City of Houston Harvey Relief

Dear Houstonians,

Hurricane Harvey inundated America’s 4th largest city with over 50 inches of rain and impacted more than 300,000 housing units in Houston alone. More homes flooded in Houston during Hurricane Harvey than in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina or New York City during Hurricane Sandy. This is the third year in a row that Houston has experienced severe flooding resulting in a Presidentially declared disaster.

By itself, Harvey represents the largest housing disaster in American history, and we cannot effectively recover without federal support. This website outlines our requests of the federal government for members of the Administration, Congress and their staff, the media and the public.

Houston has come to the aid of other Gulf Coast communities in their time of need and represents an essential hub for American energy, medical treatment, shipping, aerospace, and trade. Working with our Congressional delegation, we need the federal government to come to our aide to help build a more resilient city that has learned the lessons of Harvey. Without flood mitigation, rebuilding dollars are just funding for future failure.

I invite you to read through this site and contact my Office of Government Relations with any questions.

Sincerely,

Sylvester Turner
Mayor

Louisiana received over $14 billion for flood control projects following Hurricane Katrina.

Congress appropriated over $5 billion for Corps of Engineers projects in areas affected by Superstorm Sandy.

Hurricane Harvey inundated America’s 4th largest city with over 50 inches of rain and flooded more than 300,000 housing units in Houston alone.

More homes flooded in Houston during Hurricane Harvey than in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina or New York City during Superstorm Sandy.

FEMA, Army Corp will begin dredging Kingwood mouthbar in July

The notorious mouthbar — a buildup of sand and sediment deposited in the San Jacinto River that could increase flooding — has become a very touchy subject for those who live near Lake Houston, especially in Kingwood. Local, state and federal officials are nearing a solution after months of negotiations. Dredging of the mouthbar will begin by the end of July, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-Galveston District ...

Houston Chronicle • 7/1/19

Houston’s $3.2B capital improvement plan focuses on Harvey as city awaits federal aid

Houston’s capital improvement plan again will center on Hurricane Harvey recovery projects, many of which remain in the nascent stages and are delaying other work as the city awaits the slow trickle of federal reimbursement funds. City council is set to vote July 10 on the five-year “capital improvement plan” proposed by Mayor Sylvester Turner’s administration, which would devote $3.2 billion next fiscal year to a sweeping range of ...

Houston Chronicle • 6/27/19

Houston, county denied waiver on bedroom limit for rebuilt Harvey homes

The Texas General Land Office has denied Houston and Harris County’s request for a waiver of a rule limiting the number of bedrooms in a home rebuilt using federal Hurricane Harvey disaster recovery funds. City and county housing officials argue the decision may force some households to downsize, such as parents whose grown children have moved out. The GLO rule limits the number of bedrooms in a rebuild to the number of occupants, regardless of the size of the home.

Houston Chronicle • 6/26/19

Houston, Harris County seek waiver of bedroom limit on rebuilt Harvey homes

The calendar in Joe Fowler’s Kashmere Gardens home still displays August 2017, its pages curled around a screw fastened to the moldy drywall. Fowler has been unable to live in his Pickfair Street home since Hurricane Harvey forced three feet of water inside and his family out. Twenty-two months after the storm, Fowler and his four-year-old son still are waiting on the city of Houston to help rebuild, using disaster recovery funds awarded ...

Houston Chronicle • 6/18/19

Climate Change and Disaster Preparedness

The House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on the Environment held a hearing to assess climate change impacts and natural disaster preparedness efforts. Among the witnesses testifying on the first panel included former FEMA director James Witt and atmospheric science professors. The second panel comprised emergency management officials from Texas, California, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

C-SPAN

Can Houston prevent disaster when the next storm comes?

Houston, known as the Bayou City, is no stranger to flooding. But the record-breaking rains and devastating deluge of Hurricane Harvey helped expose a disconnect between developers building on flood-vulnerable land and home buyers who might not have realized the risk.

PBS Newshour

Making Houston Stronger: A Town Hall

KPRC2 brought you an in-depth discussion with Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judge Ed Emmett about the lessons we've learned and what's being done to protect the Houston area from another flood catastrophe.

KPRC

City of Houston PostHarvey

Post-Harvey Unmet Need in Houston

Quick Facts