FEMA will distribute nearly $180 million in grant funding to help states and territories take steps to improve their resiliency.
The funding is designed to empower state and local officials to manage their own disaster preparedness, which treats resilience as an investment opportunity, the Trump administration announced on Sept. 18.
“Since President Trump was sworn into office, he has been clear that emergency preparedness and disaster response are most effectively managed by state and local governments rather than federal bureaucrats,” FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton said. “The funding announced today will enable states, territories, Tribal Nations and local governments to proactively mitigate the impact of future disasters like earthquakes, floods and wildfires.”
The funding is provided through three separate programs.
The first program, FEMA’s Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Program, will award more than $160 million to 115 projects in 39 states and one Tribal Nation. Most of those projects focus on improving infrastructure to reduce flood risk, while many others addressed hazards like earthquakes and wildfires.
The second program, FEMA’s Community Assistance Program – State Support Services Element, will provide $15 million in federal funding to reduce the risk of floods by improving floodplain management practices. Those grant winners will be taking proactive steps to manage flood risk.
And the last program, FEMA’s National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, will award more than $2.3 million to 22 states and territories for potential earthquakes. An additional $1.5 million will be awarded by FEMA to help nonprofit organizations and higher education institutions develop and implements regional and/or national earthquake risk mitigation efforts.
“By putting these leaders in charge of their own disaster resilience, we empower them to use their local knowledge to make strategic decisions on what projects will have the most impact for their community,” Hamilton said.