Flood-hit NSW communities say they feel forgotten, having to fight for money to trickle in from governments for disaster recovery.
Representatives from the northern NSW town of Lismore fronted a Senate inquiry on Wednesday to update politicians on flood recovery efforts 18 months on from the disaster.
Grief and trauma still hang over the residents in Lismore and mayor Steve Krieg said the lack of information from government agencies on top of stagnant recovery works by red tape exacerbated the issue.
One of the biggest roadblocks was the council's inability to access funding, specifically the main road in Nimbin which costs between $20 million and $30 million to fix.
"We cannot carry that sort of debt. Every week you're pleading and begging for something that was promised," Mr Krieg said.
"I've stood shoulder to shoulder with two prime ministers and two premiers (telling us), 'you won't be left behind. We're committed to the rebuild'.
"It doesn't feel like it. It's a fight. The whole step of the way is a fight."
He said private organisations had stepped in to help with the recovery, repairing homes at a fraction of the cost and time of the public sector.
"It should make every level of government cringe that the private sector is getting on and doing far more."
Federal MP for Page Kevin Hogan described the recovery process as an organisation run by bureaucrats who report to bureaucrats.
"We have people who are still living in caravans, or underneath the house in very makeshift conditions, who are only now finding out what assistance they will be eligible for or not."
Government promises of house buybacks have been described as a lottery-draw based on the location of the house, crunched from data with little community consultation.
Across the six local government areas affected by the floods, 6700 home-owners expressed interest in buybacks but only 1100 were offered. The second round of buybacks has been put on hold until the first tranche is used up.
Mr Kriegr said the heavily traumatised community had been left in limbo.
"You've got a whole region that feels like we're being left behind. We've been forgotten."
State member for Lismore Janelle Saffin told the inquiry she was working with other local MPs to ensure promises were kept after her community was told governments would fund 2000 buybacks, 2000 house raisings and 2000 retrofits.
"The bureaucracies, while they do some good work, they operate what I call 'business as usual'. Humanitarian disasters require something different," Ms Saffin said.
The Lismore MP said governments needed to commit to a second tranche of funding for the Resilient Homes program.
"It's not just buying houses. It's not real estate. This is about people's lives, about our survival and thriving," she said.
State member for Ballina Tamara Smith was concerned her constituents would miss out on funding in the first tranche of house buybacks.
"You've had the trauma of losing your home, a lack of support services and then waiting for the hope of some kind of resilient home package ... people are at the end of their rope," she said.
Communities in south-east Queensland and northern NSW were lashed by intense rain in February 2022 which led to deadly and destructive floods, damaging more than 7000 homes in each region.
