RALEIGH, N.C. — The Federal Emergency Management Agency denied the state's request for reimbursement on a Helene recovery program, according to a statement from Gov. Josh Stein.

The program would fully reimburse the state for costs associated with removing debris that the storm left behind.

"FEMA’s denial of our appeal will cost North Carolina taxpayers potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to clean up out west," Stein said in the statement. "The money we have to pay toward debris removal will mean less money towards supporting our small businesses, rebuilding downtown infrastructure, repairing our water and sewer systems, and other critical needs."

In the past eight months the governor said more than 12 million cubic yards of debris were removed from roads and waterways.

Stein is now requesting almost $20 billion in federal disaster relief after Helene.

“Despite this news, we are going to stay the course," Stein said. "We will keep pushing the federal and state governments to do right by western North Carolina. We will keep working with urgency, focus, and transparency to get any appropriated money on the ground as quickly as we can to speed the recovery. We will not forget the people of western North Carolina.”