North Michigan News

State Representative Parker Fairbairn has successfully led the passage of a $100 million relief plan through the House to aid Northern Michigan following a severe ice storm earlier this year. The proposed plan, now awaiting Senate approval and gubernatorial signature, aims to unlock further federal support for the most affected communities.

“This was a once-in-a-generation weather event,” Fairbairn stated in his speech on Wednesday. He described the widespread impact: “Ice coated trees, powerlines, radio and cell towers, roads, rooftops, cars and homes. The thickness and weight snapped limbs, power poles, 600-foot broadcast antenna, electrical masts, and structural supports across Northern Michigan.”

House Bill 4328 is designed to fund disaster relief grants that will help local communities by reimbursing emergency management assistance costs, supporting warming centers' operations, purchasing emergency supplies, aiding cleanup and recovery efforts, providing energy assistance, and repairing or replacing damaged public infrastructure.

“Our Northern Michigan communities are doing everything they can to clear hurricane-type debris,” Fairbairn explained. “But after weeks of recovery, personal and municipal finances are stretched far too thin. This plan would provide a hand-up to those Michiganders who find themselves in desperate situations after this storm."

Any funds from the relief package that remain unspent are intended for use on state-owned land damage or to reimburse third-party recovery service providers.

The bill will now proceed to the Senate for further deliberation.