Merced County supervisors approve $20M in flood relief funding for Planada residents

The Merced County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approved $20 million in state funding to aid the community of Planada and its residents after devastating 2023 flooding.

Merced County Assistant Executive Officer Mark Hendrickson addressed the board during Tuesday’s board meeting while outlining the Planada Flood Relief Program. According to Hendrickson, more than 800 homes in the community of Planada were impacted by the 2023 flooding. Hendrickson said the program’s primary goals are to demonstrate the priority of the health, safety and welfare of the residents and to be as simple as possible to access for the community’s residents.

Funds for the 2023 Winter Storm Flood Relief Program Plan were secured in the 2023-2024 state budget. According to the plan, $8 million of the funds will go to home repair and are to be used to aid in repair, remediation or reconstruction of structures that were damaged by the flooding.

A total of $4.6 million will go to direct assistance programs including for housing and personal property reimbursement. The plan also includes $500,000 in business support to cover equipment loss, inventory, building damage and lost revenue.

According to the plan, $3 million of the grant funding will go to infrastructure including investments to improve resilience and secure other funding. A total of $2 million will be used for administration such as application processing, inspections and support while $1.9 million will go toward things such as unexpected costs.

Under the relief program plan, a $15,000 maximum grant allowance is in place for housing and personal property reimbursement. The application process for residents to receive relief funds is scheduled to open for a six-week period from March 11 through April 20.

Additional information about the funding can be found online at the Planada20M website.