On July 30, 2018, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced approval of Puerto Rico’s $1.5 billion disaster recovery plan to address damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The plan is funded through previously allocated funds from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant—Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Program.
The majority of the funding, a total of $1 billion, will go to on restoring damaged and destroyed housing on the island. Qualified homeowners can receive up to $120,000 to rebuild destroyed homes and up to $48,000 to repair damaged homes. Additional funds will go to rental assistance for elderly and venerable households. Also proposed is a $36 million Home Emergency Resilience Program that will provide up to $6000 for solar appliances to help families.
The plan will also provide $145 for economic revitalization activities, including grants for businesses and workforce training programs. The plan also provides $100 million for infrastructure repair.