U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., is calling attention to months-long delays by state and federal agriculture agencies to deliver relief to farm communities devastated by Hurricane Helene last September.
In a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Tyler Harper dated Wednesday, Ossoff asked why a federal block grant agreement still hasn't been finalized more than nine months after the storm struck and more than six months after Congress appropriated disaster aid.
"Although some funds have been made available at the national level through USDA (the U.S. Department of Agriculture), many of Georgia's farmers and producers who were most affected by Hurricane Helene are not eligible for this assistance and tell me they are instead counting on a block grant," Ossoff wrote.
"The failure of USDA and the state of Georgia to conclude the block grant agreement has left many Georgia farmers and producers in limbo."
Ossoff pressed the federal and state agriculture agencies to provide an update on the timetable for completion of the block grant agreement within one week.
The massive hurricane roared through South Georgia and north through the Augusta area in late September, killing 34 and causing heavy rainfall and widespread flooding as well as extensive power outages.
The General Assembly approved $862 million in disaster relief for victims of the storm during this year's legislative session.
Harper's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.