JacksonLee

Contact: Yohannes Tsehai (202) 225-3816

Washington, Nov 18 - Washington, DC – Today, Congresswoman Jackson Lee worked with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and her Texas delegation colleagues to pass S. 3774, which extends Social Service Block Grant (SSBG) funds to the State of Texas and 15 other states who were impacted by the devastating effects of Hurricane Ike or other disasters in 2008.

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee stated, “Thousands of families who were victims of Hurricane Ike stopped receiving SSBG funds on September 30, 2010, because the legislatively mandated deadline for these funds expired. Today, we have extended that deadline for another year so that thousands of families in Texas and throughout the Nation can once again return to the road of recovery. Because of this legislation, many victims of Hurricane Ike who had stopped receiving assistance critical to their recovery such as home repair, mental and physical healthcare, and employment services, will now regain these important services in time for the Thanksgiving holiday.”

Majority Leader Steny Hoyer commented, “I commend Congresswoman Jackson Lee for her work on behalf of the victims of Hurricane Ike. The Texas delegation has worked diligently to ensure that their constituents have access to critical resources as they continue to rebuild following the disaster. I am pleased that we were able to work together to ensure bipartisan support of a bill that meets the needs of those affected.”

Congresswoman Jackson Lee added that, “It is critical to know that this legislation does not ask for more funding; it asks only that the federal government finish what it has started. Now that this bill has passed, I will continue to work with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ensure that funding for social services agencies throughout the State of Texas is provided as expeditiously as possible so that the victims of Hurricane Ike receive the assistance they so desperately need on their road to recovery.”

“When Hurricane Ike devastated Texas in September 2008, I immediately began to work with the Members of the Texas Congressional delegation to ensure Texas was appropriated recovery funds it so desperately needed. In early 2009, the State of Texas received part of these recovery funds, almost $219 million under the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) program from HHS. Although more than $174 million of this have been drawn down, there remains over $44 million to Texas that cannot be utilized without today’s extension. Furthermore, of the total $600 million in SSBG funding appropriated in 2009, there remains more than $152 million for 16 states that can be used with the passage of S. 3774 today,” stated Congresswoman Jackson Lee.