01/28/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 01/28/2026 12:32
Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) announced he secured an additional $192 million in federal funding for outstanding payments owed to Georgia counties and entities in the wake of Hurricane Helene. The money was released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) following months of pressure from Senator Warnock to get Georgia communities, particularly in rural parts of the state, the money they were promised for recovery efforts following Helene's destruction. The latest round of reimbursements comes after a December 2025 announcement that Senator Warnock secured $300 million in outstanding Helene payments for Georgia.
"I am thrilled to announce I have secured an additional $192 million in federal funding owed to Georgia communities recovering from Hurricane Helene. Hurricanes and natural disasters are not political; they do not care if you voted red or blue, and Georgia counties and cities went right to work recovering from Helene's destruction with the understanding the federal government would fulfill its promises and pay their share," said Senator Warnock."It should not have gotten to this point, and there is still more work to be done. I will continue fighting until Georgia's communities, particularly in rural Georgia, get every cent they are owed."
In December 2025, Senator Warnock released a statement after new evidence emerged showing that the Trump Administration owed $600 million in Hurricane Helene recovery aid to Georgians. That same month, Senator Warnock announced he secured $314 million in federal funding for outstanding payments owed to Georgia counties and entities in the wake of Hurricane Helene. In September 2025, the Senator released a report finding that nearly $500 million in promised federal funding for Hurricane Helene recovery efforts remained unpaid. The funding, part of a disaster recovery bill championed by Senator Warnock in 2024, is meant to reimburse local communities for funds spent on recovery. Despite bipartisan Congressional support for the immediate delivery of disaster recovery funds, the distribution of aid has been stifled by bureaucratic red tape and chaos in the Trump Administration.
A list of Georgia counties and entities receiving federal funding can be found below (this is not a comprehensive list of entities receiving funding):
| Locality/Entity | Funding Amount |
| Georgia Department of Transportation | $78,292,950.89 |
| Appling County | $1,071,758.62 |
| Augusta-Richmond County | $4,037,671.15 |
| Burke County | $6,588,740.61 |
| Clinch County | $2,599,287.01 |
| Coffee County | $4,700,298.24 |
| Columbia County | $16,638,536.90 |
| Emanuel County | $11,305,015.82 |
| Irwin County | $2,247,042.63 |
| Jefferson County | $10,494,968.61 |
| Lowndes County | $3,364,859.16 |
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