Press Releases

U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24), a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, announced significant federal funding to reimburse local governments in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties for their disaster recovery costs and bolster some ongoing recovery efforts following the intense January 2023 winter storms. 

“After the January 2023 winter storm, communities in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties showed incredible resilience,” said Rep. Carbajal. “I’m proud to announce this critical federal funding that will not only reimburse local governments for their recovery costs, but also strengthen ongoing efforts to rebuild key infrastructure smarter and safer. As a senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I’ll keep fighting to ensure our region gets the support it needs to build resilient infrastructure.”

“By strengthening our natural infrastructure, we’re not just repairing — we’re preparing,” said Santa Barbara County Board Chair Laura Capps. This federal funding will help safeguard our communities against the growing threat of extreme weather in the face of the climate crisis. I am grateful to Congressman Carbajal for being such a champion for Santa Barbara County.”

“SLO County suffered a hard hit in the 2023 storms, and we are incredible grateful for Congressman Carbajal’s focus on delivering the necessary funding for our damaged roads and bridges. These important dollars will make a difference for a safer and resilient community. We say “thank you! Congressman Carbajal!” said Dawn Ortiz-Legg, Chairperson of the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors.

“After the Congressman visited Ventura Harbor in January 2023, he took the initiative to seek the Biden Administration’s inclusion of Ventura County in the major disaster declaration. This provided the Ventura Port District the opportunity to seek reimbursement for over $1.1 million in damages out of the nearly $1.5 million that has been paid by the District. With an operating budget of just $13.5 million, such an expense comes at a significant cost to other public services and amenities. Through the support of Congressman Carbajal, 75% these expenses will be recouped and our agency continues to provide the same level of service with significantly reduced financial impact from the storm,” said Todd Mitchell, Deputy General Manager of Ventura Port District. 

In early January 2023, a historic storm brought torrential rain, mudflows, and flooding to the Central Coast. The funding announced today was awarded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and will go to the following recovery projects:

• $7,970,542.03 in federal reimbursements to Santa Barbara County for debris removal activities throughout the county immediately following the winter storm.
• $7,681,725.00 to San Luis Obispo County for permanent repairs to Chimney Rock Road. During the severe winter storms, flooding, landslides, and mudslides resulted in severe damages, including severe washout, material loss, and erosion of road base, asphalt surface, embankment, and culvert corrugated metal pipes. The announced funding will go toward restoring the road back to its pre-disaster function, utilizing applicable codes and standards. Work to be completed includes the removal and replacement of two culverts, embankment native soil, road surface, base, subbase, and fill.
• $4,450,819.89 in federal reimbursements to San Luis Obispo County for debris removal activities throughout the county immediately following the winter storm.
• $3,010,327.23 to California Department of Transportation for permanent repairs. The heavy rainfall resulted in San Luis Obispo Creek overflowing, which inundated several buildings in the Caltrans District 5 complex. Damages consist of drywall, insulation, studs, finish flooring, molding, fire rated doors, fuel storage tanks, and painted surfaces. Also, contents that include but are not limited to desks, chairs, computers, monitors, routers and IT equipment, printers, cabinets, landscape equipment (blowers, trimmers, lawn mowers), and televisions. The announced funding will be used for repairs to restore the facilities back to pre-disaster design, capacity, and function within the existing footprint.
• $2,461,128.38 to Santa Barbara County for debris removal operations in the Carpinteria Salt Marsh channels. The debris removal took place upstream of Santa Monica Creek, upstream of Franklin Creek, and downstream at the mouth between 2/27/2023 and 1/4/2024.
• $2,318,666.62 in federal reimbursements to Ventura County for debris removal activities throughout the county immediately following the winter storm.
• $1,184,997.77 in federal funding to the Ojai Valley Sanitary District for permanent repairs. During the incident period, severe storms caused catastrophic flooding along the Ojai Valley Trail damaging eighty (80) linear feet of sewer line, armoring, and supporting embankment. In response to the event, Ojai Valley Sanitary District utilized contract services for repairs to restore this facility back to pre-disaster design, function, and capacity within the existing footprint.
• $1,122,592.00 in federal reimbursements to Santa Barbara County for emergency road repairs. During the incident period, the Santa Maria River overflowed and washed away roads, which created an immediate threat to the health and safety of the general public and required emergency response and protective measures. In response, the County provided emergency road repairs, which included crack sealing, blading, dig outs, patching, washout temporary fill, asphalt and base replacement, embankment K-rail for temporary culvert system, striping, and supervision and inspection of the work completed.
• $1,106,364.75 to the Ventura Port District for debris removal operations. During the incident period, severe winter storms, flooding, landslides, and mudslides deposited silt and sand debris in the Inner Harbor Waterway, Ventura, California. In response, the Ventura Port District utilized contract services to conduct debris removal and debris monitoring operations and hydrographic survey. The Ventura Port District removed approximately 48,000 cubic yards of silt and sand from the inner harbor to the outflow location of the harbor via sealed pipe to the final disposition site, and performed hydrographic pre removal and post removal survey work. All work and validated cost in this project fall between 7/1/2023 through 4/4/2024.

Immediately following the winter storms, Carbajal spearheaded efforts to secure the initial federal disaster aid packages.

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