How much money has federal government paid to cover hurricane damage?

HOUSTON – KPRC2 takes a look at how much damage was caused by recent hurricanes and how much money the federal government paid out.  

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina left behind a whopping $161 billion in economic damage, making it the costliest storm to hit the United States. The federal government paid out more than $114 billion in recovery.

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In 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused more than $70 billion in devastation. The feds paid out $56 billion in relief funds.

Of the most recent storms to impact Houston, Hurricane Ike caused nearly $35 billion when it struck the upper Texas Coast in 2008. Washington D.C. paid out nearly $13 billion in aid.

The price tag was nearly $24 billion after Hurricane Rita hit in 2005. Uncle Sam allocated $9 billion following that storm.

In a report released this month, the National Hurricane Center said the devastation from Hurricane Harvey stands at $125 billion, second only to Katrina.

Texas has already received two waves of payments from the federal government for Harvey relief, totalling $51 billion.

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz is hopeful more money will be on the way.

"We need to make sure Texas gets our fair share given the magnitude of the damage here in Texas.  We need to make sure those resources are directed to where there was real and serious hurricane damage," Cruz said.