Community development block grant disaster recovery (CDBG-DR) and community development block grant mitigation (CDBG-MIT) grant funds are appropriated by congress and allocated by the department of…

The Louisiana Division of Administration received $117.946 million in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) and Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under the Community Development Block Grants/State's program and Non-Entitlement Grants in Hawaii program (CFDA 14.228). The award was obligated on June 10, 2025, with an ultimate completion date of June 10, 2031. As the state grantee, the Louisiana Division of Administration will administer these flexible disaster recovery funds to help communities across Louisiana rebuild and recover from presidentially declared disasters.

The Louisiana Division of Administration will utilize these funds to support long-term disaster recovery activities, including infrastructure restoration, housing assistance, economic revitalization, and mitigation initiatives in presidentially declared disaster areas. The division is required to develop a comprehensive Action Plan outlining how funds will be allocated across recovery programs, subject to public comment and HUD approval. All funded activities must address direct or indirect impacts of qualifying disasters in designated areas. The division will serve as the conduit for distributing federal resources to sub-recipients, including local governments and community organizations, to help low-income areas and disadvantaged communities that lack sufficient resources to recover independently.

Activities

State and local governments receive cdbg-DR and cdbg-MIT funds from HUD to assist communities recovering from a presidentially declared disaster. HUD allocates funds based on the unmet recovery needs of each community. HUD issues an allocation announcement notice in the federal register which will include the list of grantees, allocations, and any waivers and alternative requirements. Grantees may use the funds for disaster related long-term recovery, restoration of infrastructure, housing, economic revitalization, and mitigation activities. All cdbg-DR and cdbg-MIT activities must clearly address a direct or indirect impact of the disaster in a presidentially declared area for the covered disaster. Each grantee must develop an action plan that outlines how the grantee plans to allocate funding to a combination of recovery programs. Each grantee must make the draft action plan available for public comment and feedback prior to submitting the plan to HUD for review. Once approved, the action plan serves as the blueprint for the grantee's cdbg-DR program. The action plan process is outlined in the applicable allocation announcement notice.

Expected outcomes

Cdbg-DR funds are expected to result in long-term disaster recovery for communities impacted by presidentially declared disasters.

Intended beneficiaries

Cdbg-DR funds are intended primarily for low- and moderate-income households per statutory requirements. Cdbg-DR is the only federal disaster resource that prioritizes low- and moderate-income households. Low- and moderate-income means a family or household with an annual income less than the section 8 low income limit, which is generally 80 percent of the area median income. Most allocations of cdbg-DR and cdbg-MIT funds require grantees use 70 percent of the grant funds to benefit low- and moderate-income persons, however grantees must review the applicable federal register notice governing the funds to confirm the requirements of each grant. Overall, cdbg-DR funds should be used to assist individuals, communities, and/or businesses situated in the most impacted and distressed areas affected by a presidentially declared disaster.

Subrecipient activities

The subrecipient activities are unknown at the time of award.