FY 2019 PDM NOFO FINAL 8-21 AMENDMENT 11-6.pdf

The Department of Homeland Security Notice of Funding Opportunity

FY 2019 Pre-Disaster Mitigation

NOTE: If you are going to apply for this funding opportunity and have not obtained a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and/or are not currently registered in the System for Award Management (SAM), please take immediate action to obtain a DUNS Number, if applicable, and then to register immediately in SAM. It may take 4 weeks or more after you submit your SAM registration before your registration is active in SAM, and then an additional 24 hours for Grants.gov to recognize your information. Information on obtaining a DUNS number and registering in SAM is available from Grants.gov at http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/Applicants/organization-registration.html. Detailed information regarding DUNS and SAM is also provided in Section D of this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), subsection, Content and Form of Application Submission.

A. Program Description

Issued By U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration, Mitigation Directorate, Hazard Mitigation Assistance Division

Assistance Listings Number (formerly Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number) 97.047

Assistance Listings Title (formerly CFDA Title) Pre-Disaster Mitigation

Notice of Funding Opportunity Title FY 2019 Pre-Disaster Mitigation

NOFO Number

DHS-19-MT-047-000-99

Authorizing Authority for Program Section 203 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act), as amended (Pub. L. No. 93-288) (42 U.S.C. 5133)

Appropriation Authority for Program Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (Pub. L. No. 116-6)

Program Type One-time

Program Overview, Objectives, and Priorities The Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program makes Federal funds available to States, U.S Territories, Indian Tribal governments, and local communities to plan for and implement and sustain cost-effective measures designed to reduce the risk to individuals and property from natural hazards, while also reducing reliance on Federal funding from future disasters. The PDM program strengthens national preparedness and resilience and supports the mitigation mission area through Strategic Goal #1 Building a Culture of Preparedness, Objectives 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, and 1.4 of the 2018 – 2022 FEMA Strategic Plan.

FEMA’s priorities for funding Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 PDM applications are outlined below.

Greater detail on factors to be considered in the evaluation of applications is specified in Section E of this NOFO under Application Review Information.

As required in Section 203(f)(2)(A) of the Stafford Act, FEMA will continue to provide grant funding allocations to each State and territory in the amount of $575,000. FEMA will also set aside $20 million for federally-recognized tribes for mitigation planning and projects.

FEMA’s first priority for competitive funding after meeting the State/territory allocations and tribal set-aside is opportunities for Advance Assistance for all Applicants not to exceed $200,000 each. In addition, there will be a competitive initiative for Resilient Infrastructure projects. These projects have a larger Federal cost share cap at $10 million and are community based. As mitigation plans are updated, state, local, tribal, and territorial governments may want to engage partners with an interest in resilient infrastructure projects to join the planning process to identify vulnerabilities and develop updated mitigation strategies. The balance of PDM funds will be distributed on a competitive basis with priority given to multi-State/tribal mitigation initiatives and eligible Applicants that have less disaster funding available through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), Section 404 of the Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. 5170c), than the PDM funding limits for planning and projects (see the Program Funding Restrictions subsection under Section D of this NOFO) to complement the HMGP funds available to States, territories, and tribes following disasters. For more information on the HMGP and FMA programs, see the Related Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) Programs subsection under Section H of this NOFO.

The Disaster Recovery Reform Act (DRRA) was introduced to address the rising costs of disasters and to reform federal disaster programs. The Act established more than 50 new authorities and requirements across the Federal Emergency Management Agency. One of the most substantive provisions of DRRA is Section 1234: National Public Infrastructure Pre- Disaster Hazard Mitigation, which allows FEMA to set aside 6 percent of estimated disaster expenses for each major disaster to fund a new grant program: Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC). The new program will supersede the existing Pre- Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program beginning in FY 2020. FEMA’s vision for BRIC is to reduce costs and loss of life from natural disasters by building a national culture of preparedness through encouraging investments to protect our communities and infrastructure and strengthening national mitigation capabilities to foster resilience.

In preparation for this new program FEMA encourages all entities to ensure their state, territory, tribal and local agencies with authority in mitigation are included in the mitigation planning and implementation process. Hazard Mitigation plans are the foundation for mitigation activities, based on risks identified and assessed in the plans, and directly tied to local mitigation plans. The Plans should reflect state-wide mitigation priorities, across all potential Federal and non-Federal mitigation funding sources.

In addition, communities are encouraged, but not required, to pursue Plan Integration, which is a process where communities look critically at their existing planning framework and align efforts. Integration of hazard mitigation principles into other local planning mechanisms (comprehensive plans, transportation plans, floodplain ordinances, etc.) and vice versa is vital to build a safer, more resilient community. This two-way exchange of information supports community-wide risk reduction, both before and after disasters occur. Not only will the community’s planning efforts be better integrated, but by going through this process there is a higher level of interagency coordination, which is just as important as the planning mechanisms themselves. Additional information on Plan Integration can be found at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/108893.

An application with an active shooter component will only be considered if the activity occurs in combination with traditional mitigation activities, not as stand-alone activities.

These school safety–related actions cannot compromise the integrity of traditional mitigation activities. In addition, a reasonable increase in costs for the school safety actions may be allowed provided the project remains cost-effective.

Performance Metrics:

Based on the statutory requirements of Section 203 and the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Guidance (2015), FEMA has specified minimum project criteria including that Applicants must demonstrate mitigation projects are cost effective. Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA) is the method by which the future benefits of a hazard mitigation project are determined and compared to its costs. The end result is a Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR), which is calculated by a project’s total benefits divided by its total costs. The BCR is a numerical expression of the "cost-effectiveness" of a project. A project is considered to be cost effective when the BCR is

1.0 or greater, indicating the benefits of a prospective hazard mitigation project are sufficient to justify the costs. Projects that are not cost-effective will not be eligible.

B. Federal Award Information

Award Amounts, Important Dates, and Extensions Available Funding for the NOFO: $250,000,000 Projected number of Awards: 350 Period of Performance: 36 months (Period of Performance for infrastructure projects will be 48 months)

The Period of Performance (POP) starts with the acceptance of the award and ends no later than 36 months from the funding Selection Date (see Section D, Application and Submission Information, of this NOFO). Given the complexity of the Resilient Infrastructure projects, the POP starts with the acceptance of the award and ends no later than 48 months from the funding Selection Date (see Section D, Application and Submission Information, of this

NOFO).

An extension to the Period of Performance for grants under this program is allowed. For details on the requirements for requesting an extension to the Period of Performance, please refer to Section H, Additional Information, of this NOFO.

Projected Period of Performance Start Date: various Projected Period of Performance End Date: 36 months Projected Infrastructure Project Period of Performance End Date: 48 months

Funding Instrument Grant

C. Eligibility Information

Eligible Applicants States

District of Columbia

U.S. Territories

Federally-recognized Tribal governments

Each State, territory, or Native American Tribal government shall designate one agency to serve as the Applicant for PDM funding. Each Applicant’s designated agency may submit only one PDM grant application to FEMA. Applications under which two or more entities would carry out the award are eligible, such as a multi-State or multi-tribal initiative;

however, only one entity may be the Applicant with primary responsibility for carrying out the award.

Local governments, including cities, townships, counties, special district governments, and Indian tribal governments (including Federally-recognized tribes who choose to apply as subapplicants) are considered subapplicants and must submit subapplications for mitigation planning and projects to their State/territory Applicant agency. Contact information for the State Hazard Mitigation Officers (SHMOs) is provided on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/state-hazard-mitigation-officers.

Eligibility Criteria To be considered for funding, all Applicants must submit their FY 2019 PDM grant application to FEMA via FEMA’s grant application system (see Section D, Application and Submission Information, of this NOFO).

All Applicants and subapplicants submitting project and advance assistance subapplications must have a FEMA-approved mitigation plan by the application deadline and at the time of obligation in accordance with Title 44 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 201. Project and advance assistance subapplications submitted by Applicants or subapplicants that do not have an approved and adopted mitigation plan as of the application deadline are ineligible.

All mitigation projects submitted as part of a PDM grant application must be consistent with the goals and objectives identified in a) the current, FEMA-approved State or Tribal (Standard or Enhanced) Mitigation Plan and b) the local mitigation plan for the jurisdiction in which the project is located. Current mitigation plans are not required for Applicants and subapplicants submitting planning subapplications to develop a new mitigation plan or to update a mitigation plan.

Other Eligibility Criteria

1. To be eligible for the State/territory allocation or the tribal set-aside (see Program

Overview, Objectives, and Priorities in Section A, of this NOFO), the Applicant’s highest ranked planning or project subapplication must not exceed $575,000 Federal cost share.

There is no limit to the number of planning and project subapplications that Applicants can submit for the State/territory allocation or tribal set-aside up to $575,000 Federal cost share, but the Applicant must rank them higher than subapplications for competitive consideration (see Section E, the Application Review Information, of this NOFO).

2. Applicants may submit subapplications for the Advance Assistance funding not to exceed a total of $200,000 per Applicant. These Planning subapplications MUST be designated as Advance Assistance within the title of the subapplication and use the Advance Assistance code/activity type within FEMA’s grant application system to be considered.

3. Applicants may submit one subapplication for the Resilient Infrastructure funding for competitive consideration. These subapplications MUST be designated as Resilient Infrastructure within the title of the subapplication and use the Utility and Infrastructure Protection code/activity type within FEMA’s grant application system to be considered. Subapplicants should ensure the proposed project conforms with the FEMA-approved mitigation plan. If the proposed project is not in conformance, the subapplicant may consider updating the mitigation plan.

4. Applicants may submit no more than nine project subapplications (in addition to the one Resilient Infrastructure project application) for competitive consideration over and above any project(s) submitted for the State/territory allocation or tribal set-aside.

5. Any Applicant agency willing to serve as the Applicant for multi-State or multi-tribal mitigation activities may include one multi-State/tribal project subapplication(s) in its grant application for a maximum of 10 competitive projects, notwithstanding any project(s) submitted towards its State/territory allocation or tribal set-aside. Applicants who include multi-State/tribal subapplication(s) in their grant application must clearly identify how the effort will be coordinated.

Cost Share or Match Cost share is required under this program. Federal funding is available for up to 75 percent of the eligible activity costs. The remaining 25 percent of eligible activity costs must be derived from non-Federal sources.

The non-Federal cost share contribution is calculated based on the total cost of the proposed activity. For example, if the total cost is $400,000 and the non-Federal cost share is 25 percent, then the non-Federal contribution is $100,000: 25 percent of $400,000 is $100,000.

Small, impoverished communities are eligible for up to a 90 percent Federal cost share for their mitigation planning and project subapplications in accordance with the Stafford Act. A small, impoverished community must:

Be a community of 3,000 or fewer individuals identified by the State as a rural community that is not a remote area within the corporate boundaries of a larger city;

Be economically disadvantaged, with residents having an average per capita annual income not exceeding 80 percent of the national per capita income, based on best available data. For the most current information, go to the Bureau of Economic Analysis website at http://www.bea.gov;

Have a local unemployment rate that exceeds by 1 percentage point or more the most recently reported, average yearly national unemployment rate. For the most current information, go to the Bureau of Labor Statistics website at http://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.us.htm; and

Meet other criteria required by the Applicant in which the community is located.

Native American Tribal governments meeting the definition of a small, impoverished community that apply to FEMA directly as Applicants are eligible for a 90 percent Federal cost share for their planning, project, and management costs subapplications, which make up their overall PDM grant application.

Applicants and subapplicants who apply as an impoverished community must request the Federal cost share amount up to 90 percent in the Cost Share section of their planning, project, and management costs subapplication(s). Applicants must certify small, impoverished community status and provide documentation with the subapplication(s) to justify up to a 90 percent Federal cost share. If documentation is not submitted with the subapplication, then FEMA will provide no more than 75 percent Federal cost share of the total eligible costs.

For insular areas, including American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, FEMA automatically waives the non-Federal cost share when the non- Federal cost share for the entire grant is under $200,000. If the non-Federal cost share for the entire grant is $200,000 or greater, FEMA may waive all or part of the cost share. If FEMA does not waive the cost share, the insular area must pay the entire non-Federal cost-share amount, not only the amount over $200,000.

More detailed information is provided in Part III, C, Cost Sharing, of the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

D. Application and Submission Information

Key Dates and Times Date Posted to Grants.gov: 08/26/2019 Application Start Date: 9/30/2019 Application Submission Deadline: 01/31/2020 at 3:00 pm [Eastern Standard Time] Anticipated Funding Selection Date: 06/1/2020 Anticipated Award Date: 12/30/2020

To be considered timely, a PDM grant application must be submitted by the application deadline via FEMA’s grant application system, and the Applicant must have received a confirmation message in FEMA’s grant application system that indicates successful PDM grant submission to FEMA. FEMA recommends that Applicants attach approved planning, project, advance assistance and management costs subgrant applications to their PDM grant applications at least 72 hours prior to the application deadline to allow time for the Applicant to review and correct issues that may prevent subgrant applications from being attached to a PDM grant application (see the Content and Form of Application Submission subsection below). Applications not received by the application submission deadline will not be accepted.

Other Key Dates

Event Suggested Deadline for Completion

Obtain DUNS Number Four weeks before actual submission deadline

Obtain a valid Employer Identification Number (EIN)

Four weeks before actual submission deadline

Register with the System for Award Management (SAM)

Four weeks before actual submission deadline

Register for access to FEMA’s grant application system

Four weeks before actual submission deadline

Create a PDM grant application and attach approved planning, project, advance assistance and management costs subgrant applications in FEMA’s grant application system

Seventy-two hours before actual submission deadline

Address to Request Application Package FEMA will only process applications received via FEMA’s grant application system.

Information, training, and resources on FEMA’s grant application system are available on the FEMA website at https://www.fema.gov/application-submittal (see Section G, DHS Awarding Agency Contact Information, of this NOFO).

For a hardcopy of the full NOFO, please write or fax a request to:

Kayed Lakhia Director, Hazard Mitigation Assistance Division, Mitigation Directorate Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration Federal Emergency Management Agency 400 C Street, SW Washington, DC 20472

FAX: (202) 646-2880

In addition, the following Telephone Device for the Deaf (TDD) and/or Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) number available for this Notice is 1-800-462-7585.

Content and Form of Application Submission All Applicants, must submit a PDM grant application via FEMA’s grant application system by the application deadline to be considered for funding. The required format for grant and subgrant applications is built into FEMA’s grant application system, Mitigation planning activities must be submitted in a planning subgrant application;

Mitigation project activities must be submitted in a project subgrant application;

Applicant management costs (for Applicants only) must be submitted in a management costs subgrant application;

Advance Assistance activities must be submitted in a planning subgrant application;

Resilient Infrastructure activities must be submitted in a project subgrant application;

PDM grant applications, including Applicant-approved planning, project, advance assistance and management costs subapplications, must be submitted in an FY 2019 Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) grant application.

Blank copies of applications that conform to FEMA’s grant application system format are available for reference only at https://www.fema.gov/application-submittal. FEMA will not accept these as an application package.

Wherever possible, supporting documentation for applications should be attached electronically in FEMA’s grant application system. Over-sized items that cannot be scanned may be mailed to respective FEMA Regional offices as necessary ( https://www.fema.gov/fema-regional-office-contact-information ); however, Applicants must provide information regarding the paper attachments and the date mailed to FEMA in the Comments and Attachment section of the application in FEMA’s grant application system.

Also, the documents must be postmarked by the submission deadline to be considered as part of the application. The Applicant is responsible for following up with FEMA to ensure that paper documents were received for consideration during the review process.

National Environmental Policy Act Requirements for Mitigation Projects.

Applicants and subapplicants applying for mitigation projects must provide information needed to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321– 4370h) and the related DHS and FEMA instructions and directives (i.e., DHS Directive 023- 01, DHS Instruction Manual 023-01-001-01, FEMA Directive 108-1, FEMA Instruction 108- 1-1). The required information is included in the subgrant application in FEMA’s grant application system. Environmental Planning and Historic Preservation (EHP) Job Aids and Supplements are available on the FEMA website at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/102051

Benefit Cost Analysis for Mitigation Projects.

Applicants and subapplicants applying for mitigation projects must provide a Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) or other documentation that validates cost-effectiveness. BCA is the method of estimating the future benefits of a project compared to its cost. The end result is a benefit-cost ratio (BCR), which is derived from a project’s total net benefits divided by its total project cost. The total benefits and costs must be entered in the Cost-Effectiveness section of the project subapplication and a FEMA-approved BCA must be attached as documentation, as applicable. Planning, advance assistance and management costs subapplications do not require a BCA.

FEMA has created software to ensure that the BCR is calculated in accordance with FEMA’s standardized methodologies and OMB Circular A-94, Guidelines and Discount Rates for Benefit-Cost Analysis of Federal Programs, available on the Internet at https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/information-for-agencies/circulars. FEMA’s Benefit Cost Toolkit is available on the FEMA website at www.fema.gov/benefit-cost-analysis. Version

5.3 or higher are the only versions FEMA will accept as documentation for demonstrating cost effectiveness. A non-FEMA BCA methodology may only be used if pre-approved by FEMA in writing. More detailed information is available in Part IV, I, Cost Effectiveness, of the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

Application for Federal Assistance and Assurances and Certifications Forms.

Applicants must complete the following forms and attach them to their PDM grant application in FEMA’s grant application system for submittal by the application deadline:

Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424), Budget Information:

o Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A), or Budget Information for Construction Programs (SF-424C), and

Assurances and Certifications:

o Assurances for Construction Programs (SF-424D), o Certifications Regarding Lobbying, Debarment, Suspension and Other Responsibility Matters; and Drug-Free Workplace Requirements (FEMA Form 20-16C), and o Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (SF-LLL), (if the Applicant has engaged in or intends to engage in lobbying activities).

The SF-424 family of forms is available on the Grants.gov website at http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/sf-424-family.html. The FEMA Form FF 20-16C, Certifications Regarding Lobbying, Debarment, Suspension and Other Responsibility Matters; and Drug-Free Workplace Requirements is available from the FEMA library online at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/9754.

Applicants may require their subapplicants to complete and attach the grant application and/or Assurance and Certifications forms to their planning, advance assistance, and project subapplications in FEMA’s grant application system.

Subapplicants should contact their Applicant agency for information specific to their State/territory’s/tribe’s application process. Contact information for the SHMOs is provided on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/state-hazard-mitigation-officers.

Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

Each Applicant for this award must:

1. Be registered in SAM before submitting its application;

2. Provide a valid DUNS number in its application; and

3. Continue to maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an application or plan under consideration by a DHS Federal Award Office (FAO).

DHS may not make a Federal award to an Applicant until the Applicant has complied with all applicable DUNS and SAM requirements. If an Applicant has not fully complied with the requirements by the time DHS is ready to make a Federal award, DHS may determine that the Applicant is not qualified to receive a Federal award and use that determination as a basis for making a Federal award to another Applicant.

How to Register to Apply:

1. Instructions: Read the instructions below about registering to apply for DHS funds.

Applicants should read the registration instructions carefully and prepare the information requested before beginning the registration process. Reviewing and assembling the required information before beginning the registration process will alleviate last-minute searches for required information.

The registration process can take up to 4 weeks to complete. Therefore, registration should be done in sufficient time to ensure it does not affect your ability to meet required application submission deadlines.

Organizations must have a DUNS number, active SAM registration, and FEMA grant application system registration to apply for grants.

If individual Applicants are eligible to apply for this grant funding opportunity, refer to the NOFO subsection below: How to Submit an Application to DHS via FEMA’s Grant Application System.

2. Obtain a DUNS Number: All entities applying for funding, including renewal funding, must have a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet (D&B).

For more detailed instructions for obtaining a DUNS number, refer to https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/Applicants/organization-registration/step-1-obtain-duns-number.html.

3. Register with SAM: In addition to having a DUNS number, all organizations applying online through Grants.gov must register with SAM. Failure to register with SAM will prevent your organization from applying through Grants.gov. SAM registration must be renewed annually.

For more detailed instructions for registering with SAM, refer to https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/Applicants/organization-registration/step-2-register-with-sam.html.

4. Register for access to FEMA’s grant application system: The next step in the registration process is to create an account for FEMA’s grant application system. For detailed instructions on registering, refer to https://www.fema.gov/application-submittal.

5. Electronic Signature: When applications are submitted through FEMA’s grant application system, the name of the AOR that submitted the application is inserted into the signature line of the application, serving as the electronic signature.

How to Submit an Application to DHS via FEMA’s Grant Application System

1. Subapplicants must create planning, advance assistance and/or project subgrant applications and submit them to their Applicant organization.

Subapplicants should contact their Applicant agency for information specific to their State/territory’s application process. Contact information for the SHMOs is provided on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/state-hazard-mitigation-officers.

If a subapplicant does not use FEMA’s grant application system to submit planning, advance assistance and project subapplications to the Applicant, then the Applicant must enter the subapplication(s) into the grant application system on the subapplicant’s behalf.

2. Applicants must review and approve planning, advance assistance and project subgrant applications submitted by their subapplicants.

3. Applicants must create a PDM grant application and then attach approved planning, project, advance assistance and management costs subapplications submitted by the Applicant and/or subapplicants to the PDM grant application.

4. Applicants must rank all of the subgrant applications included in their grant application in FEMA’s grant application system.

Applicants may indicate their State/territory/tribe’s priorities for funding in the Comments to FEMA section of the grant application; the subgrant ranking should not be used for that purpose.

5. The AOR must sign and submit the PDM grant application to FEMA via FEMA’s grant application system by the application deadline.

Timely Receipt Requirements and Proof of Timely Submission Online Submissions. All applications must be submitted to FEMA by 3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on the due date. Proof of timely submission is automatically recorded by FEMA’s grant application system. An electronic date/time stamp is generated within the system when the application is successfully submitted.

The Applicant with the AOR role who submitted the PDM grant applications prior to the submission deadline will receive a confirmation message, including the assigned PDM application number in the application system (e.g., PDM-01-MA-2017). In addition, once FEMA receives and delegates the PDM grant application to begin the review process, the application system will automatically send an email message to the Point(s) of Contact (POC) identified in the grant application.

FEMA’s grant application system is programmed not to allow submittal of a PDM grant application after the submission deadline. Applicants using slow Internet, such as dial-up connections, should be aware that transmission of applications to FEMA’s grant application system could take some time.

Applicants and subapplicants who experience system-related issues will be addressed until 3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on 01/29/2020. No new system-related issues will be addressed after this time.

Intergovernmental Review An intergovernmental review may be required. Applicants must contact their State’s Single Point of Contact to comply with the State’s process under Executive Order 12372 (see http://www.fws.gov/policy/library/rgeo12372.pdf).

Funding Restrictions Federal funds made available through this award may only be used for the purpose set forth in this award and must be consistent with the statutory authority for the award. Award funds may not be used for matching funds for any other Federal grants/cooperative agreements, lobbying, or intervention in Federal regulatory or adjudicatory proceedings. In addition, Federal funds may not be used to sue the Federal government or any other government entity.

Program Funding Restrictions No Applicant may receive more than 15 percent of the appropriated PDM funding, or $37,500,000, per Section 203(f)(2)(B) of the Stafford Act.

The maximum Federal cost share for PDM activities is as follows:

$4 million for mitigation projects;

$200,000 per Applicant for Advance Assistance;

$10 million for Resilient Infrastructure projects;

$400,000 for new mitigation plans consistent with 44 CFR Part 201;

$300,000 for State/territorial and multi-jurisdictional local or tribal mitigation plan updates consistent with 44 CFR Part 201;

$150,000 for single jurisdiction local or tribal mitigation plan updates consistent with 44 CFR Part 201;

10 percent of plan and project subapplications for information dissemination activities, including public awareness and education (brochures, workshops, videos, etc.) related to a proposed planning or project activity;

10 percent of the grant application budget for Applicant management costs for Applicants to administer and manage grant and subgrant activities (see the Management and Administration Costs subsection below); and

5 percent of plan and project subapplication budget for subapplicant management costs for subapplicants to manage their plan or project activity (see the Management and Administration Costs subsection below).

FEMA will use the majority of PDM grant funding for mitigation projects.

Allowable costs are:

Planning costs

Training-related costs

Domestic travel costs

Construction and renovation costs

Equipment costs

Applicants should analyze the cost benefits of purchasing versus leasing equipment, especially high-cost items and those subject to rapid technical advances. Large equipment purchases must be identified and explained. For more information regarding property management standards for equipment, please reference 2 CFR Part 200, available on the Internet at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title02/2cfr200_main_02.tpl.

Unallowable costs are:

Exercise-related costs

Operational overtime costs

More detailed information is available in Part III, E.1, Eligible Activities, of the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

Pre-Award Costs.

Pre-award costs directly related to developing the PDM grant application or subapplication that are incurred within 8 months of the application period has opened but prior to the date of the grant award are allowed subject to FEMA’s written approval. Such costs may have been incurred prior to application submission, for example gathering NEPA data or developing a BCA (see Section D, Application and Submission Information, of this NOFO), preparing design specifications, or conducting workshops or meetings related to development and submission of subapplications. To be eligible for PDM funding, pre-award costs must be identified as separate line items in the cost estimate of the subapplication. Applicants and subapplicants may identify such pre-award costs as their non-Federal cost share.

Pre-award costs may be cost shared or Applicants and subapplicants may identify them as their non-Federal cost share (see Cost Share or Match subsection in Section C, Eligibility Information, of this NOFO).

Costs associated with implementation of proposed projects in the submitted grant application or subapplication that are incurred prior to the date of the grant award are not allowed.

Mitigation activities initiated or completed prior to the date of the grant award are not eligible.

Applicants and subapplicants who are not awarded grants or subgrants (awards/subawards) will not receive reimbursement for the corresponding pre-award costs. More detailed information is provided in Part IV, F.2, Pre-Award Costs, of the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

Management and Administration Costs.

Management costs are any indirect costs, any direct administrative costs, and other administrative expenses that are reasonably incurred in administering an award or subaward.

Applicant and subapplicant management cost activities directly related to the implementation of the PDM program, such as subapplication development, geocoding mitigation projects, delivery of technical assistance, or managing awards and staff salary costs, are eligible for PDM funding in accordance with the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

Applicants may apply for Applicant management costs of up to 10 percent of the total PDM grant application for management of the grant and all selected subgrants. Applicant requests for management costs must be submitted in a separate management costs subgrant application in FEMA’s grant application system (see the Content and Form of Application Submission subsection).

Applicants and subapplicants may include subapplicant management costs of up to 5 percent of the total of their planning or project subapplication to manage the proposed activity. For

Applicants, this is in addition to the 10 percent Applicant management costs to manage the overall grant. Subapplicant management cost activities must be added to the Scope of Work section and reflected in the Cost Estimate section of subgrant applications in FEMA’s grant application system.

Management costs are only awarded in conjunction with awarded project, advance assistance or planning subapplications. Applicants and subapplicants who do not receive awards/subawards for any planning, advance assistance or project subapplications will not receive reimbursement for management costs (see the Review and Selection Process subsection in Section E of this NOFO).

Indirect Facilities and Administrative Costs.

Indirect costs are allowable under this program as described in 2 CFR 200.414. With the exception of Recipients who have never received a negotiated indirect cost rate as described in 2 CFR 200.414(f), Recipients must have an approved indirect cost rate agreement with their cognizant Federal agency to charge indirect costs to this award. A copy of the approved rate (a fully executed agreement negotiated with the Applicant’s cognizant Federal agency) is required at the time of application and must be provided to FEMA before indirect costs are charged to the award. (See the definition of Recipient in the Notice of Award subsection in Section F of this NOFO.)

Other Submission Requirements

EHP Compliance.

Applicants and subapplicants proposing projects that have the potential to significantly affect the environment, including but not limited to modification or renovation of existing buildings, structures and facilities, or new construction, including replacement of facilities, must participate in the FEMA EHP review process. The EHP review process involves the submission of a detailed project description that explains the goals and objectives of the proposed project along with supporting documentation so that FEMA may determine whether the proposed project has the potential to adversely affect environmental resources and/or historic properties. EHP Job Aids and Supplements are available on the FEMA website at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/102051

Mitigation Plan Requirement.

All Applicants and subapplicants must have a FEMA-approved mitigation plan at the time of application and obligation of grant funds to receive a project award under this program in accordance with 44 CFR Part 201. More detailed information is provided in Part III, E.5, Hazard Mitigation Plan Requirement, of the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

Acquisition Project Requirements.

The subrecipient must provide FEMA with a signed copy of the Statement of Voluntary Participation for each property post-award. The Statement of Voluntary Participation formally documents the Notice of Voluntary Interest and information related to the purchase offer. The Statement of Voluntary Participation is available on the FEMA website at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/13708.

Subrecipients must apply deed-restriction language to all acquired properties to ensure that the property is maintained in perpetuity as open space consistent with natural floodplain functions, as agreed to by their accepting FEMA mitigation award funding.

Deed-restriction language is applied to acquired properties by recording the open space and deed restrictions with the deed for the property. The FEMA Model Deed Restriction is available on the FEMA website at https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/28496.

E. Application Review Information

Application Evaluation Criteria Prior to making a Federal award, the DHS FAO is required by 31 U.S.C. § 3321 note, 41 U.S.C. § 2313 and 2 CFR. §200.25 to review information available through any OMB-designated repositories of government-wide eligibility qualification or financial integrity information. Therefore, application evaluation criteria may include the following risk-based considerations of the applicant:

1. Financial stability

2. Quality of management systems and ability to meet management standards

3. History of performance in managing Federal award

4. Reports and findings from audits

5. Ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory, or other requirements

Review and Selection Process FEMA will review subapplications submitted by each Applicant to ensure compliance with the HMA Guidance, including eligibility of the Applicant and subapplicant, eligibility of proposed activities and costs, completeness of the subapplication, cost-effectiveness and engineering feasibility of mitigation projects, and eligibility and availability of the non- Federal cost share. For more detailed information, see Part V, Application Review Information, of the HMA Guidance, available on the FEMA website at http://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/103279.

FEMA will select eligible subapplications up to the available PDM funding amount of $250,000,000 in the following order:

1. Statutory Allocation

Statutory allocation of $575,000 Federal cost share for States, territories, and the District of Columbia (DC).

To meet the statutory requirement, FEMA will select eligible planning and project subapplications from each State, territory, and DC in order of the Applicant’s rank (#1–x) to the lowest ranked subapplication that brings the total Federal cost share to no more than $575,000 without skipping subapplications in order (see Other Eligibility Criteria subsection under Section C of this NOFO).

For example, an Applicant’s #1 ranked subapplication for $200,000 Federal cost share and #2 ranked subapplication for $340,000 would be selected for the allocation;

however, the #3 ranked subapplication for $575,000, #4 ranked subapplication for

$35,000 and any other eligible subapplications would be considered on a competitive basis in priority category 3 below. Therefore the maximum allowable allocation would be $540,000.

2. Tribal Set-Aside

Tribal set-aside of $20 million for federally-recognized Native American tribes, not to exceed $575,000 Federal cost share per tribal Applicant.

FEMA will set aside $20 million for federally-recognized Native American tribes applying directly to FEMA as Applicants. FEMA will select eligible planning and project subapplications for each tribal Applicant in order of the tribe’s rank (#1–x) to the lowest ranked subapplication that brings the total Federal cost share to no more than $575,000, not to exceed a total of $20 million.

3. Advance Assistance

PDM prevents loss of life and leads to significant savings by mitigating risks, reducing damage from future disasters, and lowering flood insurance premiums.

Advanced Assistance can be used to develop mitigation strategies and obtain data to prioritize, select, and develop community mitigation projects for future funding.

There is no guarantee for future HMA project funding if Advanced Assistance is awarded.

FEMA will select the highest ranked eligible subapplication(s) for Advance Assistance from each Applicant (including territories and tribes) not to exceed $200,000 total Federal cost share. Maximum funding available for all Advance Assistance is $12.5 million. All subapplications must be designated as Advance Assistance within the title of the subapplication and use the Planning subapplication type and Advance Assistance code/activity type in FEMA’s grant application system to be considered.

4. Resilient Infrastructure Competitive Funding

Infrastructure resilience is the ability to reduce the magnitude and/or duration of disruptive events. The effectiveness of Resilient Infrastructure or enterprise depends upon its ability to anticipate, absorb, adapt to, and/or rapidly recover from a potentially disruptive event. This funding is an opportunity to advance capital projects on a community level, ready for investment that will reduce risks, prevent loss of life and lead to significant savings by reducing damage from future disasters.

FEMA will select the Applicant’s highest ranked eligible Resilient Infrastructure mitigation subapplications up to $10 million Federal cost share based on final priority scoring criteria (see table below). The ranking will be based on the score correlating to the factors in the chart below. Maximum funding available for all Resilient Infrastructure projects is $125 million. All subapplications must be designated as Resilient Infrastructure within the title of the subapplication and use the Utility and Infrastructure Protection activity type/code within FEMA’s grant application system to be considered.

Resilient Infrastructure projects can be all-hazard, to include flood, seismic, wind, wildfire, and drought.

Eligible activities include, but are not limited to:

Infrastructure protective measures (including hazard-specific retrofit projects)

Utility protective measures (including hazard-specific retrofit projects)

Water and sanitary sewer system protective measures

Localized flood control to protect critical facilities

Floodwater storage and diversion

Floodplain and stream restoration

Stormwater management

Aquifer storage and recovery

Wetland restoration/creation

Final Priority Scoring Criteria for Resilient Infrastructure Projects & Advance Assistance

Priority Description Total Points

Private-Partnership Cost Share

Cost share taken on by private organizations/businesses emphasizing community participation, collaboration, and investment. Points will be assigned based on percentage of private cost share invested.

International Building Codes (IBC) Adopted (2012 or newer)

IBC adoption epitomizes community commitment to responsible building regulations. Points will be assigned to IBC participating communities as follows: 2012 version or lower adopted = 50 and 2015 version or higher adopted = 100.

50-100

Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS) rating

BCEGS rating assesses effectiveness of enforcement and adequacy of building codes with emphasis on mitigation. Classes weighted based on national class grouping ratings. Highest weight will be assigned to class 1 and descending through lower classes.

(Graded Scale: 1 = 100, 2 = 90, 3 = 80, 4 = 70, 5 = 60, 5 = 50, 6 = 40, 7 = 30, 8 = 20, 9+ = 10)

10-100

Community Rating System (CRS) Participation

The CRS recognizes and encourages community floodplain-management activities that exceed the minimum National Flood Insurance Program standards. Highest weight will be assigned to class 1 and descending through lower classes. (Graded Scale: 1 = 100, 2 = 90, 3 = 80, 4 = 70, 5 = 60, 5 = 50, 6 = 40, 7 = 30, 8 = 20, 9 = 10)

10-100

Final Priority Scoring Criteria for Resilient Infrastructure Projects & Advance Assistance

Priority Description Total Points

Firewise, USA The National Fire Protection Association’s Firewise USA™ program teaches people how to adapt to living with wildfire and encourages neighbors to work together and take action now to prevent losses.

Points will be assigned to Firewise participating communities.

Cooperating Technical Partners Program (CTP) Participation

Qualified partnership program where communities commit to collaborate in maintaining up-to-date flood hazard maps and other flood hazard information.

Points will be assigned to CTP participating communities.

Total Points Available 500*

* FEMA-validated Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) will be used in case of a tie in scoring

5. Traditional Competitive PDM Funding

After meeting the statutory requirement for State/territory allocations and the tribal set-aside, FEMA will select from the remaining eligible planning and project subapplications from all Applicants on a competitive basis up to the available amount of funding.

If an Applicant submits projects in excess of the limit for competitive consideration (see Other Eligibility Criteria subsection under Section C of this NOFO), then FEMA will only review the highest ranked competitive project subapplications up to the limit.

FEMA will select subapplications for competitive funding in the following order:

A. Multi-State/tribal mitigation initiatives.

FEMA will select one eligible multi-State/tribal mitigation planning or project subapplication per Applicant.

B. Planning subapplications from Applicants that have less than $400,000 HMGP planning funds available.

FEMA will select eligible planning subapplications from Applicants that have less than $400,000 HMGP planning funds available (see Hazard Mitigation Grant Program subsection in Section H of this NOFO).

C. Project subapplications from Applicants that have less than $4 million HMGP regular project funds available.

FEMA will select eligible project subapplications from Applicants that have less than $4 million in HMGP regular project funds in the following order:

i. Mitigation projects that reduce risk to any natural hazard (e.g., seismic, wildfire, landslide, wind, flood, drought)

ii. Generators for critical facilities identified in a FEMA-approved mitigation plan and meet the standards set by local building codes

D. Planning subapplications from Applicants that have $400,000 or more HMGP planning funds available.

FEMA will select eligible planning subapplications from Applicants that have $400,000 or more HMGP planning funds available.

E. Project subapplications from Applicants that have $4 million or more HMGP regular project funds available.

FEMA will select eligible project subapplications from Applicants that have $4 million or more HMGP regular project funds available in the following order:

i. Mitigation projects that reduce risk to any natural hazard (e.g., seismic, wildfire, landslide, wind, flood,…