North Dakota lawmakers say $400 million approved for disaster aid funding

By Vicki Needham - 11/14/11 03:44 PM ET

A bipartisan trio of North Dakota lawmakers said Monday that $400 million in disaster aid funding has been approved by House and Senate appropriators.

Sens. John Hoeven (R) and Kent Conrad (D) along with Rep. Rick Berg (R) said the conference committee, which is expected to release a compromise spending bill late Monday night, agreed to approve the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding for natural disasters across the nation.

Conrad said he worked with Hoeven and other lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.), through the weekend to secure the funding.

“I’ve pressed the House leadership to ensure that disaster relief is a top priority, and I appreciate Senators Hoeven and Conrad’s work to do the same in the Senate," Berg said in a statement. "While there is still much work to do, the CDBG disaster funds approved today will provide North Dakotans with valuable aid to help with recovery efforts throughout our state.”

The lawmakers have spent the past few months jointly pressing for inclusion of the funds for floods in North Dakota and disasters elsewhere. Hoeven, a member of the Appropriations and conference committees, first got the full Senate panel to include the CDBG amendment during committee consideration.

The conference committee working on a bill to keep the government running through the end of the week agreed on Monday that funding for the departments of Agriculture, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce and Justice will be included in the first “minibus” spending package, but Homeland Security and legislative branch funding will not be added, aides told The Hill's Erik Wasson earlier Monday.

Conservative House Republicans oppose disaster-aid funding included in the Senate Homeland Security bill and have threatened to vote against the spending bill with the disaster funding in it.

The bill will include a “clean” temporary spending bill funding the government past the Friday deadline, until Dec. 16.