Gov. Chris Christie announced he is making available $7.5 million in local aid infrastructure funding to help cover up to $30 million in repairs to local roads and bridges damaged by Hurricane Irene.

The $7.5 million will be used to cover county and municipal matches of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants that require a 25 percent local contribution.

“Hurricane Irene demonstrated how important New Jersey’s transportation infrastructure network is to our overall mobility and our sustained economic activity,” said Christie during his remarks Sept. 8 to the fall gathering of the New Jersey Conference of Mayors held at Drumthwacket. “To assist municipalities and counties recover from the impact of Irene, I am announcing today that Local Aid Infrastructure Fund (LAIF) grant money will be made available for immediate hurricane-related transportation infrastructure repair assistance. This aid package has been assembled to spur the recovery process in a way that reduces the strain on local municipal budgets and expedites repairs to critical infrastructure.”

Project funding will be administered in the same manner as Local Aid Infrastructure (LAIF) grants with municipalities and counties requesting grants for specific projects through the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT). Applications for aid will be accepted immediately. Applicants should follow normal procedures and file a NJDOT form SA-96 to request a grant.

The Christie Administration will work in a timely manner to review applications and award grants to help repair and reconstruction work to begin as quickly as possible.

The amount of FEMA grants to New Jersey local and county governments is not known at this time. Should FEMA grants exceed $30 million, the Local Aid funding announced today will be used to cover portions of local matches.

Information on the LAIF process, including the Form SA-96 grant application form, is available online at www.state.nj.us/transportation/business/localaid/descrfunding.shtm.

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