WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is allocating more than $100 billion in emergency aid designed to address extensive damage caused by disasters after this week's scramble to find consensus on a government spending bill.

What You Need To Know

  • A government funding bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on Saturday includes over $100 billion in disaster aid  

  • The money is being provided after back-to-back hurricanes slammed into the Southeast this fall

  • But the funding goes to more than just those two storms and includes recent major disasters such as New Mexico’s wildfires

  • The measure will provide $29 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, less than the $40 billion sought by the Biden administration

The money comes after back-to-back hurricanes — Helene and Milton — slammed into the southeastern United States this fall, leaving havoc in their wake. But the money would go to much more than just those two storms under the bill meant to keep the federal government funded through March 14.

The disaster funding looked set to pass earlier this week until President-elect Donald Trump issued new demands that tanked a compromise and threatened a pre-Christmas federal shutdown. A slimmed-down version cleared Congress early Saturday when Republicans abandoned Trump's core request, and President Joe Biden signed the measure later Saturday.

Here's a look at what's in the bill for disaster relief and where the money will go:

How much money is in the legislation for FEMA?

The Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster relief fund is essentially the country's checkbook for emergencies. Out of it, the government reimburses states and local governments for things such as removing debris after hurricanes or overtime costs for firefighters and police who work during disasters.

It includes money for residents, ranging from the $750 payments that disaster survivors can get to $42,500 that some uninsured homeowners can receive to help rebuild.

Esther Manheimer, mayor of Asheville, the largest city in the North Carolina mountains that was hard hit by Helene, said city officials were pleased to see the additional disaster dollars.

It’s been only four weeks since Asheville residents could drink from and bathe in the water coming out of their faucets. Some businesses in western North Carolina have closed permanently or are struggling to survive, and well over 200 roads in the region remain closed. And state transportation officials on Friday said the reopening of part Interstate 40 that collapsed during Helene would be delayed after more asphalt fell this week.

In a statement this week, Manheimer said that it was still going to be a long recovery and that "already we see the long-term economic, budgetary and employment impact Helene left in her wake.”

The disaster relief fund was nearly running on fumes after Helene and Milton. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said during a Senate hearing in November that the fund was down to $5 billion.

The Biden administration had asked Congress for about $40 billion for the relief fund, but the bill eventually passed provides a lower amount, $29 billion.

It’s important to keep in mind that this isn’t the only money for the disaster relief fund, said Stan Gimont, a senior adviser for community recovery at Hagerty Consulting. He used to run the community development block grant program at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

More money can and likely will be designated to the fund later when Congress does a full-year appropriation, he said.

What else is in the bill?

There's about $21 billion in disaster assistance to help farmers.

North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said this week that he was pleased by the agricultural aid but that the state has a lot of specialty crops such as sweet potatoes and Christmas trees that are generally not covered by federal programs. He said he will have to wait and see what ends up being covered.

“We are still evaluating the bill as there are a lot of nuances in it. The devil is in the details," he said.

About $8 billion will go toward rebuilding damaged roads and highways, while about $12 billion would go toward helping communities recover through HUD grants.

The block grant money is one of the key funds for homeowners who don’t have insurance or enough insurance to recover from disasters.

There’s also $2.2 billion for low-interest loans for businesses, nonprofits and homeowners trying to rebuild after a disaster.

But the money doesn't go just toward residents.

There's money for the military to address damage from hurricanes and typhoons and for a new hurricane hunter — the planes used to research hurricanes — and funds to help NASA rebuild hurricane-damaged facilities.

Is the money just for recovery from hurricanes Helene and Milton?

No. The money goes to cover more than those two disasters.

Some of the money is earmarked for projects such as $1.5 billion for assistance after the largest wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history — the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon fire — and the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.

But a lot of the money also goes more generally toward major disasters that happened in recent years.

The types of disasters covered in the legislation include droughts, wildfires, hurricanes, floods, derechos and smoke exposure.

Gimont points out that disaster recovery can take a long time, so the country is paying for disasters that happened previously while it prepares for events that might happen in the future.

Take the massive Maui fire, for instance. It decimated the Hawaiian town of Lahaina last year, but Gimont said the cleanup extended into late summer 2024.