Flood aid may exceed $25M

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and state lawmakers will join together today to recommend an aid package for flood-ravaged southern Utah that is expected to add up to at least $25 million.

"Everything is on the table," Senate President John Valentine, R-Orem, said Tuesday.

The package could include a proposed $25 million loan to help the region rebuild sewer lines and other infrastructure destroyed in the deadly deluge earlier this month.

Other options Valentine said were still being considered include helping local governments meet a 25 percent match needed to qualify for funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as setting up a fund to help individual homeowners.

"Those are things being discussed by our legal counsel," the Senate leader said.

Washington County Commissioner Jim Eardley said flood-related bills are starting to pile up throughout the area, and no one has the money to pay them.

"I'm hoping we get a zero percent loan from the state, but I don't know if we will," said Eardley. "We may get immediate cash from some anticipation notes, but those are dependent on how much we are able to repay from grants and other funding sources."

Legislative leaders toured Washington County last weekend to see the damage for themselves. The governor made the trip just after several homes were swept away by a swollen Santa Clara River and has already declared the county a disaster area.

Eardley said a prioritized list of damages, which includes the cost of repairs and a rundown of in-kind contributions, will be provided to Rep. David Clark, R-Santa Clara, today. That information should help reinforce the county's precarious financial position, he added.

Federal assistance through FEMA has been requested, but area lawmakers want an interest-free loan from the state so repairs can continue. The money would be paid back from whatever federal disaster relief funds ultimately come to the state.

The governor had not seen a final proposal from the Legislature as of late Tuesday, his spokeswoman, Tammy Kikuchi, said.

"They are still hammering out plans, and they are looking at all their options," she said.

Huntsman met with lawmakers earlier Tuesday and apparently talked about the proposed loan.

"The governor is supportive of a good plan that gets funding to the flooded state areas quickly so they can begin critical repair work that needs immediate attention," Kikuchi said.

Valentine said he was surprised to see the intensity of the devastation when he toured the flood site.

"Where it did hit, it hit with very great intensity," he said.

The snowpack on surrounding mountains is also a concern.

"We're going to have a second flood with the spring runoff if the weather doesn't cooperate," unless something is done to re-channel the river bed that was shifted during the storm, Valentine said.

The price tag for the damage is expected to exceed $150 million. President Bush still must sign off on the disaster declaration before federal dollars are released. It is still not known how much money will be made available.

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