"It should never have taken this long, but better late than never," is the verdict from Member for Cabonne Andrew Gee at the announcement of a central west flood recovery and resilience package a year on from the devastating floods of 2022.
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Mr Gee described the announcement as a win for people power and communities, but said decisions now need to be made quickly to get funding to residents who need it.
$40 million of the joint funding has been allocated for housing with community consultation to determine how it is to be spent.
"The community feedback has been clear that residents need help with the cost of rebuilding, particularly in the face of widespread insurance knockbacks," Mr Gee said.
"I would also expect to see it go towards home buy-backs, house raising and flood protection for homes."
"The year-long delay in announcing this support and the high number of insurance claim rejections mean many residents have already gone into debt to help pay for rebuilding work," he said.
"I was in Eugowra this week and many people were so disillusioned with governments that they didn't believe any more funding would actually reach them. They have waited long enough for help and there can be no excuses for any more delays."
The year-long delay in announcing support and the high number of insurance claim rejections means many residents have gone into debt to pay for rebuilding, Mr Gee said.
"For local communities to wait a year for this funding while other disaster-hit parts of the state got immediate help has been both scandalous and shameful, but at least it has finally arrived," Mr Gee said in a statement.
Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of the shocking flood event that claimed the lives of Di Smith and Les Vugic in Eugowra, destroying homes and businesses.
"Next week's anniversary will be a time of sad and solemn reflection," Mr Gee said.
"With that tragic milestone in sight, I hope that this funding will help give the recovery and reconstruction effort continuing momentum because there's still a long way to go."
