are just two Georgia colleges offering free applications to high school seniors this month.
Beyond the cotton crop, the storm toppled pecan trees and flattened chicken houses in Georgia. Farming in western North Carolina is dominated by specialty crops, including Christmas trees and nursery plants, with fewer growers covered by crop insurance.
South Carolina officials estimated $620 million in agriculture damage in 2024, not just from Helene, but also from other weather disasters.
State governments have been moving to expand their aid packages. Georgia has earmarked $285 million for low-interest loans for farmers and removing downed timber from private land in an amended budget that Gov. Brian Kemp signed last week, part of $862 million in Helene-related spending.
Human trafficking victims seek changes in Ga. tort reform bill
Georgia lawmakers continued hearing hours of testimony regarding the impact of liability lawsuits on businesses, consumers and crime victims.
North Carolina lawmakers are negotiating the details of a supplemental Helene relief bill that may total more than $500 million, in part to provide more funds for crop losses. It would be North Carolina’s fourth Helene aid package to be enacted. The state has requested close to $1.9 billion from the disaster relief law approved by Congress in December. Most of that money would go to address crop and timber losses, debris removal, stream restoration and erosion.
The South Carolina House on Wednesday gave final approval to a budget that includes $220 million in Helene relief for farmers and others as a match to money from the federal government. They also set aside $50 million to give to the state Department of Transportation to pay back what they spent repairing roads and clearing trees.
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
