Published: July 01, 2009 08:46 pm      

Hutchison announces funds headed to BCISD

BRIDGE CITY — U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) announced Tuesday the Bridge City Independent School District is just one of many Texas entities which will receive money for Hurricane Ike recovery projects.

Hutchison announced that $61,509,688 in U.S. Department of Homeland Security funding will be allocated through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to numerous cities, counties, school districts, and medical care systems to continue in assisting areas of the Texas Gulf Coast which were devastated by Hurricane Ike.

“These grants will provide Gulf communities with the resources they need to recover from the tremendous damages wrought by Hurricane Ike,” Hutchison said in a press release. “Across the board, whether it be improvements to infrastructure or debris removal, I will continue to work with our coastal cities to ensure they get the necessary federal resources to recover fully.”

The Bridge City Independent School District is slated to receive more than $3.6 million for flood damage repairs. Nearly every campus in the Bridge City Independent School District sustained heavy water damage from Hurricane Ike’s storm surge.

Sims Elementary had more than four-feet of water standing in its halls, while Hatton Elementary had more than two-feet of water.

Senator Hutchison announced in June that the Fiscal Year 2009 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill which passed the U.S. Senate included a provision she secured allowing the Texas counties impacted by Hurricane Ike to access millions in additional Debris Removal and Public Assistance reimbursements from FEMA.

Prior to the inclusion of this provision, 100 percent debris removal reimbursement ended on April 26, 2009, and public assistance funding was reimbursed at only a 75 percent to 25 percent rate. The new provision does away with the April 26th deadline for 100 percent debris removal and increases the federal costshare for public assistance funding from FEMA to 90 percent.

Dr. Jamey Harrison, Bridge City ISD superintendent, had just returned from an out of town business trip late Wednesday and was unsure if this money represented additional funding for the district or if it was the difference between the 75 percent to 90 percent costshare for public assistance funding.

Harrison said he hoped to know more today after returning to the office and contacting the appropriate personnel.

The only other Golden Triangle area included in the press release is the City of Beaumont, which will reportedly receive $4.1 million for hurricane readiness.

Montgomery County will receive more than $17.1 million, while Galveston County will receive more than $10.2 million and the City of Houston will receive $7.4 million.