Today the Texas General Land Office (GLO) posted the Regional Needs Assessments for the Homeowner Assistance Program and Reimbursement Programs (HARP) for a federally mandated 15-day public comment period. The guidelines detail how the state will administer these programs at the local level for eligible areas affected by flooding events in South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley in 2018 and 2019, as well as Tropical Storm Imelda in 2019.
The GLO allocated $137.8 million of Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for repair or reconstruction of owner-occupied single-family homes and reimbursement up to $50,000 for certain out-of-pocket expenses incurred for repairs including reconstruction, rehabilitation, or mitigation. Repayment of Small Business Administration (SBA) loans is also eligible for reimbursement.
The GLO will administer HARP across 11 eligible counties in two distinct regions. Each region was apportioned an allocation of the available funds and the Regional Needs Assessments determine need by income category and other local factors, to inform how outreach should be targeted to direct funds within impacted areas. Each of the Regional Needs Assessments will be posted for public review and comment on the GLO's website for 15 days from posting.
HARP Regions:
- South Texas and the Valley ($66,196,000): Cameron, Jim Wells, Hidalgo, Willacy
- Tropical Storm Imelda ($71,604,000): Chambers, Harris, Liberty, Jefferson, Montgomery, Orange, San Jacinto
Public notices for disaster recovery are found at http://recovery.texas.gov/public-notices/index.html. All comments should be submitted to CDR@recovery.texas.gov .