Jersey Shore seeks aid for $27 million in storm damage after Trump denied snow relief

New Jersey has asked President Trump to declare a major disaster in three Jersey Shore counties battered by September's nor'easter. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, and state officials validated $26,976,037 in damage in Atlantic, Cape May and Monmouth counties ⁴. Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, sent the request on Oct. 26 ⁴.

On Oct. 27, Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim, both Democrats, wrote to Trump in support ³. Rep. Frank Pallone, also a Democrat, led a separate letter from 10 House members asking Trump to approve the request quickly ¹⁴. We found no announcement of a decision as of Friday.

That matters because of what happened last time. Less than two months ago, the administration turned down New Jersey's $84.4 million appeal for a February blizzard that Pallone said killed 12 people ⁸. Those costs were about 4.7 times the state's roughly $18 million threshold, E&E News reported ⁷.

What the storm did

The nor'easter hit from Sept. 23 to Sept. 29 ⁴. The senators' letter describes 45 vehicle-related water rescues in Atlantic City alone, more than 30,000 power outages, and floodwater that reached chest level in some communities ³.

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A tide gauge in Atlantic City run by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recorded the fifth-highest event in 115 years of records for erosion potential, according to the letter ³. At several sites, peak water levels came within one foot of those from Superstorm Sandy ³. Atlantic City Beach Patrol officials called it the city's worst beach erosion since Sandy, the senators wrote ³.

In Brigantine, boards were torn from the oceanfront promenade and most of the beach washed away ¹³. Several shore towns, including Ocean City, had finished pumping new sand onto their beaches only weeks earlier ¹³. Pallone's letter says eight federal coastal storm protection projects were significantly damaged ⁴.

Cape May County had the largest validated damage at $13,779,935, followed by Monmouth County at $8,469,403 and Atlantic County at $4,726,699 ². FEMA's per capita damage threshold for this kind of aid is $4.86 per person, and the three counties ranged from $13.16 to $144.65 per resident, NJ.com reported, citing the senators' letter ¹. Cape May County Commissioner Andrew Bulakowski put the stakes this way: "Our beaches are not just a destination; they are our frontline protection" ¹⁵.

What the money would do

A declaration would let the state and the three counties seek FEMA Public Assistance grants, which reimburse storm-related costs ². The state is also asking for money from the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which pays for projects that protect communities from future storms ².

FEMA normally reimburses 75% of eligible costs ⁷. If that share applied here, the federal payment would be about $20 million, with the rest left to the state and local governments.

New Jersey sends billions more in federal tax dollars to Washington than we receive in return

Sherrill also called on the administration to "do its part" so coastal communities can rebuild ¹⁴. Separately, the state asked last week for help under Public Law 84-99 to repair damaged U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects ². The governor's office says the FEMA grants would cover damaged coastal areas outside the Corps' authority ².

That Corps help may be slow. Its Philadelphia office told NJ.com it could spend months studying the storm's impacts before repairs go forward, and that any work depends on available federal funding ¹.

A Republican signature, this time

Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a South Jersey Republican whose home county is Cape May, toured the damage on Oct. 1 ⁵⁶. He is on Tuesday's ballot, facing a challenge from Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock ⁶.

This is a disaster; this is an emergency; we're going to push like hell to get that help and we're in the process right now.

Van Drew is listed as a signer of Pallone's letter this time ⁴. That is a change from July, when he did not join the letter asking Trump to reverse the February blizzard denial, even though he had signed an April letter backing the original request ⁶. That request covered every county in his district, and he did not respond to The Philadelphia Inquirer's request for comment ⁶.

The record on these requests

The February blizzard denial was part of a wider pattern. An Associated Press analysis in July found that Trump's second-term denial rate is the highest of any president since 1989 ¹⁰. He approved more than three-fourths of requests from states that backed him in 2024, and less than half from states that did not ¹⁰.

E&E News reported that federal officials had validated damage estimates in New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island before Trump rejected those states' blizzard requests ⁷. A spokesperson for Sherrill warned at the time that without that aid, local governments would be stuck with the costs of an unprecedented snowstorm that didn't care about political boundaries ⁷.

Without good explanation or justification, Trump’s government is again politicizing disaster relief

Pallone went further after the appeal failed, saying, "Trump is treating federal disaster aid like his personal political slush fund, and Republicans in Congress are too afraid to lift a finger to stop him" ⁸.

The White House rejects that charge. Asked this month about Trump's campaign remarks on disaster aid, spokesperson Abigail Jackson told the AP, "There is no politicization to the president's decisions on disaster relief" ¹¹. On the New Jersey request, she defended the thoroughness of the administration's review ¹.

President Trump provides a more thorough review of disaster declaration requests than any Administration has before him

NJ.com also reported the White House position that most relief should come from local governments ¹. Trump's own words have raised questions, though. At a North Carolina rally for Republican Senate candidate Michael Whatley, he said, "Now if Michael loses, I'm not sending it," before adding, "No, I'm only kidding, you're getting it" ¹¹.

The wait could run past the election

The AP found that Trump's second-term approvals have come about a month and a half after a governor's request, on average ¹⁰. That compares with about three weeks in his first term and under two weeks for earlier presidents ¹⁰. At that average pace, an answer for New Jersey would come around mid-December, well after Tuesday's vote.

The bar may also get higher. A council Trump appointed has recommended shifting more costs to states ¹⁰. CBS News reported on an analysis by the advocacy group Sabotaging Our Safety, which found the council's plan to raise the statewide damage yardstick from $1.94 to $2.99 per person would have blocked 29% of major disaster declarations from 2012 to 2025 ¹².

The pattern to watch is simple. New Jersey says it has met the published numbers, as it said in the winter. What comes next will show whether those numbers still decide who gets help.

The Record

1. Jul 31, 2026Booker and Kim lead a letter asking Trump to reverse his rejection of New Jersey's $84 million blizzard request; Van Drew does not join ⁶.
2. Sep 2, 2026Pallone condemns Trump's denial of Sherrill's appeal for $84.4 million in aid for the February blizzard ⁸.
3. Sep 23, 2026A nor'easter begins hitting New Jersey and lasts through Sept. 29 ⁴.
4. Oct 26, 2026Sherrill asks Trump for a major disaster declaration covering Monmouth, Atlantic and Cape May counties ⁴.
5. Oct 27, 2026Booker and Kim write to Trump in support, and Pallone's office announces a letter signed by 10 House members, including Van Drew ³⁴.

Sources

1. NJ.com via Yahoo News, “Jersey Shore needs millions in disaster aid. N.J. senators are pressing Trump to approve it.” (2026-10-29). yahoo.com/news/us/articles/jersey-shore-needs-millions-disas
2. Office of Gov. Mikie Sherrill, “Governor Sherrill Requests Major Disaster Declaration and Federal Relief for Monmouth, Atlantic, and Cape May Counties for Nor'easter Recovery” (2026-10-27). nj.gov/governor/news/2026/20261027a.shtml
3. Office of Sen. Andy Kim, “Kim, Booker Urge Trump to Approve New Jersey's Request for a Federal Disaster Declaration” (2026-10-28). kim.senate.gov/press_release/kim-booker-urge-trump-to-approv
4. Office of Rep. Frank Pallone, “Pallone Leads NJ Delegation Members in Urging Trump to Approve Federal Disaster Assistance Following Devastating September Nor'easter” (2026-10-27). pallone.house.gov/media/press-releases/pallone-leads-nj-dele
5. Fox 29 Philadelphia, “South Jersey leaders survey coastal storm damage, push for emergency funds” (2026-10-01). fox29.com/news/south-jersey-leaders-survey-coastal-storm-dam
6. The Philadelphia Inquirer, “Report on New Jersey's FEMA appeal letter and Rep. Van Drew” (2026-07-31). inquirer.com/politics/nation/fema-trump-new-jersey-democrats
7. E&E News by Politico, “FEMA said yes to Democratic disaster requests. Trump killed them anyway.” (2026-07-29). eenews.net/articles/fema-said-yes-to-democratic-disaster-req
8. Office of Rep. Frank Pallone, “Pallone: Trump stiffs New Jersey again on disaster aid” (2026-09-02). pallone.house.gov/media/press-releases/pallone-trump-stiffs-
9. Insider NJ, “Kim, Booker Statement on FEMA Denial of New Jersey's Winter Storm Major Disaster Declaration Appeal” (2026-09-03). insidernj.com/press-releases/kim-booker-statement-on-fema-de
10. AP via WTOP, “Trump is taking longer to approve disaster aid and denying Democratic states more frequently” (2026-07-16). wtop.com/national/2026/07/trump-is-taking-longer-to-approve-
11. AP via News4Jax, “Disaster relief funding is creeping into Trump's midterm rhetoric. Critics say it has no place there” (2026-10-07). news4jax.com/news/politics/2026/10/07/disaster-relief-fundin
12. CBS News, “New analysis warns FEMA overhaul would make disaster aid harder to access, shifting costs to survivors” (2026-06-09). cbsnews.com/news/new-analysis-fema-overhaul-trump-disaster-a
13. Government Technology, “N.J. ends state of emergency, assesses nor'easter damage” (2026-10-01). govtech.com/em/disaster/n-j-ends-state-of-emergency-assesses
14. ROI-NJ, “Sherrill seeks major disaster declaration and federal relief for counties impacted by September nor'easter” (2026-10-27). roi-nj.com/2026/10/27/politics/sherrill-seeks-major-disaster
15. Dredge Wire, “Cape May County, NJ pushes for federal assistance after storm damage” (2026-10-16). dredgewire.com/cape-may-county-nj-pushes-for-federal-assista

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