— from Governor Jay Inslee’s Office —

Gov. Inslee tours wildfire damage across Washington

Gov. Jay Inslee toured fire damage this week in Pierce and Whitman counties as wildfires around the state set historic records for acres burned in just five days.

More than 629,000 acres have been consumed by wildfire in Washington state since Monday. Washington, along with Oregon and California, are experiencing some of the largest fires in their states’ respective histories in just the last week.

Proclamation will provide cash assistance to wildfire victims

Gov. Jay Inslee issued a proclamation Thursday in response to damage from several wildfires across the state. The proclamation will help families and individuals impacted by wildfires with cash assistance for immediate needs.

The assistance will be provided through DSHS’ Family Emergency Assistance Program, which has been expanded to also serve individuals and waive the one-time distribution limitation. Details on how to obtain assistance will be posted on the Washington Connection website soon. Wildfire victims can also contact their local emergency management officials about applying for the program.

“For families impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and now the devastating wildfires ravaging our state, funding from the Family Emergency Assistance Program can be, quite literally, a lifesaver,” Inslee said. “The state will continue to look for ways to support communities as we work together to recover from multiple economic and health emergencies.”

Gov. Inslee signed the proclamation the same day he surveyed fire damage and met with victims and their families in Malden. Approximately 80 percent of the homes and other structures in Malden were destroyed by fires earlier this week. The governor visited fires in the Bonney Lake area in Pierce County on Wednesday.

Read the full proclamation here.

Additional CARES Act distributions to local governments

Inslee announced nearly $190 million will be awarded from the state’s federal stimulus funding to local governments that did not receive direct distributions under the CARES Act.

The new funding includes nearly $126 million that will be distributed to cities and counties and about $62 million to local health jurisdictions. The governor’s budget office approved the distributions, in consultation with legislative leaders.

“Our local public health jurisdictions, cities and counties have worked tirelessly since the first confirmed case of COVID-19 appeared in Washington to protect their communities,” Inslee said. “This much needed infusion of funds will help sustain their efforts to stop the spread of this virus.”

The new funding for cities and counties comes on top of nearly $300 million that was distributed last spring to cities and counties with populations under 500,000 that were ineligible to receive direct funding from the federal government under the CARES Act.

Specific allocations to cities and counties will be released by the Department of Commerce. Each county will receive a minimum distribution of $300,000 and each city will receive a minimum distribution of $30,000 from the state.

The state Department of Health will distribute funding for local health jurisdictions.

“Local public health’s ability to be nimble, adaptive and at the forefront of our state’s response effort is critical,” said Jaime Bodden, managing director of Washington State Association of Local Public Health Officials. “CARES funding is an important resource that enables local health leaders to remain engaged with the state and responsive to our local needs in combatting COVID-19. We’re grateful that the governor has continued to support and value the challenging work of local health officials.”