CNCounty News

Podcast: County experience can improve disaster response

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Kevin Leonard, executive director of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, and Amanda McKinney, a Yakima County, Wash. commissioner, talk about two different challenges county officials face in responding to disasters.

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Avery County, N.C. Commissioner Dennis Aldridge surveys damage from Hurricane Helene in 2024 in this still from the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners’ documentary, “Rising Above Helene,” directed by Chris Baucom of 100 Strong Productions.
County News

Reimbursement policy prolongs disaster recovery for counties

Counties that suffer major damage during natural disasters would benefit dramatically from a FEMA Act proposal to do away with reimbursement and instead offer counties recovery grants up front.

FEMA
County News

FEMA at a crossroads: What county officials need to know about reform efforts

Two overlapping disaster recovery efforts are now unfolding in Washington: a sweeping executive-branch review of FEMA and a bipartisan legislative push to reform the agency through Congress. County officials should understand both tracks, what they could mean for local governments and where each stands today.

A powerful atmospheric river causes widespread flooding across Washington state in December 2025, damaging homes, businesses and major roadways.
News

Counties regroup after FEMA’s resiliency grant program resumes

As FEMA resumes and restructures its Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant program, counties are reassessing projects that were put in limbo during its cancellation and creating new hazard mitigation gameplans ahead of its upcoming funding cycle.