Mills directs administration to distribute storm relief funding as soon as its available [Video]

AUGUSTA Maine (WABI) – Gov. Janet Mills is directing $60 million to coastal and inland communities affected by the December and January storms.

$50 million of the funding will be distributed in grants by Maine DOT through the Maine Infrastructure Adaptation Fund.

$10 million in funding, added by the Legislature to the governor’s original proposal, will be distributed to small businesses by the Department of Economic and Community Development through the Business Resilience and Recovery Fund.

Applications are expected to be available in May.

The applications will outline the parameters of the programs and the requirements to receive grant funding.

The departments will begin receiving applications and awarding conditional funding, which will help provide the certainty needed to help entities plan to rebuild.

“While I am disappointed this crucial bill got caught up in last-minute budget politics, my Administration will take every necessary step to get the money out the door as soon as it becomes available,” said Mills. “We hope these steps can provide at least some sense of certainty to help …