FEMA Bulletin Week of June 10, 2019

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FEMA BULLETIN

June 10, 2019

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In this Edition:

Important Dates & Reminders

June 28

Deadline to apply for Homeland Security National Training Program/Continuing Training Grants

June 30

Deadline to apply for the Master Public Information Officer Program

FEMA Announces $120 Million in Emergency Food and Shelter Program

On June 6, FEMA announced that the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFS) National Board will allocate $120 million in Fiscal Year 2018 funding to cities and counties across the country. The funding was made available by Congress and awarded by FEMA in Fiscal Year 2018 to the National Board of the EFS program to support social service agencies in cities and counties across the country.

 

The program provides funds to supplement the work of nonprofit and governmental/social service organizations within the United States, so they may provide non-disaster emergency assistance to individuals within their communities. These funds enable a broad range of services dedicated to: mass sheltering and feeding, food pantries and food banks, utility bills and rent/mortgage payments to prevent foreclosures or evictions and transition assistance from shelters to stable living conditions.

 

To learn more, visit the Emergency Food and Shelter Program website.


OpenFEMA Publishes National Flood Insurance Program Data Update

FEMA published additional data on the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) via its OpenFEMA platform, to include more than 2 million claims records, dating back to 1978 and over 47 million policy records for transactions taking place over the past 10 years. This data supplements and provides insight into current NFIP data at the county level available through OpenFEMA.

 

The publication of this NFIP data promotes transparency, reduces complexity for public requests, and improves how our stakeholders interact with and contextually understand the program. The OpenFEMA platform is intended to meet the requirements established in the HR 4174, Foundations for Evidence Based Policy Act, Title II Open Government Data Act.  To view this data, visit the OpenFEMA website.


FEMA Hosts Training e-Forum for Veterans

FEMA's Emergency Management Institute (EMI) hosts “One Link, One Bridge, Many Voices” e-Forums from 3 to 4 p.m. EDT on Wednesdays. In these one-hour, moderated webinar panel discussions, EMI and the emergency management community discuss emergency management and national preparedness and participants share their experiences in an informal exchange of ideas. EMI e-Forums are free of charge and available to anyone who wishes to participate.

 

June 19: Veteran to FEMA: Ways to be Hired

3 to 4 p.m. EDT, Wednesday June 19

 

Presenters:

•  Jerome Bryant, Chair, FEMA Veterans Advisory Council

•  Roland Temah, Emergency Management Specialist, National Preparedness Directorate, FEMA

•  Andrew Ryan, Management and Program Analyst, Data and Communications Branch, FEMA

•  Harold Atwood, Jr., Hazard Mitigation Community Education and Outreach Crew Leader, FEMA.

 

 How to participate:

 

•  FEMA Adobe Connect

•  FEMA Teleconference: 800-320-4330, PIN 107622#

 

For more information, send questions to EMI at FEMA-EMI-eforums@fema.dhs.gov.


FEMA Releases HAZMAT Response Resource Typing Definitions

FEMA’s National Integration Center released the following two Job Titles/Position Qualifications and Resource Typing Definitions documents related to the Environmental Response/Health and Safety core capability of the National Preparedness Goal:

 

•  Hazardous Materials Technician

•  Hazardous Materials Response Team

 

The National Incident Management System (NIMS) is a key component of U.S. incident management efforts and enables organizations from across the country to work together during incidents of all kinds and sizes. Implementing NIMS across the nation is a fundamental part of building our national preparedness.

 

NIMS Job Titles/Position Qualifications and Resource Typing Definitions define minimum qualifications and capabilities for personnel and their equipment within their assigned teams to manage all threats and hazards, regardless of the incident’s cause or size. A Hazardous Materials Response Team is an organized group of hazardous materials technicians who respond to HAZMAT incidents, including those involving Weapons of Mass Destruction.

 

To view the documents, visit the Resource Typing Library Tool.  For any question regarding NIMS or related products please contact fema-nims@fema.dhs.gov.


Reminders and Upcoming Deadlines

 

FEMA Seeks Feedback on the National Response Framework

 

The "National Response Framework" and "Emergency Support Function (ESF) #14 – Cross-Sector Business and Infrastructure Annex" draft documents are now available for public comment. Feedback and recommendations will help ensure the final versions of the documents are effective resources for emergency managers across the nation.

 

FEMA is hosting a series of one-hour engagement webinars to describe the updates and answer participants’ questions. These webinars are intended for the whole community, including individuals, private and nonprofit sectors, faith-based organizations, and federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial partners.

 

Webinars will be held on the following dates and times (all times are Eastern):

 

Webinar 1: 3 p.m. Thursday, June 13.

Register: https://fema.connectsolutions.com/nrf-webinar7/event/registration.html

 

Webinar 2: 1 p.m. Tuesday, June 18.

Register: https://fema.connectsolutions.com/nrf-webinar8/event/registration.html

 

Advance registration is required and on a first-come, first-served basis. Captioning will be available on the webinar. If you need a copy of the webinar PowerPoint, please provide details on the registration page or contact us at NRF@fema.dhs.gov.

 

For more information on the updates and to download the drafts, visit website. Comments, input, and recommendations should be submitted using the comment matrix on the website by June 28, 2019.

 


 

FEMA Seeks Public Comment for New Pre-Disaster Hazard Mitigation Grant Program

 

FEMA is seeking comments on the development and implementation of Disaster Recovery Reform Act (DRRA) Section 1234: National Public Infrastructure Pre-Disaster Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.  Comments will be accepted until July 15, on FEMA IdealScale or by email at  BUILDBRIC@fema.dhs.gov. 

 

In June, FEMA will host a webinar series to provide an overview of the different topic areas that are important for the development of the BRIC program.

 

For detailed information and a description of each webinar, visit the website.  

 

Webinar 2: Hazard Mitigation Planning, Grant Application and Evaluation, and Risk Based Funding

2 to 4 p.m. EDT, Thursday June 13

 

Webinar 3: Funding & Resource Management and Benefit-Cost Analysis

2 to 4 p.m. EDT, Thursday June 20.

 

Webinar 4: Building Codes and Enforcement and Capacity and Capability

2 to 4 p.m. EDT, Tuesday June 25.

 

 

How to Participate:

 

For more information on DRRA, visit the FEMA website.

 


 

June 21 Deadline for NIMS Training Program Refresh Feedback

 

The revised National Incident Management System Training Program introduces training Focus Areas based on incident personnel’s position and responsibility. The Focus Areas include the Incident Command System, Joint Information System, Emergency Operation Center, and the Multiagency Coordination Group. 

 

FEMA is hosting a series of 60-minute engagement webinars to highlight key proposed changes to NIMS and answer participant questions about submitting feedback. All webinars are open to the whole community.

 

To review the draft of the updated NIMS Training Program and for additional webinar information, visit the FEMA website. To provide comments on the draft, complete the feedback form and submit it to FEMA-NIMS@fema.dhs.gov by June 21, 2019.


Podcast

FEMA Podcast Episode 39: Designing an Exercise for the Most Catastrophic Events

Listen in on a discussion with FEMA National Exercise Division(NED) on the process of designing national level exercises. NED's Jeff Blizzard and Ted Robinson discuss what goes into a large-scale national exercise and how FEMA participates.

 

The FEMA podcast is an audio program series available to anyone interested in learning more about the Agency, hearing about innovation in the field of emergency management, and listening to stories about communities and individuals recovering after disasters.