[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 38 (Monday, March 5, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1330-S1331]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                 Florida Hurricane Disaster Assistance

  Mr. NELSON. Madam President, it has been almost 6 months since 
Hurricane Irma struck Florida. It has been about a month since we 
passed the most recent disaster supplemental appropriations bill, which 
finally included the money for Florida's fisheries, citrus growers, and 
communities across the State that we have been fighting for since day 
one, since the storm passed.
  Today, I spoke to the Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, and I asked 
him to immediately release this critical funding to help the people of 
our State. Florida's fishermen are still waiting for their help too.

[[Page S1331]]

  Hurricane Irma caused extensive damage to vessels, facilities, docks, 
equipment, and gear, especially in the Keys. Many in the spiny lobster 
industry lost all of their traps. The disaster supplemental 
appropriations gave NOAA $200 million for Federal fishery disasters 
like the one that Secretary Ross declared for Florida. Where is the 
money?
  Let's talk about the broader impact to the oceans. Did you know that 
Florida's coral reef tract is the third largest barrier reef in the 
world? It is a reef that starts south of Key West and goes all the way 
up the coast, almost all the way to Fort Pierce. The coral supports the 
spiny lobsters and the stone crabs, which are served in restaurants 
around the country. This industry is important to Florida's economy.
  Hurricane Irma tossed all manner of debris around. Monroe County has 
already spent almost $20 million to remove over 2 million cubic yards 
of waste--roofs, appliances, bicycles, trailer homes, and boats. The 
debris was also swept into the water, which is threatening the corals, 
and into the canals, where it blocks transportation.
  I want you to take a look at this picture. This is one of the canals 
in the Keys. Look at what is sitting in the canal--a whole mobile home 
that was lifted up from the mobile home park on this side of the canal. 
There it is, in the water.
  Take a look at this. Do you see what is in the canal? Do you see out 
here? That is the ocean. This canal is coming right in. What happens is 
that eventually some of the debris goes into the Atlantic. It gets near 
the reef. Some of it submerges. The wave action is sending it back and 
forth.
  You can imagine any one of those pieces of debris knocking constantly 
into delicate coral that is already diseased, that is already 
overheated because the rising temperature of the water. You can imagine 
what is happening. Whether it is a mobile home sitting in the canal or 
whether it is all of this junk that is sitting in the canal and that 
eventually goes out, this is what we need help with.
  It has been over a month since we passed the disaster supplemental 
appropriations bill. Why isn't the money flowing? That is what I called 
the Secretary of Commerce about this morning. I told him: Mr. 
Secretary, my request is very, very simple. Just get the money out. The 
money is appropriated. It is there.
  I said: Mr. Secretary, will you please crack the whip on NOAA so that 
you can get this money out and we can get this place cleaned up, as 
well as protect those coral reefs from the damage they have already 
undergone?
  Then I said: What happened in this storm is, whether for lobster or 
stone crab, the traps were all swept away. The poor fishermen don't 
have any traps. They need help too. That is what this disaster 
appropriations bill is for. Mr. Secretary, you have to crack the whip 
to get them going.
  Unfortunately, this is not the only issue we are facing. Florida's 
citrus industry suffered over $760 million in losses from the storm. 
Why? Because the trees were full of fruit that was going to be picked 
within just a few weeks. Along came the storm; the winds were severe. 
In Southwest Florida, some of the citrus crops were 100 percent lost. 
In fact, the winds were so high that they ended up uprooting citrus 
trees. Further north, in Central Florida, the groves there lost 50 to 
60 percent of their crops.
  The citrus industry cannot survive those kinds of losses, and that is 
why we have a disaster appropriations bill. There were losses of over 
$760 million from the storm. The rest of Florida's agriculture took a 
big hit, too, with an estimated $2.5 billion in total damages.
  In February, we finally came through with $3.8 billion for the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture. Of that money, $2.6 billion was supposed to 
go directly to farmers and ranchers. It is March, and those folks 
haven't seen a dime.
  After I talked to the Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, I put in a 
call to the Secretary of Agriculture. I have called several times 
today. I have yet to connect with him. If any of his staff are 
listening, there is a bottleneck at the USDA that is preventing this 
money from going to the families who desperately need it. I will 
continue to call Secretary Perdue to ask him to do what I asked 
Secretary Wilbur Ross to do: Crack the whip on his organization to get 
the money flowing. That is why we passed supplemental emergency 
appropriations. Now the Federal agencies need to get the money out the 
door.
  This is so frustrating because the administration knew that Congress 
was discussing a disaster supplemental bill when Hurricane Harvey hit 
Texas in August. Then Irma hit, and then Maria hit.
  Six months later, most of the Federal agencies are just starting to 
dust off their pencils and figure out how they are going to allocate 
the funding. What is wrong with you? People are hurting. They are going 
bankrupt. You have to get that money out.
  Can you imagine how you would feel if your family's entire citrus 
crop had been wiped out and you had been holding your breath waiting 
for disaster assistance funding, which finally came over a month ago, 
and then you were told by the folks at the USDA that you were going to 
have to wait for several more months until USDA figures out how to get 
you the money? It is no wonder that people are fed up with bureaucracy.
  Additionally, many of our cities and counties have yet to see any 
reimbursements from FEMA for Hurricane Irma. In fact, many have yet to 
be fully reimbursed for Hurricane Matthew, which struck almost 2 years 
ago. Unbelievably, all those counties that were devastated had paid for 
the debris removal. The State of Florida missed the deadline--didn't 
turn it in on time. Of course, what we had to do to cover the State of 
Florida's mistake was to plead with FEMA: Forget the mistake; it is the 
local counties and cities that need the money.
  Not getting the money out is totally unacceptable. While we are still 
waiting for reimbursements from these storms, how can we expect these 
local governments to prepare for the 2018 hurricane season that will 
start in just a few months, right around the corner?
  Let me say it again. This is unacceptable for the slow-walking--the 
foot-dragging--that is going on in getting the money out the door. I am 
going to keep pounding on this until the folks in Florida start getting 
the help they need and deserve.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida.