White House asks Congress for $60.4B in Sandy aid

The Obama administration asked Congress on Friday to approve $60.4 billion for Hurricane Sandy recovery in the northeast, mostly New York and New Jersey.

"This includes efforts to repair damage to homes and public infrastructure and to help affected communities prepare for future storms," said a letter to congressional leaders from Jeffrey Zients with the White House Office of Management and Budget.

If approved by Congress, the money would "enable our states to recover, repair, and rebuild better and stronger than before," said a joint statement from Govs. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., and Chris Christie, R-N.J.

The proposed budget supplemental is less than the $82 billion sought by the states of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut for both clean-up and infrastructure repair remaining from the October super storm.

"While more may be needed in the long term, this robust package is a major first step that we will work to pass as quickly as possible," said a statement from a bipartisan pair of House members from New York, Democrat Nita Lowey and Republican Peter King.

State and local lawmakers are concerned the financial request may be slowed in Congress because of ongoing battles over the federal debt and the pending "fiscal cliff."

Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky., chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, said it's important that Congress "fulfills its responsibility to those individuals, families, businesses and communities recovering from Hurricane Sandy."

He added: "It is also our responsibility during these tight-budget times to make sure that the victims of this storm are getting the most of every single recovery dollar, and to ensure that disaster funds are timed and targeted in the most efficient and appropriate manner."

In recent days, both Cuomo and Christie visited the White House to make their pitches for more aid.

In their joint statement, the two governors said "we will continue to work with the Administration and Congress as our needs arise."

They added: "We thank President Obama for his steadfast commitment of support and look forward to continuing our partnership in the recovery effort."

In its request letter, the White House said: "All told, although estimates of the total damage of Hurricane Sandy remain in flux, current projections are that Sandy is on track to be the second or third most costly natural disaster in U.S. history, behind Hurricane Katrina (2005) and close to Hurricane Andrew (1992)."