44 CFR 206.2 - Definitions.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is considering implementing a Public Assistance deductible that would condition States' receipt of FEMA reimbursement for the repair and replacement of public infrastructure damaged by a disaster event. The primary intent of the deductible concept is to incentivize greater State resilience to future disasters, thereby reducing future disaster costs nationally. On January 20, 2016, FEMA (the Agency) published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking comment on a Public Assistance deductible concept. The ANPRM provided a general description of the concept that many commenters found insufficient to provide meaningful comment. In an effort to offer the public a more detailed deductible concept upon which to provide additional feedback, the Agency is issuing a supplemental ANPRM (SANPRM) that presents a conceptual deductible program, including a methodology for calculating deductible amounts based on a combination of each State's fiscal capacity and disaster risk, a proposed credit structure to reward States for undertaking resilience-building activities, and a description of how FEMA could consider implementing the program. At this stage of the rulemaking process, the deductible remains only something that FEMA is considering. The policy conceived of in this document is not a proposal. In this document, FEMA is providing what is merely a description of a direction FEMA could take in future rulemaking in an effort to solicit further feedback from the public. After considering the comments it receives, or as a result of other factors, FEMA may expand on or redevelop this concept.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is amending its Public Assistance and Fire Management Assistance Grant regulations to update the terms it uses to describe grantees and subgrantees, to reflect the terminology used in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidance on Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a component of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is removing its environmental considerations regulations and replacing the regulations with a new Directive and Instruction on environmental planning and historical preservation requirements. DHS instituted procedures for environmental considerations that apply Department-wide (including FEMA) in a new Directive and Instruction. FEMA is issuing supplemental procedures to the new DHS Directive and Instruction; a Notice of Availability for these supplemental procedures appears in the Notice section of today's edition of the Federal Register .

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is considering the establishment of a disaster deductible, requiring a predetermined level of financial or other commitment from a Recipient (Grantee), generally the State, Tribal, or Territorial government, before FEMA will provide assistance under the Public Assistance Program when authorized by a Presidential major disaster declaration. FEMA believes the deductible model would incentivize Recipients to make meaningful improvements in disaster planning, fiscal capacity for disaster response and recovery, and risk mitigation, while contributing to more effective stewardship of taxpayer dollars. For example, Recipients could potentially receive credit toward their deductible requirement through proactive pre-event actions such as adopting enhanced building codes, establishing and maintaining a disaster relief fund or self-insurance plan, or adoption of other measures that reduce the Recipient's risk from disaster events. The deductible model would increase stakeholder investment and participation in disaster recovery and building for future risk, thereby strengthening our nation's resilience to disaster events and reducing the cost of disasters long term. FEMA seeks comment on all aspects of the deductible concept.

FEMA proposes to revise its regulations to comply with Section 1109 of the Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013 which requires FEMA, in cooperation with State, local, and Tribal emergency management agencies, to review, update, and revise through rulemaking the Individual Assistance factors FEMA uses to measure the severity, magnitude, and impact of a disaster.

On December 19, 2014, all Federal award-making agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its component, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), published a joint interim final rule implementing the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)'s Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards. DHS and FEMA now adopt, with one change, the interim final rule as final. The change restores language in the FEMA State and Tribal mitigation planning regulations that was inadvertently removed by the interim final rule.

This joint interim final rule implements for all Federal award-making agencies the final guidance Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) published by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on December 26, 2013. This rule is necessary in order to incorporate into regulation and thus bring into effect the Uniform Guidance as required by OMB. Implementation of this guidance will reduce administrative burden and risk of waste, fraud, and abuse for the approximately $600 billion per year awarded in Federal financial assistance. The result will be more Federal dollars reprogrammed to support the mission, new entities able to compete and win awards, and ultimately a stronger framework to provide key services to American citizens and support the basic research that underpins the United States economy.

Under the authority of Section 420 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as amended, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides grants for the mitigation, management, and control of any fire or fire complex on public or private forest land or grassland that threatens such destruction as would constitute a major disaster. This rule finalizes, without change, a proposed rule to revise the Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) program regulations to lengthen the potential extension for the grantee's submission of its grant application to FEMA from up to 3 months to up to 6 months. This rule also finalizes, without change, the proposed regulation to lengthen the potential extension for a subgrantee to submit a project worksheet from up to 3 months to up to 6 months. The rule finalizes additional minor administrative changes to the rule.

This rule finalizes, without change, an interim final rule that published in the Federal Register on November 9, 2012, authorizing reimbursement of force account labor under the Public Assistance Program for debris removal work related to Hurricane Sandy.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is seeking public comment on implementing a provision of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act regarding State administration of the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). The provision directs FEMA to establish criteria to delegate authority to States to administer HMGP. FEMA is seeking input from the public to help inform the development of this new method of program delivery.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is revising two dollar figures in its regulations governing the Public Assistance Program's project thresholds. FEMA is revising the monetary thresholds for when FEMA will process an application using “simplified procedures.”

Under the authority of section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides financial assistance to individuals and households to repair or replace their homes after a Presidentially-declared major disaster or emergency. This rule finalizes revisions to FEMA's repair, replacement, and housing construction assistance regulations that clarify the eligibility criteria for assistance and implement changes to section 408 of the Stafford Act that were made by the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA).

In this rule the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) proposes the implementation of the Cost Estimating Format (CEF) as the standard estimating procedure for large permanent work projects authorized under the Public Assistance program. Under the Public Assistance Program, FEMA awards grants to State and local governments, Indian tribes, and certain private nonprofit organizations to assist them in responding to and recovering from Presidentially-declared emergencies and other disasters. The CEF provides a uniform method of estimating costs for large projects. In this rule, FEMA also proposes to establish reimbursement thresholds to govern situations in which the actual cost of a work project is higher or lower than the CEF estimate.

Section 1105 of the Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013 directs FEMA to establish a nationwide Dispute Resolution Pilot Program (DRPP) in order to facilitate an efficient recovery from major disasters, including arbitration by an independent review panel, to resolve disputes relating to Public Assistance projects. This final rule establishes an option for arbitration under the Public Assistance Program administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The option allows applicants to file for arbitration, instead of a second appeal under FEMA's current Public Assistance Program. The requests for review under the DRPP must be submitted by December 31, 2015. This final rule provides the procedures and the standard of review that FEMA will apply under the arbitration option.

FEMA proposes to revise its Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) program regulations to lengthen the potential extension for the grantee's submission of its grant application to FEMA from up to 3 months to up to 6 months. FEMA also proposes to lengthen the potential extension for a subgrantee to submit a project worksheet from up to 3 months to up to 6 months. These proposed deadline extensions provide increased flexibility to applicants who may benefit from additional time to prepare the documentation necessary to support a grant application and may reduce or eliminate financial losses due to delayed invoices by third parties that exceed the maximum 3-month deadline extension. In addition, FEMA proposes to exempt project worksheets claiming only administrative costs from the $1,000 minimum. FEMA also proposes to make additional minor administrative changes to its FMAG regulations to reflect current statutory and regulatory requirements and clarify grant application procedures.

The Fiscal Year 2007 Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act authorized a Public Assistance Pilot Program intended to reduce the costs to the Federal government of providing assistance to States and local governments; increase flexibility in the administration of assistance; and expedite the provision of assistance under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Due to the current pressing need for efficient and timely recovery from a catastrophic disaster event, Hurricane Sandy, which has cast widespread debris over a major portion of the eastern seaboard of the United States, this rule implements one of the debris-related Public Assistance Pilot procedures: it allows for the reimbursement of the straight- or regular time salaries and benefits of the employees of Public Assistance applicants who perform disaster-related debris and wreckage removal work for any major disaster or emergency declared by the President on or after October 27, 2012, in response to Hurricane Sandy.

Under the authority of section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides grants to individuals and households to repair or replace their homes after a Presidentially-declared major disaster or emergency. FEMA proposes to revise its repair, replacement, and housing construction assistance regulations to clarify the eligibility criteria for assistance and implement changes to section 408 of the Stafford Act that were made by the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA).