In preparation for the
upcoming fiscal year’s Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Hazard Mitigation
Assistance (HMA) open application period, FEMA announced an upcoming
webinar for prospective applications. The next webinar is about lessons learned
and best practices for applying for a Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) grants.
FEMA
will present an overview of the results of the FY 2016 mitigation grant cycle,
with a focus on common issues and best practices identified across all project
types with an in-depth overview of the innovative Drought
and Flood Mitigation Projects such as Green Infrastructure, Aquifer Storage
and Recovery, Flood Diversion and Storage, and Floodplain and Stream
Restoration. In addition, at a later date, FEMA will announce future
webinars for first-time users of the Mitigation eGrants System and how to
apply for a grant through this online management tool.
This
90-minute webinar will be offered twice and prospective applicants may attend
either session:
- Wednesday, August 2 from 2 – 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time (1
p.m. Central, 12 p.m. Mountain, 11 a.m. Pacific)
- Thursday, August 3, at 12 p.m. Eastern Time (11 a.m. Central, 10 a.m. Mountain, 9
a.m. Pacific).
To participate, use this link to join: https://fema.connectsolutions.com/hma-tips. For
audio, call 1-800-320-4330 and enter conference code 082480
for Wednesday’s session and 787118 for session on Thursday.
FEMA will open the
FY17 application period on August 14, 2017. Eligible applicants must
apply for funding through the Mitigation eGrants system on the FEMA Grants
Portal accessible at https://portal.fema.gov. All applications must
be submitted no later than 3 p.m. Eastern Time on November 14, 2017.
On
June 21, 2017, FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute (EMI) hosted the “Adopting
the Academy,” e-Forum that discussed the Emergency Management Professional
Program (EMPP). The EMPP consists of the National Emergency Management Basic,
Advanced and Executive Academies.
E-Forum
panel members included the Training and Exercise Directors from Florida and
Virginia who have adopted the Basic Academy into their state training programs
using flexible delivery schedules. Based on the experiences that Florida
and Virginia shared, the South Carolina State Training Coordinator is planning
a state-sponsored delivery of the Basic Academy. The e-Forum information,
and follow-up with EMI, helped to encourage the state of South Carolina to
sponsor the field delivery in early FY18 using their own instructors who are
trained under EMI’s Basic Academy Train-the-Trainer Program.
The
Basic Academy is designed for new emergency managers and provides a
foundational education in emergency management. The goal of the Basic Academy
is to support the early careers of emergency managers through a training
experience that combines the knowledge of fundamental systems, concepts, and
practices in contemporary emergency management. The majority –99 percent–
of Basic Academy graduates agree that the academy courses help them to do their
emergency management jobs better. The Basic Academy has been offered at EMI and
in the states since FY14 and has 612 graduates.
FEMA's Emergency Management Institute (EMI) congratulates 25
students who graduated from the National Emergency Management Advanced Academy
on July 21, 2017. Graduates represented emergency management professionals from
state and local governments, federal government, private sector, and academic
institutions.
FEMA’s National Emergency Management Advanced Academy is
designed for mid-level managers seeking to advance their skills, and provides
the strategic level training and education essential for emergency management
professionals to effectively design and lead cutting-edge programs. Students
learn skills critical to performing mid-manager responsibilities such as:
program management and oversight, effective communication at all levels,
integrated collaboration, and strategic thinking. The Advanced Academy provides
students the opportunity to demonstrate their critical thinking ability through
a guided research project. The Advanced Academy is the second of a three-level
Academy series in the Emergency Management Professional Program (EMPP).
The EMPP curriculum is designed to guide and educate emergency
management professionals as they progress through their careers, providing a
lifetime of learning for emergency management professionals. The EMPP includes
three separate, but closely threaded training programs – building from the
Basic Academy, to the National Emergency Management Advanced Academy, and culminating
in the National Emergency Management Executive Academy.
For more information about the Advanced Academy program, contact
fema-empp-advanced-academy@fema.dhs.gov or visit www.training.fema.gov/empp.
FEMA Seeks Comments on Regulatory Reform
In accordance with Executive Order 13777,
“Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda,” the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) formed a Regulatory Reform Task Force. The Task Force, led by DHS Deputy
Secretary Elaine C. Duke, will review existing regulations, policies, and
information collections across the Department.
To inform this review, FEMA is seeking
public input on regulations, policies, and information collections that may be
appropriate for repeal, replacement, or modification. FEMA requests commenters
be as specific as possible in their remarks. Preferred details would include how,
for example, a particular regulation, policy or information collection, imposes
costs that exceed benefits or is otherwise unnecessary or ineffective.
Public comments may be made until August 14,
2017, at www.regulations.gov, Docket ID FEMA-2017-0023.
Apply for the 2018 National Emergency Management Executive Academy
FEMA’s
EMI is now accepting application packages for the 2018 National
Emergency Management Executive Academy.
Ideally,
candidates will have experience as senior executives of major emergency
management organizations, served on major commissions and task
forces, or be
responsible for decisions that have a significant effect on homeland
security
and emergency management policies.
Applications will be
accepted through August 15, 2017. There are a limited number of seats and
enrollment is competitive. For more information on the Executive Academy and
the application and selection process, visit www.training.fema.gov/EMPP/executive.asp.
Comments Needed for Draft Policy on Floodplain Development
FEMA
prepared a draft policy for FEMA staff and communities participating in the
NFIP to update guidance for participating communities on satisfying National
Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) floodplain development permit requirements, and
to address questions about floodplain permitting of development activities
occurring in the FEMA designated Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA). Through
this policy, a community can ensure compliance with NFIP and local floodplain
management regulations, while potentially reducing the administrative burden
associated with permitting certain types of low-to-no impact development in the
floodplain.
This
guidance does not intend to address other permits associated with building
codes, or other federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial permits, and only
applies to floodplain development permitting requirements to enroll in, and
maintain eligibility for, the NFIP. The draft policy is available for review on FEMA’s
website at: https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/131010,
and the public is invited to provide comment and input via FEMA-Floodplain-Management-Division@fema.dhs.gov
until August 23, 2017.
FEMA Tribal Outreach and Consultation Period on FEMA Tribal Consultation Policy
FEMA initiated a 90-day outreach and consultation period
from June 1 to August 29, 2017, to seek input from federally recognized Indian
tribal governments on the update of the agency’s Tribal Consultation
Policy. The FEMA
Tribal Consultation Policy, first issued in 2014, acknowledges the agency’s
nation-to-nation relationship with tribal governments. The policy also guides how FEMA
engages tribal governments in regular and meaningful consultation and
collaboration on policy and actions that have tribal implications.
Tribal officials can submit
comments on the FEMA Tribal Consultation until August 29, 2017,
through:
- E-mail to tribalconsultation@fema.dhs.gov, or
- Mail to ATTN: Margeau Valteau, Office of External Affairs,
DHS/FEMA, 500 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20472-3191.
Visit FEMA’s Tribal Affairs
web page for more information on the tribal consultation period for this
policy.
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