Flood Mitigation Assistance

The Flood Mitigation Assistance Program (FMA) was created as part of the National Flood Insurance Reform Act (NFIRA) of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 4101) with the goal of reducing or eliminating claims under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Although the NFIRA created FMA, the regulations governing this program are found in 44 CFR Part 78. The Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance for FMA is 97.029. The overall goal of FMA is to fund cost-effective measures that reduce or eliminate the long-term risk of flood damage to buildings, manufactured homes, and other National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)-insurable structures.

The program's objectives are to:

• Reduce the number of repetitively or substantially damaged structures and the associated claims on the National Flood Insurance Fund.
  
• Encourage long-term, comprehensive mitigation planning.
  
• Respond to the needs of communities participating in the NFIP to expand their mitigation activities beyond floodplain development review and permitting.
  
• Complement other Federal and State mitigation programs with similar, long-term mitigation goals.

FMA provides grants to communities for projects that reduce the risk of flood damage to structures that have flood insurance coverage. This funding is available for mitigation planning and implementation of mitigation measures only. The State of Tennessee, Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA), is the administrator of the FMA program and is responsible for selecting projects for funding from the applicants submitted by all communities within Tennessee. TEMA then forwards selected applications to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for an eligibility determination. Individuals cannot apply directly for FMA funds; however, their local government may submit an application on their behalf.

FMA -

Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) Grant 2023 NOFO is available. If interested in applying for this grant, please fill out the Pre-Application form. See Pre-Application link at bottom of page.

Application Process - FEMA GO:

1. Sub-recipients will submit a Statement of Intent (SOI or Pre-Application Form) for FMA2023 through the Mitigation Office. SOI's received by TEMA after the established due date for SOI submission will be considered late and will not be considered for funding.
   
2. Upon approval of SOI, eligible Sub-recipients will be required to submit project applications through the FEMA Grants Outcome (FEMA GO), which is the award management system for FMA.

• Registering and applying for an award under FEMAGO portal is a multi-step process and requires time to complete. Sub applicants should read the registration instructions carefully and prepare the information requested before beginning the registration process provided in the Notice of Funding Opportunity NOFO.
• Note: Reviewing and assembling the required information before beginning the registration process will alleviate last-minute searches for required information.
  
• The registration process can take a few weeks to complete. To ensure a project application meets the deadline, sub-applicants are advised to start the required steps well in advance of their submission.
• Sub-applications will be reviewed and required to meet Project Eligibility, Application Completeness, Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA), Engineering Feasibility, Mitigation Plan Status, and Environmental and Historic Preservation Review eligibility.
• Applications must be submitted for final State review in FEMAGO no later than December 29, 2023 .
  
• Final FY2023 FMA Application with completed sub-applications must be complete and reviewed by the Hazard Mitigation staff and Hazard Mitigation Council before submission.
• If interested in a possible application for a Flood Mitigation Assistance project - Please fill out the Pre-Application Form - Statement of Intent below.