AUSTIN — Today Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D., announced the Texas General Land Office (GLO) awarded $43,144,626 in disaster recovery funds for 44 federally eligible infrastructure projects to help communities recover from the 2019 South Texas Floods as well as Tropical Storm Imelda. The funds will be used to improve streets as well as water and drainage facilities in Cameron, Chambers, Hidalgo, and Orange Counties, as well as the cities of Beaumont, China, Combes, Daisetta, La Feria, La Villa, Laguna Vista, Liberty, Mercedes, Mission, Nome, Old River-Winfree, Orange, Palmview, Pasadena, Pine Forest, Pinehurst, Plum Grove, Port Arthur, Port Isabel, Primera, Rio Hondo, Santa Rosa, Splendora, Vidor, West Orange, and Woodloch. 

“Consecutive disasters have devastated communities in the Lower Rio Grande Valley and Southeast Texas, but the Texas General Land Office is here to help,” said Commissioner Buckingham. “These critical infrastructure awards will divert floodwaters away from homes, increase the resiliency of communities to respond to natural disasters, and restore peace of mind when the next storm hits.”

Texas GLO 2019 Disasters Recovery Funds:

The Texas General Land Office (GLO) is administering $227,510,000 million in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for long-term disaster recovery from 2019 flooding in the Lower Rio Grande Valley and Tropical Storm Imelda in Southeast Texas. The GLO allocated $61,430,000 million in disaster recovery funds for infrastructure projects to provide disaster relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure for local communities. The GLO announced the opening of the application for eligible counties and cities on March 15, 2022, and applications closed on August 1, 2022. Each applicant was eligible to submit a total of two applications. All activities had to contribute to the long-term recovery and restoration of infrastructure. The GLO recognizes that as part of a comprehensive long-term recovery program, the repair and enhancements of local infrastructure are crucial components. Infrastructure activities are vital not only for the long-term recovery and restoration of housing but for the long-term recovery and viability of communities.

To learn more, visit https://recovery.texas.gov/2018-floods-2019-disasters/programs/2019-disasters-infrastructure-competition/index.html.