Written from press releases

INDIANAPOLIS — August 17, 2026

Indiana’s congressional delegation is urging President Donald Trump to approve a major disaster declaration for damage from a series of June storms, as state Senate Democrats separately called Monday for Gov. Mike Braun to commit additional state resources to communities recovering from this month’s severe flooding.

U.S. Sen. Todd Young and the rest of Indiana’s congressional delegation sent a letter to Trump on Monday supporting Braun’s Aug. 6 request for a major disaster declaration covering severe weather from June 6 through June 26.

The delegation said the June storms included at least 58 tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, straight-line winds, a derecho and flash flooding, making the period the largest one-month tornado outbreak in Indiana history.

According to the letter, two people died and 12 were injured during the June storms. More than 185,000 residents lost power, at least 210 people were displaced and 1,213 homes were destroyed, damaged or otherwise affected.

Thirty-two counties issued local disaster emergency declarations, according to the delegation.

The lawmakers said Indiana communities were still recovering from the June storms when another round of severe weather struck Aug. 11 and 12, bringing widespread flooding, tornadoes and additional damage.

Trump approved an emergency declaration for Indiana on Aug. 15 in response to the August storms, making federal assistance available to supplement state and local response efforts.

The congressional delegation thanked Trump for approving that declaration but said additional federal assistance is needed for the earlier June disaster.

“The intensity of weather events in that span caused significant devastation across the state, and the August storms have only exacerbated the impact on communities and local governments,” the delegation wrote.

Lawmakers asked Trump to approve Individual Assistance, Public Assistance and statewide hazard mitigation assistance for the June storms. They also urged the administration to approve future major disaster requests stemming from the August storms as damage assessments continue.

The letter was signed by Indiana’s two U.S. senators and all nine members of the state’s U.S. House delegation: Sens. Todd Young and Jim Banks, and Reps. Frank Mrvan, Rudy Yakym, Marlin Stutzman, Jim Baird, Victoria Spartz, Jefferson Shreve, André Carson, Mark Messmer and Erin Houchin.

Meanwhile, Indiana Senate Democrats issued a statement Monday arguing that the state should not wait for federal assistance before expanding its response to the August flooding.

The caucus called on Braun to provide emergency state funding directly to affected communities, deploy additional workers and equipment for debris removal, help local governments hire private contractors, provide assistance to homeowners and businesses, establish temporary housing assistance and accelerate repairs to damaged infrastructure.

“A disaster declaration is a beginning, not a recovery plan,” Senate Democrats said.

The caucus also questioned why the state should leave what it described as nearly $4 billion in state reserves untouched while communities face extensive cleanup and recovery costs.

“Hoosiers should not be left staring at ruined homes and mountains of debris while billions of their tax dollars remain untouched,” the caucus said. “Families need more than sympathy. Communities need more than promises.”

Senate Democrats said local governments need equipment including grapple trucks and dump trucks, as well as fuel and funding to hire contractors for debris removal. They also called for the state to quickly reimburse communities rather than requiring them to carry recovery costs while awaiting federal assistance.

The federal emergency declaration approved Saturday applies to severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding that began Aug. 11. The separate request for a major disaster declaration covering the June storms remained before the Trump administration Monday.