Legislation sponsored by a bi-partisan group of legislators, including State Senator Bill Brady (R-Bloomington) to aid in disaster recovery efforts has passed the Illinois Senate. SB 231 allows the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to provide special grants to units of local government, school districts, and community colleges following natural disasters like the tornadoes that tore through central Illinois in November of 2013.
“We were shocked at the devastation when tornadoes ripped through central Illinois devastating towns like Washington in my district,” said Brady. “The response from the public was overwhelming, but there is still a lot of work to be done helping these communities to rebuild. SB 231 ensures that units of local government and schools have the resources they need to recover after a disaster.”
In January the Federal Emergency Management Agency denied a request for aid to Washington, saying that the infrastructure damage after the storms was not severe enough to warrant federal assistance for local government. The denied aid would have been used to cover emergency protective measures, debris removal, and the repair or replacement of government owned facilities. SB 231 addresses this issue by allowing state disaster assistance grants to be granted to units of government, school districts, or community colleges.