Nov. 17, 2015 – Recently, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Federal Insurance Mitigation Administration (FIMA) published several new documents in the FEMA Resource & Document Library to support the Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) programs.
Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program Digest 2015
The HMA Program Digest is an easy-to-read, easy-to use, summary of the basic HMA program elements. The Digest was updated to include program changes resulting from the publication of the 2015 Hazard Mitigation Assistance Guidance.
Climate Resilient Mitigation Activities
The President’s 2015 Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative (OGSI); Executive Order 13653 Preparing the United States for the Impacts of Climate Change; the President’s 2013 Climate Action Plan; FEMA’s Climate Change Adaptation Policy; and the 2014‐2018 FEMA Strategic Plan, all identify the risks and impacts associated with climate change on community resilience to natural hazards, and direct Federal agencies to support climate resilient infrastructure.
FEMA is helping communities to incorporate methods to mitigate the impacts of climate change into HMA funded risk reduction activities by providing guidance on Climate Resilient Mitigation Activities. FEMA has developed initial guidance on Climate Resilient Mitigation Activities including green infrastructure methods, expanded ecosystem service benefits, and three flood reduction and drought mitigation activities: Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR), Floodplain and Stream Restoration (FSR), and Flood Diversion and Storage (FDS).
FEMA encourages communities to use this information in developing eligible HMA project applications that leverage risk reduction actions and increase resilience to the impacts of climate change.
Cost Estimating Principles for HMA Applications Presentation Slides
FEMA is sharing slides from a previous webinar on cost estimating for project applications. The presentation provides a general overview of the principles of reviewing cost estimates for HMA projects (throughout the grant lifecycle). The presentation provides a process for determining “reasonable costs” as part of grant application review, and discusses the bidding process and contract types. States and local communities are encouraged to use these training materials to help prepare HMA project applications.