On May 26, 2024, a situation that had been plaguing Highland Falls officials for months came to a head when the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) informed them that “all obligations have been put on a temporary hold”. The same held true for New York State’s Department of Homeland Security & Emergency Services (DHSES).

Village officials were told that work could continue on projects that had been approved and bid out, but payment of any obligations are on hold. That work, for instance at the Highland Falls Little League Field, has continued.
But why were the rest of the July 9, 2023 storm related project stopped?
According to Mayor Joe D’Onofrio there have been “unfounded allegations of fraud, waste and abuse” from a repeat caller to the two agencies.

“The allegations went to the state comptroller, and nothing was found as stated by a state comptroller’s representative on May 6, 2024,” D’Onofrio said. “But whoever is calling continues to pressure the state and FEMA too look again, so they issued this notice to us and here we are.”

Neither the mayor, nor Deputy Mayor Jim DiSalvo, nor Village Engineer Todd W. Atkinson, P.E. are worried. Holding a printout of an eight-phase process that it takes a community to get to the point of reimbursement, he noted that projects would never have been approved by either agency if the village hadn’t successfully moved through every step including approvals from both the DHSES and FEMA during all steps in the process.

Atkinson agrees, saying he stands by the work that has been done, and adding that the village, the state DHSES and FEMA all signed off on every project inspection as it happened.

On July 19, D’Onofrio and DiSalvo called the state to ask where the process of ‘investigating’ stands.

“The state told us to call FEMA,” DiSalvo said. “FEMA referred us back to the state.” He said that whomever is calling the two agencies has not given any specific concern, just generalities.”

While D’Onofrio is expected to give a statement on the investigation at the Monday, Aug. 5 Village Board meeting, Atkinson points out that the weekly meetings the village has with NYS DHSES and FEMA stopped after the May 26 FEMA statement are set to resume in early August, which may indicate the investigation is about to be concluded. The village has also retained access to the FEMA portal, where all documentation about the projects is stored.

The mayor said he’s heard local residents, via social media, say that the village submitted projects that were needed to be done before the July 9 flood happened. Atkinson says, again, that every single project was reviewed and signed off by the state DHSES and FEMA on site representatives before the Damage, Description and Dimensions (DDD) documentation was approved. “All three entities agreed that in some places there was previous wear and tear or aesthetic imperfections, but those areas were then impacted seriously by the storm causing structural damage and in some cases complete destruction,” he said. “For each project site we discussed the pre-storm conditions during the site inspections with NYS DHSES representatives and FEMA inspectors.”

When the flood happened on July 9, “FEMA came quickly, and we remain very appreciative of them,” the mayor said. “My only upset with them is that, in the end, they didn’t take care of the residents’ properties who suffered damage too.”

Immediately after the flood, NYS DHSES was on the ground at 7 a.m. on July 10, and FEMA had a team here on July 11, Atkinson added. “Right from day one they were here and engaged,” he said. The mayor said that while the whole region waited for a federal disaster declaration, he declared a local emergency which allows work to be done immediately, to get roads open, etc.

In the weeks following the flood it was estimated that it would take about $36 million to make the needed repairs. At this point, Atkinson said, it will end up costing approximately $24 million as work has come in lower than the initial estimates.

While that’s good, D’Onofrio worries that if this investigation goes much longer it’s going to end up costing local taxpayers “millions”. He said that while FEMA provides for a 75% reimbursement of the repairs, the state’s addition of 12.5% is what’s at jeopardy. “That money is going to run out with the state budget,” he said. “And then we’re all going to have to pay for it.”

As an example of how that reimbursement works, Atkinson says the repairs – temporary and then permanent – to Old State Rd. water main project cost about $506,000. The reimbursement of that project was about $441,000. The village has already received those funds, as well as reimbursement funds for Webb Lane, Rose Drive and Drew Ave. work, the Eagle Valley Rd. bridge and the water storage tank foundation.

D’Onofrio, noting that he is tired of roadblocks being put up for “political reasons”, said he is “very comfortable” with the way all of the work was handled.

Atkinson notes “I do not believe that anything that was done was done wrong as NYS DHSES and FEMA representatives have been on the ground with the village’s staff from July 10 providing assistance and direction,” he said. “If the village has completed the repairs or reimbursement requests inappropriately, NYS DHSES or FEMA should provide us with guidance, and it will be fixed.”