NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The federal government has agreed to give Louisiana 30 years to repay $1.8 billion for levee improvements in the New Orleans area.Congress had initially said the money would need to be repaid by 2011. But state officials said they needed 30 to avoid hurting efforts to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina hit in August 2005.
The announcement came late Thursday after a meeting between Governor Bobby Jindal and retired Major General Douglas O'Dell, President Bush's hurricane recovery chief.
Recent federal legislation required that Louisiana pay $1.8 billion to trigger $5.8 billion in federal spending for levees in the New Orleans region.
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