Texas’ congressional delegation said they may seek up to $10 billion in emergency federal aid to reimburse the state, local communities, and citizens for damages from Hurricane Ike.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Tex., speaking at a news conference while surrounded by state lawmakers from both parties, said she hopes to have detailed damage estimates by early this week for an emergency budget request. She said the bid request for hurricane assistance will be attached to a larger governmental funding package that must be passed by Congress before Sept. 30.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Tex., who accompanied President Bush on a three-hour tour of the ravaged Gulf Coast region, said current damage estimates are unreliable because many residents have been unable to get to their property due to high water and debris on highways.
The Insurance Information Institute said insured losses could top $11 billion, making Hurricane Ike the fifth-most expensive catastrophe in the U.S. Ahead of it on the list are Hurricane Katrina, with $43.6 billion of insured losses in 2005; Hurricane Andrew, with $22.9 billion in 1992; the Sept. 11 attacks, with $22 billion in 2001; and the Northridge, Calif., earthquake, with $17.5 billion in 1994.
