Senate to start work next week on bill to fund Hurricane Sandy recovery

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Thursday that the Senate would start work next week on a supplemental bill for Hurricane Sandy relief, while the House indicated it will take a slower approach.

The Senate is using an old appropriations bill, H.R.1, as a vehicle for the Hurricane Sandy Emergency Assistance Supplemental bill.

Reid said he hopes to hold a vote on Monday to begin consideration of the bill, which would provide funds for storm recovery efforts. Hurricane Sandy hit Northeastern states hard this fall, and lawmakers have been calling for federal aid to the states most affected.

The Obama administration has asked for more than $50 billion, but it’s unclear if House Republicans will agree to that much funding.

House Republicans have taken a more considered approach to the question of whether additional funding is needed. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) has said Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has testified that it can meet its disaster relief spending needs through the spring, and that Republicans are analyzing the Obama administration's request for $50 billion in additional funds.

"Our Appropriations Committee is doing its review of the request, to see that that supplemental aid gets to the victims that need it, to the localities and the states that need it, and is money that will be spent directly as a result of the very catastrophic storm Sandy," Cantor said Thursday.

—Pete Kasperowicz contributed to this article.

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