Notice2024-22270
Public Assistance Mitigation Cost Share Incentives Policy
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
October 1, 2024
Issuing agencies
Homeland Security DepartmentFederal Emergency Management Agency
Abstract
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is accepting comments on its newly issued Public Assistance Mitigation Cost Share Incentives Policy, FEMA Interim Policy FP-104-24-002.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 190 (Tuesday, October 1, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 190 (Tuesday, October 1, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79943-79944]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-22270]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Federal Emergency Management Agency
[Docket ID: FEMA-2024-0029]
Public Assistance Mitigation Cost Share Incentives Policy
AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland
Security.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is accepting
comments on its newly issued Public Assistance Mitigation Cost Share
Incentives Policy, FEMA Interim Policy FP-104-24-002.
DATES: Comments must be received no later than January 29, 2025.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket ID: FEMA-2024-
0029, via the Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Pesapane, Director, Public
Assistance Division, Federal Emergency Management Agency, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#fd9b98909cd08f989e928b988f84d08d9cd08d9291949e84bd9b98909cd399958ed39a928b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b2d4d7dfd39fc0d7d1ddc4d7c0cb9fc2d39fc2dddedbd1cbf2d4d7dfd39cd6dac19cd5ddc4">[email protected]</span></a>, (202) 646-3834.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Public Participation
Interested persons are invited to submit comments and related
materials. We will consider all comments and materials received during
the comment period.
If you submit a comment, include the docket ID, indicate the
specific section of this document to which each comment applies, and
give the reason for each comment. All submissions may be posted,
without change, to the public docket at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>,
and will include any personal information you provide. Therefore,
submitting this information makes it public. For more about privacy and
the docket, visit <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/privacy-notice">https://www.regulations.gov/privacy-notice</a>.
The interim policy is available in docket ID FEMA-2024-0029. For
access to the docket to read background documents or comments received,
go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and search for the docket ID.
II. Background
Under section 406 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act, as amended \1\ (Stafford Act), the President
may provide financial assistance to eligible applicants for the repair,
restoration, reconstruction, or replacement of an eligible facility
damaged by a major disaster at a minimum Federal cost share of 75
percent.\2\
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\1\ Public Law 93-288, 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.
\2\ 42 U.S.C. 5172.
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The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 \3\ amended the Stafford Act to
add the new provision 406(b)(3) authorizing FEMA's Public Assistance
(PA) program to increase the minimum Federal cost share for measures
that increase readiness for, and resilience from, a major disaster.\4\
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\3\ Public Law 115-123, 132 Stat. 64.
\4\ 42 U.S.C. 5172(b)(3).
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This interim Public Assistance Mitigation Cost Share Incentives
Policy applies to PA-eligible applicants, including State, local,
Tribal, and Territorial governments and certain private nonprofit
organizations, and implements section 406(b)(3) by providing guidance
regarding eligible measures that meet FEMA's criteria for the Federal
cost share increase up to 85 percent.
III. Maximizing the Value of Public Feedback
The impacts of Federal policies tend to be widely dispersed on
society. Members of the public are likely to have useful information,
data, and perspectives on the benefits and burdens of FEMA's existing
programs and policies. FEMA seeks public feedback relevant to FEMA's
interim Public Assistance Mitigation Cost Share Incentives Policy.
The following is meant to assist members of the public in
formulating comments. This notice contains a list of five questions,
the answers to which will assist FEMA in understanding how and why
incentive measures in the interim policy are supported or opposed by
stakeholders, and additional incentive measures that should be
considered for inclusion in a future version of the policy. FEMA
encourages public comment on these questions and seeks any other
national-level data that commenters believe are relevant to FEMA's
interim policy review. Below are recommendations for commenters to use
when making comments in response to the questions, so that FEMA can
better evaluate potential changes to the interim policy:
<bullet> Commenters should explain, with as much detail as
possible, why an aspect of the interim policy should be modified and
provide specific suggestions of ways the agency can better achieve its
objectives.
[[Page 79944]]
<bullet> Commenters should provide specific national-level data
that document the costs, burdens, and benefits of potentially new
requirements to the extent they are available. Commenters might also
address how FEMA can best obtain and consider accurate, objective
information and data about the costs, burdens, and benefits of the
interim policy and whether there are existing sources of data that FEMA
can use to evaluate the effects of the interim policy over time.
<bullet> Commenters should identify with specificity administrative
burdens, program requirements, information collection burdens, waiting
time, or unnecessary complexity that may impose unjustified barriers in
general, or that may have adverse effects on equity for all, including
those in disadvantaged communities.
<bullet> Commenters should provide the number of the question(s)
being answered in the commenter's response (e.g. In response to
question #5 . . . ).
IV. Specific Information Requested
FEMA seeks comment on the interim policy, specifically on:
1. How will the activities incentivized through the interim policy
increase resilience or decrease future risk? Please explain.
2. Will there be specific challenges faced by disadvantaged
communities in meeting the requirements of the interim policy? In
particular, will disadvantaged communities have challenges in adopting
the building or energy codes necessary for the 10% increase in cost
share? Please explain.
3. Are the incentives outlined in the policy sufficient to
encourage additional investment or activity that would not have
otherwise occurred? Why or why not?
4. Are there alternative measures that FEMA should consider
incentivizing through the policy that would help to achieve greater
readiness and resilience to future disasters? Some examples are
outlined in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, which authorized FEMA to
provide the cost share incentives under the PA program, including:
adoption of a mitigation plan, participation in the community rating
system, and making investments in disaster relief, insurance, and
emergency management programs. Please comment on those examples and/or
provide additional examples.
5. Are there ways to make the interim policy more accessible or to
decrease public burden in its implementation? Please provide examples.
Based on the comments received, FEMA may make appropriate revisions
to the interim policy. When or if FEMA issues a final policy, FEMA will
publish a notice of availability in the Federal Register and make the
final policy available at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Responses to
this notice do not bind FEMA to any further actions related to the
responses. The final policy will not have the force and effect of law.
Authority: The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act, as amended (Stafford Act), 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.; 44
CFR part 206.
Deanne Criswell,
Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency.
[FR Doc. 2024-22270 Filed 9-30-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-23-P
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