The rationale was that ECU would eventually be reimbursed by FEMA dollars, he said. And for awhile, in increments, the reimbursement money came, according to Rebecca Bizzell, director of resource management for facilities services at the university. The university submitted expenses for repairing the steam lines as the project progressed, Bizzell said. Each submission resulted in a FEMA check which originated with the federal agency but was distributed to ECU by the North Carolina Division of Emergency Management. The state budget officer has a problem with Brown's word choice.
Confiscation has a very negative connotation.
Times are tough, McCoy said, and ECU is going to have to do its part to help out. They have a steam plant that was damaged by Floyd, and that's regrettable. We're sorry about that. But the steam plant is functioning now. Meanwhile, the state is in a financial fix that requires the governor to take extraordinary measures, McCoy said.