It’s been one week since BOLDplanning first wrote about Colorado’s 416 Fire. Today the blaze has scorched well over 34,000 acres inside the San Juan National Forest (near the city of Durango), and is only 37 percent contained. All mandatory evacuation orders have been lifted, but people in the area remain on high alert. They, like public officials, know that emergency preparedness is key. So is federal funding from FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), which can help communities mitigate against future risks, including wildfires.
Per FEMA, the HMGP is an all-hazards risk reduction grant program administered by applicants including states, federally-recognized tribes, and territories. HMGP funding, which is usually only available following Presidential major disaster declarations, is currently available for Fire Management Assistance declarations in fiscal years 2017 and 2018. The HMGP Post Fire initiative runs through September 30, 2018, and it’s well worth applying for.
Why? FEMA will provide a national aggregate calculation based on an average of historical Fire Management Assistance designations from the last ten years. The total amount available for HMGP for states and tribal applicants with standard state or tribal hazard mitigation plans will be $425,008 for each declaration. It will be $566,67