Corruption Tracker

 https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/gti1940/viz/CorruptionCostTracker/Overviewofcountries?publish=yes

IMPORTANCE FOR ALL. A coordinated effort is needed across all agencies for recovery. Legislation Would Create Universal Application for Disaster Survivors. May 20, 2023

BEMA International members U.S.

Contact you LOCAL, State, and Federal representative for their support for the Disaster Assistance Simplification Act as a supplement to the Stafford Act.

Changing the process & procedures are a key to recovery and equity.

Charles D. Sharp

https://www.peters.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/peters-introduces-bipartisan-bill-to-simplify-application-process-for-federal-disaster-assistance 05.10.2023 Peters Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Simplify Application Process for Federal Disaster Assistance Legislation Would Create Universal Application for Disaster Survivors WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to simplify the application process for federal disaster recovery assistance. The legislation would require the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish a universal application across federal agencies for disaster survivors who are seeking federal assistance to recover from hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and more. Currently, individuals that seek federal aid to recover from a disaster must fill out separate and detailed applications depending on what agency they need help from – a process that can take weeks or even months. Peters’ legislation would significantly streamline this process to reduce the burden on disaster survivors.  “Michiganders and people across the country should not have to go a through burdensome, complicated process to obtain federal assistance when disaster strikes,” said Chairman Peters. “This commonsense, bipartisan legislation will establish a simple, universal application for people who are seeking federal help to rebuild their lives after natural disasters and emergencies.” After a disaster, there are various types of federal disaster assistance that may become available to disaster survivors. For example, FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program can provide financial or direct assistance for housing and other needs and SBA’s Real Property Disaster Loans and Personal Property Loans are available to eligible homeowners and renters who have incurred uninsured or underinsured damage to their home or personal property located in a declared disaster area. However, a recent analysis found that more than 50 percent of the questions on the application forms for both of these programs are duplicative. These burdensome applications can overwhelm some survivors, causing many to simply give up trying to access desperately needed assistance and pushing survivors beyond their breaking point. The Disaster Assistance Simplification Act amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to require FEMA to establish a universal disaster application across federal agencies for disaster survivors who are seeking federal recovery aid. The bill would allow FEMA to share information on disaster survivors with other federal agencies to simplify recovery efforts and reduce the burden on survivors after a disaster. The legislation would make FEMA the lead agency in implementing the universal disaster assistance application for disaster victims. Finally, the bill requires all information sharing practices to meet federal data security standards. As Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Peters has led several efforts to strengthen our federal disaster preparedness and response. Peters secured $500 million in funding as part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill for a program he created to help states establish revolving loan programs for local governments to carry out mitigation projects that reduce the risk of shoreline erosion, extreme flooding, and other natural disasters. Peters’ bipartisan legislation to protect FEMA Reservists from losing their full-time employment when they are called up to assist communities with disaster response was also signed into law.

 

Charles D. Sharp Chair\CEO Black Emergency Managers Association International
Cornell University Climate Fellow
Washington, D.C.  20020
bEMA International
Cooperation, Collaboration, Communication, Coordination, Community engagement, and  Partnering (C5&P)
A 501 (c) 3 organization   Change without sacrifice is an illusion.

 

 

The Impacts of FEMA’s Strategic Plan on Disaster Preparedness and Response May 20, 2023

 

Advocating for Your Community During Building Safety Month Building Safety Month is the month of May! Led by the International Code Council, this international campaign spearheads awareness about the importance of modern building codes and strong building code enforcement. Week 4 of Building Safety Month emphasizes the importance of advocating for your community. We all have a role in ensuring the places where we live, work and play are safe. All too often, building owners assume that their property is natural hazard-resistant and automatically safe when they’re not. It is our responsibility to know the steps to keep our spaces protected.   Local and state emergency managers, building code officials, and others also share responsibility for reducing their communities’ risk in dealing with natural hazards and other adverse events – before, during and after. As a result, these positions must engage in comprehensive conversations about topics central to mitigation. This includes conversations about how your jurisdiction can stay current with which codes they’ve adopted and an understanding of what basic code enforcement looks like. After all, even the most current building codes are still just minimum requirements. To help dispel common arguments made against the necessity of current building codes, FEMA created the Myth Busters Infographics for Homeowners and Renters. On top of that, FEMA’s Guide to Expanding Mitigation: Making the Connection to Codes and Standards also explains how to benefit from diverse codes and standards, communicate the hidden costs of failing to act, and work with departments to adopt and enforce codes that increase community resilience. This guide will help officials, especially those in emergency management, start conversations about codes to make communities more resilient. Did you know you can help start that conversation too? Reach out to your local officials and send them the link to the Building Codes Adoption Playbook for Authorities Having Jurisdiction. The publication provides general steps to help navigate the code adoption process and information about available FEMA grants for your community that can support building code adoption and enforcement activities. Below are some education and advocacy tips for talking about building safety: Visit inspecttoprotect.org to see if your local building codes are up to date. Talk to your network about building safety and share fact-based information and resources on your social media accounts. Plan community events to raise awareness or attend local events about building safety. Contact your area’s code officials to learn more about the building industry and discover local volunteer opportunities. Sign up for our Codealition to help us advocate for stronger building codes, learn about funding opportunities, free building science resources, and engage with us to promote building safety practices. For more information on Building Safety Month, visit www.iccsafe.org/advocacy/building-safety-month/2023-bsm-week-4/. To view and download FEMA resources, visit www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management/building-science/publications.   About Building Science Building Science is a central focus for FEMA. It involves the study of how natural hazards effect structures, while FEMA employs leading industry professionals in architecture, engineering, and seismology to bring solutions to these challenges our country’s infrastructure faces. FEMA Building Science is the Earthquake and Wind Programs Branch and Building Science Branch. For more information, contact fema-building-codes-program@fema.dhs.gov.

Office of Management and Budget (OMB). List of Federal Grant and funding opportunities. They don't make it easy. May 2023

List of Federal Grant and Funding Opportunities  (https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/)

Guidance for all federal executive agencies falls within the Office of Management & Budget.

 

Mission of Office of Management & Budget 

Office of Management and Budget oversees the implementation of the President’s vision across the Executive Branch. 

 

OMB carries out its mission through five main functions across executive departments and agencies:

1.      Budget development and execution;

2.      Management, including oversight of agency performance, procurement, financial management, and information technology;

3.      Coordination and review of all significant Federal regulations from executive agencies, privacy policy, information policy, and review and assessment of information collection requests; and

4.      Clearance and coordination of legislative and other materials, including agency testimony, legislative proposals, and other communications with Congress, and coordination of other Presidential actions.

5.      Clearance of Presidential Executive Orders and memoranda to agency heads prior to their issuance.

 

Reference to list of grants and funding opportunities

These are the latest dated April 2022. 

OMB Compliance Supplement - to assist auditors in performing the required audits.    

OMB 2022 Compliance Supplement

Institutionalized racism and inequities can pop-up at any level. 

OMB is the guidance similar to an organization with a main headquarters with chapters.  Agencies can be considered as chapters that can get out of hand with their own little nuances and old boy\old girl networks with built-in inequities and racism.

Resources and Guidance

Additional resources and guidance can be found here. 

The resource is the Federal Audit Clearinghouse (FAC, https://facweb.census.gov/uploadpdf.aspx)

Keep in mind as we learn the system, they change it.  FAC is currently under the U.S. Census Bureau (Census) and will transition to General Services Administration (GSA) in October 2023

Pass along.  

Black Emergency Managers Association International
Cornell University Climate Fellow
Washington, D.C.  20020
bEMA International
Cooperation, Collaboration, Communication, Coordination, Community engagement, and  Partnering (C5&P)
A 501 (c) 3 organizatio Change without sacrifice is an illusion.