Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
Hazard Mitigation Grant funding is now available statewide as a result of the federal disaster declaration for the late-January severe winter storm, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and Department of Conservation and Recreation announced on May 11.
The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program provides grants to reduce, minimize or eliminate potential damages to property and infrastructure from natural hazard events. Eligible projects include stormwater, drainage and culvert improvements, flood control, property acquisition, wind retrofits, and structural elevations.
Funding for hazard mitigation plans and projects can reduce overall risks to the population, structures and infrastructure, while also reducing the reliance on taxpayer-funded federal disaster assistance for disaster recovery.
To be eligible, communities must adopt a Local Natural Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
MEMA urges applicants to attend one of the following grant briefings:
• June 2, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Kingston Fire Headquarters, 105 Pembroke St., Kingston
• June 3, 10 a.m.-noon, Lanesborough Fire HQ1, 80 South Main St., Lanesborough
• June 4, 1:30-3:30 p.m., 21st floor conference room, One Ashburton Place, Boston
• June 8, 10 a.m.-noon, MEMA Region III/IV, 1002 Suffield St., Agawam
• June 9, 1:30-3:30 p.m., MEMA Region 1, 365 East St., Tewksbury
• June 10, 10 a.m.-noon, Franklin Regional Council of Governments, 12 Olive St., Greenfield
• June 11, 10 a.m.-noon, Oxford Police Department, 503 Main St., Oxford
• June 16, 10 a.m.-noon, MassDOT District 5 Headquarters, 1000 County St., Taunton
Applications for mitigation projects and hazard mitigation planning, submitted by Aug. 3, will be reviewed and, if appropriate, recommended to FEMA for advanced funding. These applications must meet all HMA program requirements, have a complete application package, and display strong commitment for implementation at the time of award.
The second application deadline of Nov. 23 is for projects and plans that need additional refinement and application development work before an application can be submitted. Nov. 23 is the final deadline for submission of applications under this grant program.
Details, including the grant application form, instructions and other funding opportunities, will soon be available on the Disaster Recovery & Mitigation page of the MEMA website.
For more information, contact Dave Woodbury, hazard mitigation grants coordinator at MEMA, at (508) 820-2034 or David.Woodbury@state.ma.us; Sarah White, Mitigation Unit supervisor at MEMA, at (508) 820-2053 or Sarah.White@state.ma.us; or Richard Zingarelli, state hazard mitigation officer and NFIP Coordinator at DCR, at (617) 626-1406 or Richard.Zingarelli@state.ma.us.