Dive brief:
- According to a March 20 news release, communities applied for nearly $8 billion in federal funding to build disaster resilience through two major Federal Emergency Management Agency grant programs this year fiscal cycle
- The record request is more than four times the $1.8 billion FEMA has available for assistance programs for flood mitigation and building resilient infrastructure.
- “This continues the trend of more subapplications being submitted each year than funding is available,” FEMA said in a news release. The agency defines subapplicants as state agencies, local governments, and other eligible entities that receive awards through applicants, which are states, tribes, and territories.
Diving knowledge:
FEMA describes the BRIC and FMA programs as some of the most flexible for communities seeking protection from wildfires, drought, extreme heat, hurricanes, earthquakes, increased flooding and other natural disasters.
However, not all communities have had equal access to the programs. Bigger cities that already have more resources tend to be more successful in winning funding for projects through the BRICs, according to a September analysis by research group Headwaters Economics.
When BRIC and FMA applications for this fiscal cycle opened in October, the agency announced “key changes”. reduce the financial and administrative burden about the applicants. FEMA allowed projects under $1 million to skip a full cost-benefit analysis and is covering up to 90% of project costs in disadvantaged communities.
By the numbers
1,233
Subapplications received by FEMA for the Building Resilient Communities and Infrastructure program. Requests totaled $5.6 billion versus the $1 billion the agency made available this funding cycle.
424
Subapplications received by FEMA for the Flood Mitigation Assistance Program. The requests total nearly $2.3 billion. The agency made $800 million available this funding cycle. An additional $300 million was provided through the Swift Current funding opportunity.
133
Subapplications received by FEMA for Building Code Plus-Up, a new opportunity under BRIC to help states, DCs, territories, and federally recognized tribes modernize building codes. The requests total more than $52 million.
164
Applications received by FEMA for BRIC Direct Technical Assistance, which helps communities that may have fewer resources begin climate resilience planning and project solution design. FEMA expects to select at least 80 of these submissions.
