Fact Check: California, North Carolina get same recovery cost coverage from federal gov’t

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) – As wildfires ravage parts of Los Angeles and Southern California this month, federal, state, and local authorities have mobilized resources to combat the flames and assist affected communities.

Their response echoes the efforts made in North Carolina just months ago, when Hurricane Helene left widespread devastation in its wake.

A viewer named Dina asked the following question: “Why is the federal government covering 100% of the recovery costs for the California wildfires, but not doing the same for Hurricane Helene recovery efforts in North Carolina?”

Her question relates to a claim being spread around social media that the government is allegedly paying for 100% of the damage in California, but not in North Carolina.

WBTV’s Fact Check team investigated the claims and found them to be false.

Here’s what we found.

Federal funding for wildfire recovery

On Tuesday, Jan. 14, President Joe Biden announced that the federal government would cover 100% of certain wildfire recovery costs in California for the next 180 days.

“The federal government is going to cover 100% of the cost for the next 180 days for things like firefighter overtime pay, debris removal, temporary shelters … It’s going to cost tens of billions of dollars to get Los Angeles back to where it was,” Biden said during a press conference.

Typically, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, aka FEMA, covers 75% of disaster recovery costs, with the remaining 25% funded by state and local governments. However, under federal law, the U.S. president has the authority to increase the federal cost-share for recovery efforts.

What about North Carolina?

Turns out, less than a week after Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina in September 2024, President Biden and FEMA announced that the same adjustment was made for Helene recovery in North Carolina.

Put another way: North Carolina has also had 100% of public recovery funds covered by the federal government since Oct. 2, 2024.

A release from the North Carolina governor’s office and FEMA explained how the president raised the federal contribution from 75% to 100% for the first 180 days of recovery. (The same time period that was just established in California).

After the six-month period, the cost-share for public assistance projects was increased from 75% to 90%. Click here to read the official FEMA release about this.

—> North Carolina Red Cross volunteers deploy to support wildfire victims in California

The verdict

President Biden’s decision to increase the federal cost-share for California wildfires is consistent with the aid provided to North Carolina following Hurricane Helene.

Claims that the federal government is covering a higher percentage of recovery costs in California compared to in North Carolina are false. Both states received identical cost-share adjustments.

If you have further questions or claims you’d like us to investigate, feel free to reach out to us at factcheck@wbtv.com.

—> State releases names of 104 Helene victims in North Carolina for 1st time: See list here

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