North Carolina officials charged with leading recovery efforts in western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene — as well as parts of eastern North Carolina still struggling from previous hurricanes — told state lawmakers this week that they need more money.

Calling it the "biggest sham ever" on North Carolina taxpayers, Republican state Rep. Brendan Jones said pace of recovery from a hurricane more than six years ago is unacceptable. He let the embattled office created by the former Democratic governor know how his home of Columbus County felt in a Thursday joint legislative

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein began his first term earlier this month with a behemoth task in front of him: Helping western North Carolina recover from close to $60 billion in damage from Hurricane Helene,