Senate backs plan for $50M revolving loan fund to speed local disaster recovery after damaging ice storm

JACKSON — In the wake of a generational ice storm that left parts of northern Mississippi without power for days, the Senate voted to advance a measure to create a revolving loan program to give counties and municipalities rapid liquidity while they await federal reimbursements.

Senator Delano told the chamber the proposal is a temporary mechanism — "a revolving loan fund" — designed to move money quickly to eligible counties so they can continue response and recovery work while FEMA processes project worksheets. "We are wanting to make sure that the program the loan program is conforming with how documents will be provided to the counties and to MEMA," Delano said.

The conceptual design floated on the floor was for roughly $50 million in initial funding, disbursed to counties that in turn could make subordinate loans to municipalities. Loans would generally be repaid from the first dollars that local jurisdictions receive from FEMA; the sponsor said loans would be structured below market to cover administrative costs and include a five‑year term with a two‑year period for cure or legislative remediation if FEMA later disallows expenses.

Delano said DFA would oversee the program (not MEMA) to avoid duplication of benefits and to provide an arm’s‑length lending mechanism. "It would be repaid upon the first dollars of FEMA money that is reimbursed back to the municipalities," he said, later adding the program would be "a revolving loan fund because even while those loans are going to be pushed out and pushed down to the locals, once they're repaid, they can go they can apply for them again and go right back out."

Senators asked about interest rates, the possibility of loan forgiveness in cases where FEMA ultimately disallows claims, and what assurances counties would need to pledge. The sponsor said loans would be priced below market to cover state administrative costs and would require some "skin in the game" from counties and municipalities; if FEMA disallowed a project, the county would typically have two years to make the jurisdiction whole, and the Legislature could revisit any unresolved obligations.

Senators from the affected region framed the bill as an urgent response to an event that produced multi‑day outages and strained local cash flow for residents and local governments. The body adopted the committee substitute and advanced the bill by morning roll call; details including the fund size, underwriting standards and appropriation amount will be decided in follow‑up work with DFA and the House.