As flooding begins to recede along the Missouri River valley, Congresswoman Kristi Noem has invited Congressman John Mica (R-Florida), the Chair of the House Transportation Committee, which oversees disaster management programs including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to tour flooded areas in South Dakota today.

This may be too little too late, worries Ben Nesselhuf, Chairman of South Dakota Democratic Party. “Inviting Mica to South Dakota won’t reverse the suffering of South Dakota families whose communities relied on flood response programs that Noem and Mica voted to gut in Congress this year,” Nesselhuf says.

Nesselhuf urged Congresswoman Noem to take advantage of this opportunity to hold Mica and other House leadership accountable on behalf of her flood stricken constituents. “We applaud Congresswoman Noem for inviting the Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, so South Dakotans can let both know how their votes in Washington have caused real damage back home.”

Early in the year, Noem voted to completely eliminate the Watershed and Flood Prevention and Operations Program as well as slash $783 million from Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding for state and local governments to respond to flooding. Later, Noem voted against a measure to provide grants for repairs of flood damaged homes and relief from flood insurance premium increases for flood victims.

If you would like more, please contact Ben Nesselhuf, 605-271-5405 or ben@sddp.org

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Background:

Noem Denies Assistance to South Dakota’s Flood Victims
Noem voted against a measure to provide grants to repair flood-damaged homes and relief from flood insurance premium increases for the flood victims whose residences were damaged by flooding for which the President declared a major disaster or emergency in 2011. The measure was offered by Representative Leonard Boswell of Iowa. [HR 1309, Vote #561, 7/12/11]

Noem Promises Federal Support
…Noem says federal help may be the only option facing many flood victims in the long-term. “A lot of farmers and ranchers out there are going to struggle with this water that’s going to sit on their land for a long time and we need to do all that we can to see if we can be of assistance and partner with them,” Noem said. [Keloland.com, 3/25/11]

Noem Eliminates Flood Prevention and Response Programs
The GOP House Budget H.R. 1 Eliminates the Watershed and Flood Prevention and Operations Program. March 1, 2011 [H.R. 662, Vote #159, 3/02/11]

FEMA funding for state and local governments reduced by $783 million. [US House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, 2.11.2011]

Watershed Programs
“Through the Watershed Programs NRCS provides technical and financial assistance to States, local governments and Tribes (project sponsors) to plan and implement authorized watershed project plans for the purpose of … watershed protection, flood mitigation, …” [Natural Resources Conservation Service]