FloridaCommerce has launched a public awareness campaign urging Floridians who saw damage to their homes in storms in 2023 and 2024 to apply for a new relief program.
The Rebuild Florida 2023 and 2024 Storms program is now available, allowing Florida homeowners to apply online. The program is aimed at residents who need to repair or reconstruct homes that were damaged by Hurricanes Debby, Helene, Idalia and Milton, along with tornadoes in North Florida during that two-year span. The program also applies to mobile home owners as well.
Some 47 out of Florida’s 67 counties are eligible for the program. The website lists those municipalities. That program is officially called the Rebuild Florida Housing Repair and Replacement Program (HRRP).
The website says it is a “centralizing housing rehabilitation reconstruction or replacement program that will prioritize low-to-moderate income families with seniors aged 62 and older, children and/or disabled household members.”
The Florida HRRP underway is in response to an announcement from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in January that Florida is in line for federal funding to assist in long-term recovery efforts stemming from notably active storm seasons in 2023 and 2024.
FloridaCommerce was largely responsible for guiding a plan for the funding. Officials with that agency held at least 70 meetings in eligible counties between Feb. 10 and March 19 that involved feedback sessions and public workshops.
“These engagements provided valuable insight into community needs, supporting long-term recovery efforts and informing the development of the State Action Plan,” said a FloridaCommerce news release published Thursday.
The draft action plan was submitted to HUD officials in late April. The federal agency approved the State Action Plan June 4.
