U.S. relief package

» Senate passes measure unlocking $4.4 billion in aid.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed a disaster relief package that would give the federal government’s budget office 90 days to release nearly $4.4 billion in Hurricane Harvey funds to Texas to gird against future storms.

The provision added to a $19.1 billion appropriation by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, seeks to free up Housing and Urban Development Department funds stalled in government rule-making for more than a year.

“Hurricane season is less than a week away, and Texans still have not received the resources Congress and HUD approved after Harvey,” Cornyn said in a statement.

HUD allocated $4.38 billion to Texas after legislation passed more than a year ago under a new program to protect against future storms. The money would be spent on improvements in low-income and moderate-income neighborhoods. States must spend the majority of the money in areas identified by HUD as most affected.

The program requires a set of regulations that must be approved by the White House Office of Management and Budget. HUD Secretary Ben Carson said this year that he expected the review to be completed by May 1, but a HUD spokesman said Thursday that it remains under study.

Beyond Texas, the 90day “shot clock” Cornyn engineered seeks the release of billions of dollars to several more states and Puerto Rico.

The $19.1 billion spending bill passed 85-8. It aids victims of recent disasters, including California wildfires and historic Midwest flooding. It stalled for months amid squabbling over requests by the White House for additional funds for the U.S.-Mexico border and President Donald Trump’s complaints about additional help for Puerto Rico.

A deal cut shortly before the vote left out money for the border, Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., told reporters. The House is expected to agree with Senate changes, and Trump has told GOP senators that he will sign the bill.