This story was produced as part of the Colorado Capitol News Alliance. It first appeared at cpr.org.
Gov. Jared Polis’s administration submitted an appeal to the federal emergency management agency (FEMA) to get disaster relief funds for the historic Elk and Lee fires and the record flooding in southwestern Colorado.
“We are submitting these appeals to help ensure that the Colorado communities impacted can get the support they deserve to recover more quickly,” said Polis.
The request for a major disaster declaration, which would unlock FEMA funds and assistance, was denied in December.
State and local governments on the Western Slope reported more than $41 million in damages from the disasters.
The decision came down amid White House criticism of Colorado, some of it over the imprisonment of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters. She was convicted of state charges for allowing unauthorized people to access voting machines. But officials from the White House said the decision to deny the state aid was not politically motivated.
