Broadband Grant Programs Public Virtual Listening Sessions for January and February. January 2022

 

Broadband Grant Programs Public Virtual Listening Sessions NTIA will host broadband grant program public virtual listening sessions in connection with the five new broadband grant programs authorized and funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program; the Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program; and the Digital Equity Act Programs, which include the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program, State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, and Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program. These public virtual listening sessions are designed to collect stakeholder input to help inform program development and implementation. NTIA will hold the public virtual listening sessions based on the following schedule: Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Broadband Programs Public Virtual Listening Session #3: Wednesday, January 26, 2022, from 2:30–4:00 p.m. ET; Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Broadband Programs Public Virtual Listening Session #4: Wednesday, February 9, 2022, from 2:30–4:00 p.m. ET; and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Broadband Programs Public Virtual Listening Session #5: Wednesday, February 23, 2022, from 2:30–4:00 p.m. ET. These listening sessions will be hosted via NTIA’s virtual platform and conducted as a live public listening session. NTIA will post the registration information on its BroadbandUSA website . Federal Register Notice: Broadband Grant Programs Public Virtual Listening Sessions

FEMA’s Youth Preparedness Council Recruits Next Generation of Emergency Managers January 2022

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FEMA is accepting applications for the 2022 Youth Preparedness Council. If you know a teen interested in preparedness and community service, encourage them to apply.

The diverse and distinguished council was created in 2012 to bring together youth leaders interested in supporting disaster preparedness and making a difference in their communities. During their one-year term on the virtual council, members meet peers from across the country, build leadership skills and serve their schools and communities. Members also have the unique opportunity to participate in an annual summit, and share their perspectives, feedback and opinions directly with FEMA leaders and staff.

This opportunity is open for students in grades 8 through 11. Members are chosen based on their passion for preparedness and helping others, their involvement in their community and their ability to work in a team and as a leader. All applications are due no later than 11:59 p.m. PT on March 6.

FEMA will host an applicant information session on Feb. 17 for those interested in learning more about the council and the application process.

To learn more about the Youth Preparedness Council, visit Ready.gov/youth-preparedness-council.

Contact Us

If you have any questions, please contact Office of External Affairs:

• Congressional Affairs at (202) 646-4500 or at FEMA-Congressional-Affairs@fema.dhs.gov
• Intergovernmental Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-IGA@fema.dhs.gov
• Tribal Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-Tribal@fema.dhs.gov
• Private Sector Engagement at (202) 646-3444 or at nbeoc@max.gov

Follow Us

Follow FEMA on social media at: FEMA Blog on fema.gov, @FEMA or @FEMAEspanol on Twitter, FEMA or FEMA Espanol on Facebook, @FEMA on Instagram, and via FEMA YouTube channel.

Also, follow Administrator Deanne Criswell on Twitter @FEMA_Deanne.

FEMA Mission

Helping people before, during, and after disasters.

 

 

Cal OES Announces new "Prepare California" Notice of Funding Opportunity, Plus Updated HMGP Timeline January 2022

 

 

Cal OES Announces new "Prepare California" Notice of Funding Opportunity, Plus Updated HMGP Timeline The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) recently announced an update to the timeline for the 2021 funding opportunity for FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). In addition, Cal OES announced a new one-time, state-funded initiative (“Prepare California”) to help socially vulnerable and high hazard risk communities jumpstart their progress toward greater resilience through advanced outreach, technical assistance, and funds to subsidize local mitigation and resilience initiatives. Please review the updated Notice of Funding Opportunity linked below for further details on the revised HMGP timeline and information on two new opportunities for funding under the Prepare California Initiative: ·    The PrepCA Jumpstart program will provide capacity building funding for eligible socially vulnerable and high hazard risk communities. ·    The PrepCA Match program will cover 100% of the local cost share for HMGP for eligible socially vulnerable and high hazard risk communities. This information and additional resources are available on the Cal OES HMGP webpage.

 

Revised 2021 Notice of Funding Opportunity

 

For questions, more information or to discuss your project, reach out to Cal OES staff at hma@caloes.ca.gov.

FEMA 'Mass Exit' of Employees. Is there an 'Exit' at the State, County, City Level? January 2022

State by State is an 'Exit' of HS EM staff occurring?

• Not just due to the current surge, but due to overall overall EEOC and other unharmonious work environment events and complaints filed?

• Is this data readily available from federal, state, county, and city EEOC offices?

BEMA International

https://www.govexec.com/.../fema-experiences-mass.../360974/

Still don't get it. Is your College or University on the List? HS and EM Education & Training January 2022

 

• Is the college or university you’re planning to attend, or are an alum of on the FEMA EMI College List? 
• What number of HBCU’s, LatinX, First\Native American Nation colleges or universities on the list? 
• Are these institutions taking advantage of the benefits for their students and the community members, the whole community members they serve?

 

Climate change and the current pandemic have changed the environment for all communities globally.  Professionals in every endeavor, every critical infrastructure field needs to be involved and understand how to address the system of addressing disasters\crisis\emergency management, the impacts of climate, and the inter-relationship within the community, business, agriculture, energy, transportation, water & food security, telecommunications, and more. 

 

The whole community must be a part of the change process.

 

Check to see if your local college or university are on the FEMA EMI (Emergency Management Institute) college list below.

 

Ask yourself, “Why aren’t they on the list?”

 

If not, “business as usual”.  A never-ending cycle.  We’ll be back where we are now in five, ten, twenty, or even thirty years. 

 

BEMA International

 

 

HIGHER EDUCATION PROGRAM (HiEd)                         NATIONAL TRAINING AND EDUCATION DIVISION            • NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS DIRECTORATE                       The College List, located at https://training.fema.gov/hiedu/collegelist/ , outlines programs at all levels of study in emergency management (EM), homeland security (HS) and related fields

 

 

https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2022/01/fema-experiences-mass-exit-employees-amid-surge-disasters/360974/ FEMA Experiences ‘Mass Exit’ of Employees Amid Surge in Disasters The agency is still dealing with 1,000 disasters as its workload continues to climb. ERIC KATZ  JANUARY 20, 2022 04:07 PM ET

 

 

Black Emergency Managers Association International   Washington, D.C.  20020 bEMA International   Cooperation, Collaboration, Communication, Coordination, Community engagement, and  Partnering (C5&P)   A 501 (c) 3 organization

“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today.  We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now.  In this unfolding conundrum of life and history there is such a thing as being too late.  Procrastination is still the thief of time.  Life often leaves us standing bare, naked and dejected with a lost opportunity.  This may well be mankind’s last chance to choose between chaos or community.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., ‘Where Are We Going From Here:  Chaos or Community’.

BHM (Black History Month). Washington, D.C. Transit Equity Month 2022. Mark you calendar: Friday, February 4, 2022

 

Risk Management January 2022

 

(Photo: IMF)

Essential Reading: Risk Management Check out our eLibrary section on risk management, where you can find all the latest IMF research on issues related to cybersecurity, finance and business, insurance, and risk modeling.

IMF Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST) January 2022

 

Resilience and Sustainability

(Image: Rose Kouwenhoven/IMF)

A New IMF Trust Fund

The IMF's Ceyla Pazarbasioglu and Uma Ramakrishnan laid out in a new blog this week how a proposed IMF Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST) will help low-income and vulnerable middle-income countries build resilience to balance of payment shocks and ensure a sustainable recovery.

The $50-billion trust fund would also be a place where countries could channel their Special Drawing Rights to more vulnerable nations.

--Key design features: About three quarters of the IMF's membership would be eligible for RST financing. This would include all low-income countries, all developing and vulnerable small states, and all middle-income countries with gross national per-capita income of less than roughly $12,000 per year.

The RST aims to address macro-critical longer-term structural challenges that entail significant macroeconomic risks to member countries’ resilience and sustainability, including climate change, pandemic preparedness, and digitalization. Access to RST financing would be determined case by case, based on the strength of reforms and debt sustainability considerations, and is expected to be capped at 150 percent of IMF quota or SDR 1 billion, whichever is smaller. 

--Timeline: Pazarbasioglu and Ramakrishnan said they hope for broad support from IMF membership and international partners. The aim is to secure IMF Executive Board approval before the upcoming Spring Meetings and for the trust to become fully operational before the year’s end.

Medical Reserve Corps. NACCO Publications and courses

 

NACCHO has published a number of new resources for MRC units in recent months. These include: 2020 Network Profile of the MRC 2021 MRC Deployment Readiness Guide Course: Developing Unit Training Plans  Course: Developing Unit Leadership  Course: Volunteer Management The NACCHO team shared details about each of these new resources during the January MRC Well Check Webinar. Watch the Listserv for a link to the recording.

The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits. Milton Friedman. The New York Times Magazine. September 13, 1970

http://websites.umich.edu/~thecore/doc/Friedman.pdf

Still in the Early 1900's of the 20th Century in 2022 of the 21st Century. Voting Rights. January 19, 2022

Missing the facts:

".......49 states in the 2021 legislative session alone, and at least 19 states enacted 34 laws that restrict access to the ballot,...."

That statement notes that 49 of 50 States in the U.S. are advocating for some form of voter restrictions and suppression.

Representative Kweisi Mfume U.S. Representative for the 7th District of Maryland  Washington D.C. | Baltimore Office (202) 225-4741 | (410) 685-9199

For Immediate Release January 19, 2022 Congressman Kweisi Mfume’s Statement on the Senate's Failure to Pass the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act January 19, 2022 | Press Release WASHINGTON – Congressman Kweisi Mfume (MD-07) issued the following statement on the Senate's failure to pass critical voting rights legislation today. “A record number of Americans voted in the 2020 elections because of expanded Election Day, vote-by-mail, and early voting opportunities. Less than one year later, state lawmakers in at least 19 states enacted 34 laws that restrict access to the ballot with many more on the way. Unfortunately, the U.S. Senate has proven it is more committed to protecting the filibuster than it is the right to vote,” said Congressman Kweisi Mfume. “I am baffled and disappointed to see people honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Monday and then by Thursday vote against the freedom to vote. This is a dastardly and shameful day for our democracy,” he added. ### More on the Congressional Effort for the Freedom to Vote  The United States House of Representatives has done its part in the fight for the right to vote by: Passing H.R. 1, the For The People Act, the most significant voting rights and democracy reform in more than half a century; and Passing H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, to restore the power of the Voting Rights Act to protect the right to vote. Last week, the House passed the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act which will do the following. Stop voter suppression and election subversion.  Lawmakers have enacted 34 laws in 19 states that not only restrict the right to vote but empower election officials to nullify the results of a free and fair election after the votes are cast. Empower the grassroots and reward their participation in our democracy.  This bill empowers states to amplify the power of small-dollar donors with matching funds, without putting any taxpayer dollars toward this purpose. Curb special interest money in politics.  This oppressive, anti-democratic dark money allows anonymous funders to suppress the voices of the American people.  The current landscape of state electoral systems: State lawmakers introduced over 440 voter suppression bills in 49 states in the 2021 legislative session alone, and at least 19 states enacted 34 laws that restrict access to the ballot, with many more on the way. Experts predict this wave of voter suppression and election sabotage will intensify in 2022.  This evening, the Senate failed to overcome procedural hurdles, thereby leaving the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act to languish indefinitely in its Chamber.