Heidi Alexander: “I am here to join the Senator from Indiana, and I think I can presumptively speak for everybody in this body. We want to…”

“I am here to join the Senator from Indiana, and I think I can presumptively speak for everybody in this body. We want to help the people in New York, New Jersey, and other Northeastern States that were hurt by Sandy. We have had some pretty tough disasters in Tennessee as well. We had a 1,000-year flood 2 years ago--not a 100-year flood but a 1,000-year flood. We knew the Federal Government wasn't going to make us whole. We had billions of dollars of damage, 52 counties hurt, but we knew the Federal Government could help and it did help and it helped swiftly and that is what we want to do in this case. With all the talk about the money we are about to appropriate, I think it is important to remind those who live in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut what is already being done with money we have already appropriated. For example, there are 4,402 FEMA personnel working in those States. There are 514,343 citizens of those States who have already filed individual assistance applications. This is when your home is gone and you need money for rent or you need money to rebuild. Those applications are in. Already $1.13 billion has been paid. There are 24 disaster recovery centers in New York, 24 in New Jersey and 1 in Connecticut. $150 million in disaster loans have already been approved by the Small Business Administration, and more than 360,000 applications have been sent out.…”