CHRISTIANSTED — Contractors who repaired damages so Virgin Islanders could remain in their homes after the 2017 hurricanes are a step closer to being paid as the Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved $418.5 million for their invoices.
FEMA has approved the payment under its Sheltering & Temporary Essential Power program.
In a recent letter to the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority (VIHFA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) determined that nearly $418.5 million in invoices received under PW273 for the Sheltering & Temporary Essential Power (STEP) program, known locally as the Emergency Home Repairs Virgin Islands (EHRVI) program were indeed eligible for payment.
Governor Albert Bryan lauded the efforts of all disaster recovery partners for the recent milestone.
“Our administration continues to work in close coordination with FEMA on this matter, and it is welcomed news that we are one step closer to making whole the many local and stateside contractors whose work helped to get Virgin
Islanders back in their homes after the storms.
This announcement is another example of our administration’s
management of the recovery effort and our federal partners’ commitment to supporting those efforts.”
FEMA requested additional documentation and time to complete the review of the remaining $111.8M in invoices
billed to PW273, which covers contractor soft costs associated with housing, travel, administration, and oversight
activities. FEMA committed to a deadline of July 31, 2021 to complete its review. The total value PW273 is
$530.3M.
“I am overjoyed that $418.5 million is authorized to pay both local and stateside contractors. I am equally confident that the Authority will be able to provide any needed supporting documentation to close out the STEP program that successfully completed temporary repairs on 6,517 homes and permanent roof repairs on 1,516 homes,” said VIHFA Executive Director Daryl Griffith.
The VIHFA will submit the requested information to FEMA so it can honor its July 31 deadline of reviewing all
invoices.
Under the STEP program payments are made under two FEMA project worksheets: PW100 which covers direct construction-related costs and the soft costs, under PW273.
“The Office of Disaster Recovery continues to support the VIHFA in its efforts to ensure the full reimbursement of all eligible EHRVI/STEP costs and thanks FEMA for fulfilling their commitment to making a determination on soft costs,” said ODR Director Adrienne Williams-Octalien. “The territory awaits the findings on the outstanding balances and remains steadfast in its obligation to satisfy all reasonable payments to contractors.”
The total cost for the STEP program is approximately $781 million.