In order for a local jurisdiction to be eligible for certain federal disaster assistance and hazard mitigation funding under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Act (Public Law 93-288) hazard mitigation plans must meet the requirements in DMA 2000. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides funding for eligible mitigation actions through three Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant programs:

Section 203- Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Program (PDM): The PDM Program, authorized by Section 203 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, is designed to assist States, U.S. Territories, Federally-recognized tribes, and local communities in implementing a sustained pre-disaster natural hazard mitigation program. The goal is to reduce overall risk to the population and structures from future hazard events, while also reducing reliance on Federal funding in future disasters.  This program awards planning and project grants and provides opportunities for raising public awareness about reducing future losses before disaster strikes. Mitigation planning is a key process used to break the cycle of disaster damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage. PDM grants are funded annually by Congressional appropriations and are awarded on a nationally competitive basis.

Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant Program (FMA): The FMA program is authorized by Section 1366 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, as amended with the goal of reducing or eliminating claims under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). FMA provides funding to States, Territories, federally-recognized tribes and local communities for projects and planning that reduces or eliminates long-term risk of flood damage to structures insured under the NFIP. FMA funding is also available for management costs. Funding is appropriated by Congress annually.

Section 404- Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP): The purpose of the HMGP program is to help communities implement hazard mitigation measures following a Presidential major disaster declaration.  Hazard mitigation is any action taken to reduce or eliminate long term risk to people and property from natural hazards.  Mitigation planning is a key process used to breaking the cycle of disaster damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage. The HMGP is authorized under Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act.

Section 406- Public Assistance (PA) Hazard Mitigation: The 406 grant is authorized by the Stafford Act to make funding available for response and recovery efforts after the President has declared a disaster or emergency. Section 406 mitigation measures are funded under the Public Assistance, or Infrastructure, program (PA). The PA Program has a required focus on restoring damaged infrastructure to its pre-disaster function and capacity. Section 406 of the Stafford Act allows funding of mitigation measures that go beyond restoring a facility to its pre-disaster condition and is applied only to the damaged element of the facility.

During the project development phase, two types of FEMA hazard mitigation funding should be considered for post-disaster implementation: Section 404, HMGP funding and Section 406, PA funding. They are two distinct funding programs but can sometimes be used together to more completely fund a hazard mitigation project and to promote resilience.

Section 404 funding can be used to fund structural and non-structural projects, and a facility does not need to be damaged to use these funds.

Section 406 funding is used to restore the parts of a facility that were damaged during a disaster, and the restoration must provide protection from subsequent events.

For example, a combination of Section 404 and 406 funding may be appropriate where Section 406 hazard mitigation funding is used to provide protection to the parts of a facility that were damaged and Section 404 hazard mitigation funding is used to provide protection to the undamaged parts of the facility (see additional information in callout box to the right). In these instances, the application for Section 404 hazard mitigation funding must be submitted in a timely manner, consistent with State and local, or tribal, hazard mitigation plans and approved by the SHMO. Evaluating opportunities to leverage Section 404 and 406 funds in projects can facilitate project scoping and development. Additionally, exploring these opportunities can extend the use of limited Section 404 funds.

Examples of Eligible Hazard Mitigation Assistance Activities

Current (FY 2016) Funding Opportunities can be found at the links below:

FY 2016 PDM NOFO
FY 16 PDM Fact Sheet
FY 2016 FMA NOFO
FY 16 FMA Fact Sheet