As Hurricane Ian slammed into Florida and on its way to the Carolinas, a bipartisan delegation has sent a letter to President Joe Biden (D) calling for a Major Disaster Delegation would support the response and recovery to all those affected by the state. Florida’s three biggest statewide elected officials (Gov. Ron DeSantis – R-FL, Sen. Rick Scott – R-FL, and Sen. Marco Rubio – R-FL) recently called for the President to answer the call of duty to offer federal assistance to the relief effort.
Gov. DeSantis wrote in a press release that “Ron DeSantis requested President Biden grant a Major Disaster Declaration for all 67 counties, for all categories, and all types of assistance, due to the ongoing devastating impacts of Hurricane Ian. If granted, a Major Disaster Declaration provides a wide range of federal assistance programs for individuals, as well as funds for both emergency and permanent work and public infrastructure.”
Since then, Florida’s legislators including Scott and Rubio have sent another letter, this time including support from the other side of the aisle including (but not limited to) Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL), and Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL).
“We write in support of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ request for a Major Disaster Declaration due to Hurricane Ian, which is currently causing catastrophic conditions as a Category 4 major hurricane,” wrote the officials.
“This historic hurricane will continue to impact the state for some time, and the full extent of damage will not be known for days. However, approving this declaration request will allow Floridians to be better prepared for the recovery phase,” while the bipartisan letter concluded: “As such, we urge you to approve the State of Florida’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration, which will provide the assistance necessary for our constituents to recover and rebuild.”
Alongside those already mentioned, Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL), Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) and other signed the bill in support of DeSantis’ call for assistance.
President Biden has just responded and granted the aid.
The full text of the letter can be found below:
BREAKING: The bipartisan Florida Congressional Delegation wrote @POTUS calling for a Major Disaster Declaration for Florida - this would support our #HurricaneIan response and recovery here in #TampaBay & across the state. pic.twitter.com/W6qpIARyXj
— US Rep Kathy Castor (@USRepKCastor) September 28, 2022
