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On August 4, 2020, FEMA posted the Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) Notification of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) for the Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) grant program and the new Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) pre-disaster mitigation grant program on grants.gov.
This year there is $660 million available for these two programs combined.
FEMA’s two competitive mitigation grant programs provide states, local communities, tribes and territories (SLTTs) funding for eligible mitigation activities to strengthen our nation’s ability to build a culture of preparedness by reducing disaster losses and protecting life and property from future disaster damages.
The application period opens on September 30, 2020. Eligible applicants must apply for funding using the new FEMA Grants Outcome (FEMA GO), which is now the management system for FMA and BRIC. Please submit applications in the FEMA Go Portal no later than 3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on January 29, 2021. Applications received by FEMA after this deadline will not be considered for funding.
To learn more, view the BRIC Fact Sheet and FMA Fact Sheet.
In August, FEMA will offer a webinar on the Fiscal Year 2020 NOFOs for prospective applicants to learn more and ask questions about the NOFOs for the Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grants. This webinar will be offered three times, and applicants may attend any session. There will also be a NOFO overview webinar with a question and answers portion for potential tribal applicants.
In September, FEMA will offer a webinar on common Pre-Disaster Mitigation grant application errors and how to avoid them. This webinar will be offered two times, and applicants may attend either session.
Registration for these sessions will be required, and a link will be disseminated soon.
NOFO Webinars
- FEMA will offer a webinar on the FY20 NOFOs for prospective applicants.
- Tuesday, August 18 at 2-3:30pm Eastern Time (1 pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)
- Thursday, August 20 at 2-3:30pm Eastern Time (1 pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)
- Tuesday, August 25 at 2-3:30pm Eastern Time (1 pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)
NOFO Overview for Tribal Applicants
- FEMA will offer a webinar on the FY20 NOFOs for prospective tribal applicants.
- Thursday, August 27 at 2-3:30pm Eastern Time (1 pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)
Avoiding Application Pitfalls
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Tuesday, September 1 at 2-3:30pm Eastern Time (1 pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)
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Wednesday, September 2 at 2-3:30pm Eastern Time (1 pm Central, 12pm Mountain, 11am Pacific)
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FEMA’s new online grants management system will be operational this fall for hazard mitigation grant funding notices and awards.
The system, called FEMA Grants Outcomes, or FEMA GO, is the result of a multi-year effort to modernize and transform the way FEMA conducts grants management.
The Federal Fiscal Year 2020 Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant programs will use the FEMA GO system.
“FEMA GO streamlines the processing of grants through the five phases of the management lifecycle to ensure successful submissions and awards,” said Bridget Bean, Acting Deputy Administrator for Resilience. “We hope that this new system will reduce complexity for our grant applicants and subapplicants and improve their user experience.”
FEMA has been closely collaborating with stakeholders who will apply for FEMA mitigation grants to test and validate system functionality prior to it being released in stages. Using this approach allows the applicant community to provide feedback to system developers regarding features under development.
Once the application period opens on September 30, 2020, FEMA GO must be used to apply for funding through FMA or the new BRIC grant programs. BRIC is replacing the existing Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) grant program. The legacy FMA and PDM projects will continue to reside in eGrants.
FEMA has provided FEMA GO training to staff in its 10 regional offices, and to the offices of their respective state, local community, tribes and territories. Additional training and readily accessible program support will be published on FEMA.gov as it becomes available. There will also be a FEMA GO Help Desk to offer support with creating and submitting FMA and BRIC grant applications. For more information, visit www.fema.gov/grants/guidance-tools/fema-go.
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Last week the redesigned FEMA.gov website launched, featuring a new way to display information about the agency’s grant programs. Check out www.FEMA.gov/grants. This redesign is an ongoing effort to make our site a valuable tool for our customers and stakeholders.
FEMA.gov has seen site traffic grow rapidly over the past two years with more than 80 million visits during that time frame. We prioritized making content easier to find and ensuring visitors have equal access and can find the right information at the right time. This aligns with our strategic goal to reduce the complexity of our agency and our programs.
Given the scale of FEMA’s web presence, this redesign will unfold over several months and we will continue to make improvements to how Mitigation Grants’ information is presented.
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Throughout the month of July, the BRIC Summer Engagement Series brought FEMA Subject Matter Experts and partners together one day a week to discuss key elements on the newly developed BRIC program. These virtual sessions were geared towards leaders in states, local communities, tribes and territories, as well as private sector entities, private non-profit organizations, and individuals interested in learning more about the grant program.
Topics for the series included:
- Introduction to BRIC
- Meaning of the BRIC Name
- BRIC and Building Codes
- BRIC and Community Lifelines
- BRIC and Nature-Based Solutions
Watch the video recordings and download copies of the presentations from the sessions, as they become available.
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