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APP article on bipartisan work to help Jersey ShoreShore towns get Sandy disaster loans forgivenRepayment no longer necessary for $26M used in storm recoveryAsbury Park Press USA TODAY NETWORK – NEW JERSEY - Nineteen Jersey Shore towns and school districts devastated by superstorm Sandy nearly nine years ago have received some welcome news: They no longer have to pay back $26 million in federal disaster loans. U.S. Reps. Frank Pallone Jr. and Andy Kim, both D-N.J., touted the disaster loan forgiveness at a Tuesday news conference at Toms River town hall. Pallone and Kim, along with other members of New Jersey’s congressional delegation, have been attempting to get the disaster loans forgiven for years. The lawmakers argued that it was unfair to expect towns that had lost large percentages of their ratable base to repay the money, saying it would place an unfair burden on taxpayers already struggling in the storm’s wake. The low-interest loans were issued through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Towns and school districts received them in 2013, within a few months of Oct. 29, 2012, when Sandy struck. The monies were used for things like debris removal or to pay for basic services in areas badly damaged by the storm. Toms River, where more than 10,000 properties were either damaged or destroyed by Sandy, still owes nearly $3 million, plus $7,672 in interest, on a $5 million loan the township received about six months after Sandy. That money no longer has to be repaid. Mayor Maurice B. “Mo” Hill Jr. said much of the disaster loan money was used to clean up mounds of debris in the wake of the storm. Toms River lost more than $2 billion in ratables when Sandy roared onshore. “We suffered a loss of our ratable base,” Hill said. “If we had to repay all of it, it would be a burden on the taxpayer.” The township already repaid about $2 million of the loan monies, Hill noted, which he said added up to nearly a 2cent increase in the municipal purposes tax rate. In Monmouth County Keansburg Councilman James Cocuzza Sr. said he was grateful his small bayfront borough will not have to repay more than $1.8 million in disaster loan funds, plus an additional $93,979 in interest. He said each increase of $65,000 in the municipal budget leads to a 1cent rise in municipal taxes. “We are a one-square-mile town,” Cocuzza said, noting Keansburg lost more than 400 homes when Sandy’s storm surge struck. “If we had to repay $1.8 million, we would have been dead. We are still raising houses in town.” Pallone noted that the federal government has not forced towns and counties in other areas hard-hit by hurricanes, including in Louisiana, to repay monies that are typically used for emergency clean-up and to fund vital town services in the wake of storms. ‘It’s just not fair’ “It’s just not fair.” Pallone said of attempting to force towns to repay the money. He said municipalities were led to believe that the money was more akin to a grant, and not a loan, and would likely be forgiven. “These loans were all forgiven in Louisiana and all other states. ... We paid for that, we send more money to Washington than any other state. ... We are one country.” Kim said he felt “really heartened” by the disaster loan cancellation, and noted it was a bipartisan effort. Earlier this year, every member of New Jersey’s delegation signed a letter penned by Pallone that asked the federal government to forgo collection of the remaining disaster loan funds, and waive the recoupment of funds from Sandy families who participated in New Jersey’s federally funded home rebuilding programs. “I hope that gives you encouragement that we can keep this momentum going, and try to get the kind of justice, kind of fairness, … for our homeown-ers,” Kim said. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., did not attend the news conference but issued a statement noting he had voted for the stopgap measure that included loan forgiveness, as well as funding for municipalities struggling to recover from flooding caused by this summer’s Tropical Storm Ida. “The forgiveness of Community Disaster Loans provides critical relief for our towns and recognizes the ongoing burden faced by our communities as we work to fully recover,” Smith said. The bill signed by President Joe Biden last week provides funding to repay the remaining balances of disaster loans taken out by towns and school boards. Some municipalities and school districts already repaid all — or part of - — the loan monies. Highlands Mayor Carolyn Broullon said in a statement that her small borough is still recovering even as the ninth anniversary of Sandy approaches. Highlands will no longer have to pay back more than $2.6 million in loan principal, along with over $260,000 in interest. “Forgiving the millions of dollars in Community Disaster Loans is a major step in finally putting Sandy behind us,” Broullon said. ‘We are still fighting’ The New Jersey Organizing Project, a Sandy advocacy group, has long lobbied New Jersey’s delegation for disaster loan forgiveness as well as help waiving recoupment — or “clawbacks” — of federal funds used by homeowners to help rebuild and elevate their properties. “Almost nine years later we are still fighting,” said Stafford resident Joe Mangino, president of the organizing project’s board. Mangino, who still has a lien against his home because he has been told he must pay back about $4,000 in disaster funds, praised Pallone and Kim for their success in halting disaster loan repayments. .Here are the loan principal amounts — and interest — that towns in Monmouth and Ocean counties, plus Atlantic County’s Ventnor City, will no longer have to repay. Figures are from the state Department of Community Affairs: h Atlantic Highlands, $413,350 principal, $5,094 interest; h Avon, $1,428,189, $143,627; h Beach Haven, $1,902,919, $183,023; h Berkeley, $665,743, $2,779; h Central Regional Board of Education, $408,594, $1,088; h Highlands, $2,625,357, $262,255; h Little Egg Harbor, $4,416,610, $196,469; h Keansburg, $1,815,347, $93,979; h Manasquan, $921,401, $2,664; h Manasquan Board of Education, $332,311, $599; h Ocean Gate, $13,481, $77; h Point Pleasant, $3,531,935; $323,968; h Point Pleasant Beach, $800,128, $25,468; h Seaside Park Board of Education, $143,799, $500; h Stafford, $1,701,242, $11,940; h Toms River, $2,994,642; $7,672; h Tuckerton, $41,393, $258 h Union Beach, $493,560, $7,487; h Ventnor City, $1,251,598, $11,769. The above ran on page one of the Oct. 7, 2021 print edition of the Asbury Park Press and the original can be found at:https://www.app.com/story/news/local/ocean-county/sandy-recovery/2021/10/06/superstorm-sandy-nj-towns-disaster-loans-forgiven-heres-your-savings/6001770001/. |