March 2023 FEMA Releases Updated Guide to Help Communities with Resilience Grants Process

FEMA ADVISORY – March 23, 2023

FEMA Releases Updated Guide to Help Communities with Resilience Grants Process

FEMA released updated and consolidated guidance to help grant applicants successfully navigate its mitigation grant programs to enhance climate resiliency.

Following a multi-year effort and robust community engagement, FEMA updated the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide to reduce complexities and increase stakeholder accessibility to resilience grant programs.

This is the first update to the guide since 2015, and it now incorporates 

• climate change and future conditions, 
• equity, 
• building codes, 
• capability and capacity building, 
• nature-based solutions and 
• community lifelines 

as key principles for its grant programs. It also covers a new program created since the last version, Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC).

State, local, tribal and territorial governments can use the guide to help them through the Hazard Mitigation Assistance grant lifecycle process. FEMA’s mitigation grant programs provide funding for actions that address risks to and reduce disaster suffering from events like wildfires, drought, extreme heat, hurricanes, earthquakes and flooding.

FEMA remains focused on further simplifying its programs and processes to help the whole community become more climate resilient Aligning with FEMA’s “people first” initiative, the updated guide reduces program complexities to help catalyze community partnerships and promote equitable investments to reduce risk.

In addition to BRIC, other programs included in the HMA Guide are the Flood Mitigation Assistance program, the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program Post Fire. Several of these programs have seen historic levels of funding in 2021 and 2022.

FEMA will also be offering several webinars and developed materials that offer more information about the updated guide. Anyone interested in attending may register here.

                                                   HMA Guide Update 101: March 23, 2023

On Demand Video to be placed on FEMA’s YouTube channel that provides an overview of the HMA Guide Update

• HMA Guide Update Overview: March 30, 2023, 11 a.m.– noon ET'
• Webinar to external stakeholders on an overview of the HMA Guide update with open Q&A

• HMA Guide Update Overview: April 13, 2023 (repeat), 3–4 p.m. ET
• Webinar to external stakeholders on an overview of the HMA Guide update with open Q&A

For more information about the guide update visit FEMA.gov.