The four hurricanes that hit Florida in 2004 damaged more than 700,000 homes. As part of Florida’s response, Governor Jeb Bush and Lieutenant Governor Toni Jennings have recommended that the Florida Legislature appropriate one-time hurricane housing recovery funds. The amount approved by the legislature is $250 million.
In order to determine how those funds should be allocated and utilized, Governor Bush created the Hurricane Housing Work Group and named Lt. Governor Jennings as its chair. As part of the approved legislation, a locally-administered Hurricane Housing Recovery Program (HHRP) is established that will accommodate the different housing needs of different communities. The funding amount for this program is $208,000,000 to be allocated amongst 28 qualified counties.