$604 million more for Helene recovery signed into law by Gov. Cooper

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- North Carolina state lawmakers signed off on a measure Thursday to provide $604 million more toward Hurricane Helene recovery and relief and also directed some storm-affected counties to open more ballot sites to address crowds and congestion during the early voting period.

In a one-day session, the Republican-controlled legislature unveiled and approved two measures related to the catastrophic flooding and damage, which state officials say resulted in 97 deaths. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper's administration said Wednesday that Helene likely caused at least a record $53 billion in damages and recovery needs in western North Carolina.

NOTE: Video is from a previous report.

"As North Carolina continues to recover from the devastation caused by Helene, the North Carolina House of Representatives remains committed to ensuring the people of western North Carolina have what they need to rebuild and recover," said House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland. "We stand with our neighbors and will see this recovery through to the end."

Governor Roy Cooper has signed the legislation into law.

Two weeks ago, the General Assembly approved what was described as a preliminary $273 million relief package, with legislative leaders promising that much more would follow in the coming months. The initial relief cash was designed largely to meet the state's matching share to meet federal requirements for disaster assistance programs.

On Wednesday, Cooper offered his own wide-ranging storm relief and mitigation request of $3.9 billion, with more $1 billion alone in grants to businesses, farmers and utility repairs. Thursday's relief bill doesn't address most of his recommendations. GOP leaders said they just received the governor's proposal earlier in the week and would consider it more closely in the weeks ahead. The legislature returns for more work on Nov. 19.

"The assessment of what needs to be done is still in progress," Senate leader Phil Berger told reporters. "What we've done is deploy an adequate amount of resources at this time to deal with some of the more immediate things that have some time sensitivity."

The spending measure approved unanimously takes $604 million more from the state's nearly $4.5 billion "rainy day" savings reserve and moves it to the Helene relief fund. Legislators also located $77 million from other funds and reserves for other items.

The relief bill now heading to Cooper's desk includes $50 million in small business loans in affected areas, $100 million in loans for local governments for emergency water and wastewater system repairs, and $5 million more to address mental health needs of public school students and their families in the region.

The state also located other funds to provide tuition grants for college students affected by the storm, including assistance for students enrolled for the spring semester at the University of North Carolina at Asheville.

Some mountain-area Democrats said the relief measure doesn't go far enough and pleaded for more help more quickly. Businesses already weighed down by loans need grants now to survive, said Democratic Sen. Julie Mayfield of Buncombe County. Mayfield said an eviction moratorium or massive rental assistance also is needed to prevent workers from losing their housing, which would cause them to leave the area.

"Speed matters," Mayfield said, her voice cracking with emotion. "The people and the economy of our region hang in the balance in this moment - this moment - not in November, not in December, not next year, but now."

But Republican Sen. Ralph Hise of Mitchell County - like Buncombe, one of the hardest hit areas - said that the legislature is getting more money out to respond to the hurricane than lawmakers have done for previous storms. Hise said damages are so widespread that it will take more than just state government to complete the rebuilding. The federal government, nonprofits and churches will be key players, he said.

"There's a lot of fear of what's going to happen in the future and how do we stop that right now," Hise said. "But we have to deal with our immediate needs first."

The voting measure approved by wide margins directs elections boards in 13 mountain counties to ensure that, as soon as possible, there is one early in-person voting site for every 30,000 registered voters in each county.

According to legislators and the State Board of Elections, the directive is expected only to affect Henderson and McDowell counties. Early voting began Oct. 17 with Henderson and McDowell - both Republican-leaning - only opening one voting site each.

Another site in McDowell County didn't open because of hurricane damage. Henderson County officials had announced before the legislation that a second site would open for a couple of days next week.

With passage of the bill - which becomes law without Cooper because it affects a small number of counties - Henderson County will have four sites, said Sen. Tim Moffitt, a Henderson County Republican.

On the opening day of early voting in Henderson County, officials closed lanes on a major highway to help move traffic, and golf carts ferried voters from an auto parts store to the lone voting site. But some House Democrats questioned whether it was appropriate to add early voting sites in Henderson when the county election board had previously decided before Helene to have only one this fall.

Nearly 1.89 million people statewide had cast ballots in person through Wednesday, according to the State Board of Elections, or 126,000 more than at a similar point in 2020. Early in-person voting continues through Nov. 2. Republicans have emphasized early voting this fall compared to previous election cycles.

The Associated Press contributed.