SC would appoint Chief Resilience Officer to oversee disaster relief under new bill
In the midst of dealing with a pandemic and heading into hurricane season, South Carolina lawmakers are grappling with how to secure additional disaster relief funds, and state House members propose the creation of a new office to spearhead relief efforts.
A House panel agreed Wednesday to adopt changes to a Senate bill that would have required $2 million from the state budget to establish the South Carolina Revolving Resilience Fund Act, proposed legislation that would provide loans and grants for local governments to purchase flood-prone properties and land to complete floodplain restoration.
The proposal would create the South Carolina Office of Resilience, an advisory board and chief “resilience officer,” a governor-appointed position S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster called for in his executive budget to manage the resilience reserve fund and how the state responds to climate-related natural disasters. The fund would be separate from the state general fund.
“In addition to creating the offices, we’re pulling all this out of the Department of Administration,” subcommittee Chairman Nathan Ballentine, R-Chapin, said during the meeting, which was held virtually. “Everybody was in agreement that it might be best to have this fall under the Office of Resilience. It’s an interesting concept here.”
According to the bill, the new office would develop, implement and maintain the Statewide Resilience Plan, coordinating disaster recovery efforts between federal, state and local government agencies. This is a very important issue for the present and future of South Carolina, Democratic Rep. Leon Stavrinakis said.
“Although some might think this is just a coastal driven piece of legislation, it’s really not,” the Charleston lawmaker said. “Flooding impacts every part of our state and our country basically, and South Carolina’s acknowledgment and pursuit of solutions on this front is critical for our citizens and a great example of great leadership.”
South Carolina has been hit by several storms, including hurricanes, that have caused extensive damage and death due to high winds, heavy rain and flooding.
In 2015, a days-long rain storm swept the state, causing significant flooding in Columbia and elsewhere in the state after the water breached rivers and dams.
The House’s spending plan, which the chamber adopted before the pandemic hit the state in March, called for $50 million in one-time money to launch a statewide Disaster Relief and Resilience Reserve Fund to assist hazard mitigation, improve infrastructure and establish a statewide resilience plan. But COVID-19 upended the House’s budget plans, postponing talks about creating the fund at least until next year.
Currently local governments or municipalities have several ways to apply for federal funding, including a grant where up to 75% of total project cost is made available to purchase properties in flood-prone areas to turn them into greenspace or restore them to their natural landscape, Derrec Becker, spokesman for the S.C. Emergency Management Division said.
The Senate’s version of the bill would allow local officials to use state funding, instead of money from local budgets, to come up with the remaining 25% match.
“A percentage of total cost from the disaster is made available to the state through the hazard mitigation program,” Becker said. “Once a major disaster occurs and we get mitigation funding, they can apply through (S.C.) EMD for an acquisition project.”
State Sen. Stephen Goldfinch, R-Murrells Inlet, told The State that he considers the bipartisan-backed legislation a “starting point,” where state and local governments partner in the process so that taxpayers no longer have to foot the bill for unsalvageable homes, lifting the burden off homeowners who are financially strapped.
“Homeowners need a relief, local governments need a relief and quite honestly, the state needs relief from this problem,” Goldfinch said.
This story was originally published September 9, 2020 at 1:23 PM.