House OK’s $60B Aid for Sandy Recovery

Aid Passes 241-180 Assists New Jersey residents from worst natural disaster in their history

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House of Representatives tonight approved the full disaster recovery funding that will help the victims of Superstorm Sandy rebuild their communities.

            “Sandy was the most destructive storm ever in our region and arguably the second or third most costly in America’s history,” said Congressman Chris Smith, R- Robbinsville, N.J., who represents the Fourth Congressional District—the hard-hit area of northern Ocean County & southern Monmouth County where Sandy made landfill. “We are not crying wolf here, I say to my colleagues. There are huge gaps—people who have filed for insurance claims—and find insurance covered only this much. How do they ever recover?”  Smith, who took the House floor no less than three  times today to speak in favor of passage, pointed out that the Governor’s office estimated the damage in New Jersey alone to be $36.9 billion. Click here to watch Cong. Smith’s appeal to his House colleagues to pass the Sandy aid.

             Two votes today providing $17 billion and $34 billion would supplement $9.7 billion already provided by both Houses of Congress Jan. 4, for a total of $60 billion emergency spending aid package.
             “There is an immediate need to rebuild and restore.  In particular, our residents and neighbors need assistance with temporary housing and permanent home restoration,” said Smith.  “The Jersey Shore needs to be open for business by or near Memorial Day, or else many will suffer economic hardships, including losing jobs or businesses.”

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House Approves $17 Billion in Sandy Aid. Another $33 Billon Expected To Be Approved Tonight

The House of Representatives approved the first of two bills expected to be voting on today which, if also approved in the U.S. Senate and signed by the Presdient, will provide $50 billion in federal funds to New Jersey, New York and Connecticut to rebuild from the destruction caused by Superstorm Sandy.

The $17 billion approved this afternoon will pay for Sandy clean-up, dredging, small business loans and infrastructure repairs. The $33 billion to be voted on tonight will be for the longer term rebuilding effort.

The bills were split in two to accommodate members of the Republican caucus who support the $17 billion, but not the $33 billion.

According to The Star Ledger, New Jersey Republican Congressmen Frank LoBiondo (NJ-2) and Jon Runyan (NJ-3) ripped into their fellow Republicans for withholding support of the disaster assistance.

“To my colleagues who have sought funding themselves and now say we need to change the rules of the game: shame on you,” Rep. Frank LoBiondo (D-N.J.) said after the vote. “We need to have a new caucus, the hypocritical caucus.”

Rep. Jon Runyan (R-3rd Dist.) said he knew more than 30 of his Republican colleagues who oppose the bill even though they sought similar aid when disaster struck their districts.

“Mr. Speaker — I would say to my friends — why should New Jersey and New York be treated any differently? ” Runyon said. “My friends should ask themselves what would they do if it was their district that suffered the amount of catastrophic loss that many of the families and businesses in my district now face.”

Democratic Congressman Frank Pallone said that Republicans that opposed the aid do not understand the extent of the damage.

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Rep. Chris Smith Calls for House to Pass Sandy Relief

For the text of Smith’s remarks:

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Deadline to appeal property tax assessment due to hurricane damage is tomorrow, January 9

Monmouth County property owners have until tomorrow, January 9, 2013 to notify the Monmouth County Board of Taxation of “material damage” caused by Superstorm Sandy and to receive a reduction in their property tax assessment for 2013.

The Tax Board has been surveying properties in heavily damaged areas and already reduced assessments without owners’ notification.  I checked on a properties in Highlands and Keansburg this morning.   The assessment on the Highlands property had been reduced by 30% and the Keansburg property by 15%.

If your property was materially damaged by Sandy, call the Tax Board at 732-431-7401 or submit your property information here online.

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Congressman Chris Smith calls on his colleagues to pass Sandy Relief Bill

Congressman Chris Smith and Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden prior to surveying Hurricane Sandy damage

The $60.4 billion dollar appropriation to fund the rebuilding of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut passed in the U.S. Senate last night by a vote of 62-32.

Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ 4), representing parts of Monmouth and Ocean Counties, is calling on his Republican colleagues in the House of Representatives to pass the aid package without delay before the 112th Congress adjourns on Monday.

“The House now has before it legislation that will provide critical federal support to help ease and mitigate the severe hardship on people, communities and businesses decimated by Superstorm Sandy,” said Smith, “There is no doubt that this storm created unprecedented emergencies and devastation and should be treated as such— with no delays, no budget offsets. Immediate federal assistance, resources, and mitigation planning is needed to help restore some normalcy and hope into the lives of the victims of Superstorm Sandy and start the rebuilding process.”

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Smith Testifies before Senate Panel

Army Corps of Engineers Work Helped Reduce Damage; Planned Projects Should Advance

WASHINGTON, DC – Although Superstorm Sandy wreaked widespread havoc on the Jersey Shore, the victims and communities have pulled together in an effort to rebuild their lives, homes and towns, Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) told members of the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Environment and Public Works today. Smith also called attention to work the Army Corps of Engineers’ beach protection projects that held up well during the storm.

“The courage, tenacity and resiliency of the victims has been amazing,” said Smith, who represents large sections of Monmouth and Ocean Counties where the immense storm made landfall. “The stories of neighbors helping neighbors with breathtaking kindness by providing shelter, food and warm, dry clothing are almost without number. People are at once heartbroken, devastated and still appreciative of the help they are getting and what they have left.  A resident of Belmar told me the day after Sandy demolished his home: “I’ve lost everything, but I am alive.”

Smith said special note and appreciation need be given the Corps of Engineers which has spent years working on beach re-nourishment projects, some of which are bogged down due to lack of funding.

“We know that in most areas where the Army Corps of Engineers implemented beach re-nourishment projects, there was less damage than those where they did not,” Smith said. “Where the Corps built higher berms, they held back the water. Where there were low dunes, the water came flooding in.

“Preventing flooded homes and businesses is cheaper and more efficient than repairing them after a water breach,” Smith said. “As such, it is necessary, cost-effective and justified for the federal government to provide the Corps with emergency funding to finish beach replenishment and flood protection projects.”

The Corps is poised to finish a number of projects if it has the funding through an emergency supplemental request. Representatives from the Northeast have asked President Obama to direct his Office of Management and Budget to issue an emergency supplemental request. Smith said that funding to complete already-authorized projects should be included.

“The partnership between federal, state and local governments has served our community well in the aftermath of the storm and we must bolster these efforts moving forward—both to make New Jersey residents whole and to limit future damage. Fully funding the Corps’ projects is a priority of mine and will assist our state as we recover, repair and rebuild,” Smith said. “It’s a long road, but we are committed to bringing back—and with your help we will bring back—these communities.”

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Hurricane Sandy Survivors Will Have Temporary Housing At Fort Monmouth

MMM has learned that FEMA and Department of Community Affairs housing inspectors have given “high marks” to buildings at the former Fort Monmouth for potential use as long term temporary housing for Monmouth County residents displaced by Superstorm Sandy.

In an email to board members of the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA) forwarded to MMM by Freeholder Lillian Burry, a member of the board, Executive Director Bruce Steadman said that FEMA and DCA is working on a plan to use 7 lodging buildings in along the Shrewsbury River in Oceanport to house 600-900 people in 300 units, as well as 21 “McGill” units at the golf course which could house 42 families.  These units could be used as temporary housing for up to 18 months, according to FEMA guidelines.

Gibbs Hall, the commissary building, the gymnasium and the prep school have been deemed not suitable for housing.

Steadman told the board that FMERA has informed the Army that they want to expedite the purchase of the Howard Commons area, the historical housing area of the main post, and the golf course, to support post-Sandy housing needs.

Burry said that there could be up to 10,000 residents of Monmouth County in need of temporary housing as a result of the damage caused by Sandy.  Union Beach, Highlands, Sea Bright and the low lying areas of Middletown…Belford, Leonardo, Port Monmouth and North Middletown…were struck with storm surges that exceeded 8 feet, leaving homes in the wake uninhabitable.  Additionally, the Two River towns of Little Silver and Oceanport have several displaced residents due to flooded homes, according to Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon.

In addition to the former Fort Monmouth, federal, state and county officials are evaluating the Bradlee’s parking lot on Route 36 in Hazlet, the former Bell Labs property in Holmdel, and the Hartshorne Woods County Park in Highlands/Navesink as possible sites for FEMA trailer cities.

O’Scanlon said that he is impressed and grateful for the level of cooperation between the various government agencies working on evaluating the former Fort Monmouth for temporary housing.

“I am very  encouraged to know everyone is working together to assess the resources at  Fort Monmouth that might be able  to help us house our displaced residents,” said O’Scanlon,  “We will continue to push for  quick answers but the level of cooperation amongst the agencies involved is  encouraging. The Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are taking all the right steps to vet out this option. The Monmouth County  Prosecutor, Christopher J. Gramiccioni, has also been a key part of this  process and I appreciate his active involvement. On behalf of my constituents, I am grateful for the effort.”

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A letter to Sandy survivors

By Kathleen Koch

Welcome to the survivors’ club.  Whether you lost your belongings, your car, your home, a loved one or your entire neighborhood, you are not a victim and don’t let anyone label you that way.  You are not helpless.  You will get through this.

In the disaster zone, your brain won’t want to process what your eyes are seeing. You will see, hear and smell things you never thought you would.  It will feel like you’re in a dream or on a movie set, because this simply can’t be the place where you lived.

You will feel like an ant trying to move a mountain.  Don’t be paralyzed into inaction by the enormity of the task ahead of you.  It can be done.  Just keep moving.  Any forward progress, even in baby steps, is good.

Salvage what you can.  The smallest items will be precious reminders of the past. But recognize what is beyond repair and as painful as it is, throw it out.  If you can’t, have someone else do it for you.

Don’t punish yourself or those you love because you (or they) did not store your family photos in the attic, move the car, save your vital papers, evacuate, buy flood insurance.  What’s done is done.   Let it go.

You are on autopilot now.  Your adrenaline is pumping as you figure out where to live, find food, buy gasoline.  You will get used to standing in lines.  Use that time to bond with others who are on the same journey.  Anger and frustration help no one.

Respect the rules of a disaster zone.  Don’t cut in line.  Defer to the young and the old who are most vulnerable at these times.  Just because property is sitting in the middle of a street or dangling from a tree branch does not mean it’s free for the taking.  It belongs to someone.  Stack salvageable items where neighbors can see them and potentially reclaim their lost property.

“How’s your house?” will become the new greeting when you see friends and neighbors.  You will have a new way of marking time — pre-Sandy and post-Sandy. The definition of the word “home” will expand to include a shelter, a couch, a garage, a friend’s basement.

Disasters are great equalizers.  They reveal people’s true nature — for better or for worse.  You will find out who your real friends are and what love really means. Incredible acts of kindness will come from unexpected quarters.  Beware of the few who seek to profit from the misery of others.

Feel the pain.  Cry if you need to.  Hug each other.  Share what you have.  Know that you are not alone, because volunteers by the thousands are on their way. Their selfless generosity will renew your faith in your fellow man.

Your instinct will be to rebuild an exact replica of what was, down to the last brick, board and beam.  Consider carefully whether that is wise or even possible.  Seek out ways to prevent future damage by rebuilding higher, smarter, stronger and further from the water.  See this as an opportunity.

Accept the new normal.  The past is just that.  You can cherish the place you and your neighbors once called home where it will always exist — in your collective memories.

Kathleen Koch is a former CNN correspondent who covered Hurricane Katrina and wrote Rising from Katrina: How My Mississippi Hometown Lost It  All and Found What Mattered.

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Christie Administration Announces E-Mail and Fax Voting For New Jerseyans Displaced by Sandy

Already Available to Military and Overseas Voters, State Opens Electronic Voting System to Make Voting More Accessible to Citizens Displaced by Hurricane Sandy and First Responders Assisting in Recovery Efforts

Trenton, NJ –The New Jersey Department of State has issued a directive today to county elections officials to permit New Jersey registered voters displaced by Hurricane Sandy to vote electronically. This directive also is intended to assist displaced first responders, whose tireless recovery efforts away from home has made voting a challenge.

“This has been an extraordinary storm that has created unthinkable destruction across our state and we know many people have questions about how and where to cast their vote in Tuesday’s election. To help alleviate pressure on polling places, we encourage voters to either use electronic voting or the extended hours at county offices to cast their vote,” said Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno. “Despite the widespread damage Hurricane Sandy has caused, New Jersey is committed to working through the enormous obstacles before us to hold an open and transparent election befitting our state and the resiliency of its citizens.”

To vote electronically, displaced voters may submit a mail-in ballot application either by e-mail or fax to their county clerk. Once an application is approved, the clerk will electronically send a ballot to the voter by either fax or e-mail in accordance to the voter’s preference. Voters must return their electronic ballot – by fax or email – no later than November 6, 2012, at 8 p.m.

Voters can download a mail-in ballot application for their county by visiting http://nj.gov/state/elections/voting-information-vote-by-mail.html. A list of county clerk websites, phone numbers and fax numbers are available by visiting http://nj.gov/state/elections/voting-information-local-officials.html.

Separate directives issued today enable displaced voters and first responders to vote by provisional ballot at a polling place in a county other than the voter’s county of registration. The deadline for county clerks to receive mail-in ballots has been extended to November 19, 2012, for any ballot postmarked on or before November 5, 2012. Mail-in ballots post marked later than November 5 will not be accepted.

County elections officials have also been directed to print a sufficient number of provisional and emergency ballots to accommodate voters.

Voters are encouraged to take advantage of extended office hours at county elections offices to cast their vote early and in-person.  Registered voters can obtain and cast their ballot in-person at their county elections office up until 3 pm Tuesday.  County election offices are to remain open, at a minimum, from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm throughout the weekend, until November 5.  Voters that have a mail-in ballot and choose to deliver their ballot to the county elections office in person must present their completed ballot to their county elections office no later than the close of polls on Tuesday.

Information is also available by calling 1-877-NJVOTER.

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