Hurricane Irene Aftermath: Storm Will Cost Federal Taxpayers $1.5 Billion

WASHINGTON -- The White House estimated on Monday that Hurricane Irene will cost federal taxpayers $1.5 billion in disaster relief, further ballooning a government account that was already the focus of fresh partisan friction between President Barack Obama and Congress.

The preliminary estimate, released by White House budget director Jacob Lew, is on top of $5.2 billion needed for other recent disasters, including tornadoes that leveled much of Joplin, Mo. Lew said the $1.5 billion should last through next year.

The Obama administration has said last month's debt ceiling deal with Congress allows the government to pay for disaster spending by borrowing, which increases federal deficits. That is a long-time practice for financing emergencies. The House's No. 2 Republican, Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia, has said disaster spending should be offset by cutting other parts of the budget.

In a blog he posted announcing the initial estimate, Lew said the administration would work with Congress to finance the disaster spending but he showed no sign that the administration would back down.

"We are one country. A disaster in one corner is felt by Americans all across our land. That is why when it comes to taking care of our neighbors in need, we will not let politics get in the way and will do what is right to help them recover and rebuild," Lew wrote.

The cost estimate comes as Congress is returning from its summer recess. A Senate Appropriations Committee subcommittee, headed by Democrats, is scheduled to meet Tuesday to consider a spending bill that includes disaster aid.

Vermont Braces For Flooding: 'I Don't Have Any More To Lose' (VIDEO)

When the rain-swollen White River rose up and overflowed, it laid waste to the 125-year-old Perley dairy farm.

Cows were carried away. Tractors and trucks were inundated with muddy floodwaters. The water took out a road, destroyed the first floor of the farmhouse, lifted a 6-foot long tank where milk is stored, knocked out power and smothered fields in the 10-acre spread.

"I don't know what we're going to do, but we're going to make it," said farm manager Penny Severance, 48, fighting back tears as she showed the damage to a visitor.

But help was already on the way.

On Sunday, more than two dozen volunteers donned gloves and protective masks to get to work ripping out the flood-damaged walls and floors in a bid to save the farmhouse. Farm owner Harland Perley, 81, had been moved to safety before the floods came.

Hurricane Irene 2011: More Than 2 Million People Told To Move To Safer Places

As the storm's outermost bands of wind and rain began to lash the Outer Banks of North Carolina, authorities in points farther north begged people to get out of harm's way. The hurricane was still packing 100 mph winds late Friday, and officials in the Northeast, not used to tropical weather, feared it could wreak devastation.

"Don't wait. Don't delay," said President Barack Obama, who decided to cut short his summer vacation by a day and return to Washington. "I cannot stress this highly enough: If you are in the projected path of this hurricane, you have to take precautions now."

Senior hurricane specialist Richard Pasch of the National Hurricane Center said there were signs that the hurricane may have weakened slightly, but strong winds continued to extend 90 miles from its center.

The moment Saturday when the eye of the hurricane crosses land "is not as important as just being in that big swath," Pasch said. "And unfortunately, it's a big target."

Hurricane warnings were issued from North Carolina to New York, and watches were posted farther north, on the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard off Massachusetts. Evacuation orders covered at least 2.3 million people, including 1 million in New Jersey, 315,000 in Maryland, 300,000 in North Carolina, 200,000 in Virginia and 100,000 in Delaware.

"This is probably the largest number of people that have been threatened by a single hurricane in the United States," said Jay Baker, a geography professor at Florida State University.