Isn't a Flood a “Rainy Day?” Does the Political Nature of Disasters Impact the Use of States’ Rainy Day Funds?

Abstract

Objectives.To determine if state governments utilize rainy day funds (RDFs) for political purposes in the aftermath of disasters rather than their intended purpose of combating state cyclical economic downturns. Methods. This research draws from multiple state-level data sources to construct a panel data set from 1992 to 2010. Results. Disaster damage, relief funds, and politics all influence the usage of states' RDFs. We also find that the RDF balance is lower when disaster damages increase, when it is an election year, and the same party holds party control of the governor and legislature. Conclusion. The findings of this empirical research are consistent with the literature about the importance state-level politics plays in the use of state stabilization funds intended for cyclical economic downturns as opposed to providing more politically expedient disaster relief.

Public Attention to a Local Disaster Versus Competing Focusing Events: Google Trends Analysis Following the 2016 Louisiana Flood

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The Intersectionality of Disasters’ Effects on Trust in Public Officials

“…We know political trust is updated differently across varying levels of government (Rahn and Rudolph, ). Previous work tells us that during emergencies, people tend to trust local officials and emergency responders more than federal officials (Wray et al., ), perhaps due to their perceived lack of partisanship (Rothstein and Teorell, ) or inability to drain funding coffers (Pope and Leland, ). As specific trust is updated by the disaster experience, greater levels of interaction with local officials amplify trust (Reinhardt, ).…”

Who'll Stop the Rain? Repeated Disasters and Attitudes Toward Government

“…In the United States, the federal, state, and local governments are responsible for responding to the aftermath of a natural disaster and the federal government typically coordinates that response. The majority of funding and organizational expertise come from FEMA, but states also have agencies responsible for natural disaster preparation and response, and may use “rainy day funds” to assist in recovery when available (Pope and Leland, ). Citizens may have trouble knowing where in the federalized system to attribute responsibility for those effects unless they can rely on previous experiences and political knowledge to determine where to seek help (Birkland and Waterman, ).…”