FEMA/IHSEM Grant Programs
Non-Disaster Grants:
Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) – designed to assist in the development, maintenance, and improvement of state and local emergency management capabilities. It provides support to state and local governments to achieve measurable results in key functional areas of emergency management.
Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) – intended to provide financial and technical assistance as well as national direction and guidance to enhance state, territorial, tribal, and local hazardous materials emergency planning and training. The HMEP grant program distributes fees collected from shippers and carriers of hazardous materials to eligible Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) for hazmat planning and training. HMEP grant funds are administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. HSEMD serves as the administering agency in Iowa for HMEP grants.
The Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) – specifically, the State Homeland Security Program (SHSP). The State Homeland Security Program provides assistance to state and local entities to prepare for terrorist attacks involving weapons of mass destruction (WMD). It authorizes purchase of specialized equipment to enhance state and local agencies’ capability in preventing and responding to WMD incidents and other terrorist incidents, and provides funds for protecting critical infrastructure of national importance. This program provides funds for designing, developing, conducting, and evaluating terrorism response exercises; developing and conducting counter-terrorism training programs; and updating and implementing each state’s homeland security strategy. Iowa HSEMD is the administering agency in Iowa for HSGP grants.
FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant programs provide funding opportunities both pre- and post-disaster. The two non-disaster grants are the Pre-Disaster Mitigation program and the Flood Mitigation Assistance program. The Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program provides funds on an annual basis for hazard mitigation planning and the implementation of mitigation projects prior to a disaster. The goal of the PDM program is to reduce overall risk to the population and structures, while at the same time, also reducing reliance on Federal funding from actual disaster declarations. The Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) program was created to assist States and communities in implementing measures that reduce or eliminate the long-term risk of flood damage to buildings insured under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). There are three types of FMA grants available to states and communities: planning, project, and management cost grants. FMA grants are part of the Hazard Mitigation Assistance grant programs.
Disaster Grants
Disaster grants are only received following a Presidential Disaster Declaration.
Public Assistance program – FEMA awards grants to assist state and local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations with the response to and recovery from disasters. The program provides funding for debris removal, implementation of emergency protective measures and permanent restoration of infrastructure. The program also encourages protection from future damage by providing assistance for hazard mitigation measures during the recovery process. The state works with FEMA to manage the program and administer the funding.
Hazard Mitigation funding also becomes available when a Presidential Disaster Declaration is made. Eligible applicants of the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), part of HMA (see above), include state agencies and local governments, federally-recognized Indian tribal governments, and certain private nonprofit organizations (PNPs) according to the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 44, Section 206.221 (e). The Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 also requires that a FEMA-approved local hazard mitigation plan be in place prior to FEMA awarding HMGP project funds.
For more information, contact Aaron Detter or Michelle Barness. For additional information on FEMA’s grant programs, visit Iowa Homeland Security.