RALEIGH -- Governor Pat McCrory will request approximately $200 million in a Special Session of the General Assembly. In a video message, the governor outlined details for his request that will help citizens and communities recover from Hurricane Matthew and wildfires that have impacted the state since October.

"In the last three months, North Carolina has experienced some of the worst natural disasters in state history," said Governor McCrory. "As we work to make sure North Carolina recovers stronger than before, we are committed to addressing the unmet needs of our citizens still suffering, and we must do it now, especially during the Christmas holidays and as cold weather approaches."

The governor's request will address five areas:

*Housing to provide short-term housing for areas not covered by FEMA and provide grants for rental assistance, construction of new rental units and repairs;

*Local Governments to address school calendar flexibility and help fund repairs to infrastructure, trash pick-up, river maintenance and other local needs;

*Economic development and stabilization to help impacted businesses get back on their feet;

*Planning to make sure we rebuild communities in a sustainable way so that future leaders and families won’t be faced with the same destruction when the next disaster strikes;

*And funds to cover the state share of Disaster Relief to directly help our citizens.

Governor McCrory said these areas come directly from input by impacted communities throughout our state. In the last two months, the governor's Hurricane Matthew Recovery Committee held five regional meetings throughout the state to hear feedback from those impacted.

In his video message, the governor said securing this funding at the state and federal level, will be a good first step in long-term recovery efforts which will require additional funding in the future. The governor also hailed the state's large rainy day fund which will allow the state to respond without a tax increase.