The Hawai‘i County Council passed two measures authorizing the County to receive $83.84 million in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds.

In January 2020 HUD allocated the grant to address unmet housing recovery needs from the 2018 Kīlauea eruption. The resolution and accompanying bill will allow the County to enter into a grant agreement with HUD and appropriate the funds. On Tuesday, March 2, 2021, the County Housing Agency voted in favor of authorizing the County to enter into the grant agreement.

The grant will fund a Voluntary Housing Buyout Program and Housing Relocation Services Program as identified in the County’s CDBG-DR Action Plan that HUD approved in October 2020 following a public comment period.

“These programs will help Puna residents displaced by the eruption secure stable housing and recover financially,” said Mayor Mitch Roth in a press release from the County of Hawaiʻi Planning Department.  Roth continued,“in addition to these programs, the County will continue to apply recovery dollars to support initiatives that help the community recover and become more resilient.”

The Buyout Program will prioritize properties that served as primary residences as well as help low to moderate income applicants.  The application process is scheduled to begin at the end of April.

Puna residents affected by the eruption are encouraged to complete a Kīlauea Recovery Housing Survey by March 26. The survey can be accessed via recovery.hawaiicounty.gov or www.surveymonkey.com/r/KILAUEASURVEY