BRIC and FMA Programs

Information updated on September 25, 2024. Please note that the official FEMA Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) and Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) for fiscal year (FY) 2024 have not been posted and the information in this announcement is subject to change based on the posted Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO).

Overview

Colorado communities once again have the opportunity to reduce their long-term risks from natural hazards with assistance from FEMA’s two annual competitive Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) programs:

Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC)
Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA)

These programs help elected officials, public works agencies, capital improvement staffs and other local officials to implement mitigation projects that can dramatically reduce the impacts of a future natural disaster. This opportunity provides funding for communities to implement mitigation activities that reduce risk to life, propert and infrastructure from natural hazards. In Colorado, natural hazards include wildfire, flooding, drought, winter storms, extreme heat and other hazards identified in the Colorado Enhanced State Hazard Mitigation Plan.

The priorities of these two programs include, but are not limited to, enhancing climate resilience and adaption, incorporating nature-based solutions, promoting equity and incentivizing natural hazard risk reduction activities.

Available Funding

The State of Colorado has been allocated $4 million under BRIC and has the opportunity to submit nationally competitive projects within the BRIC and FMA programs. BRIC will fund up to $50 million federal share for a single project and FMA will fund up to $50 million federal share for a single localized flood risk reduction project.

State Allocation Breakdown

$1,500,000: Capability and Capacity Building Activities. These activities include building codes, project scoping, hazard mitigation planning and related activities and partnerships.
$500,000: Construction Projects or Other Eligible Activates.
- $400,000 will be prioritized for activities and projects benefiting Community Disaster Resilience Zones.

State Building Code Plus-Up

$2,000,000: Building code adoption and enforcement activities. Building code plus-up funds are an additional fund category that may be applied to building code activities only. Activities under this category should enable the adoption and enforcement of codes that reduce risk, enhance current codes or provide training relating to building codes.

Cost Share

A cost share is required for all sub-applications funded under these programs. Projects require a 25 percent non-federal cost share although some communities may qualify for a lower percentage. The non-federal cost share may consist of cash, in-kind, donated services, materials or any combination. FEMA will provide up to 5 percent of the total project costs at 100 percent federal funding for grant management costs (SRMC) in addition to the federal obligation of the project.

Application Process and Deadlines

Sub-applicant submits a Notice of Interest (NOI) at this link: DHSEM Notice of Interest Form.
DHSEM will review the NOI and conduct a scoping call with the sub-applicant; eligible sub-applicants must then submit a project application through FEMA Grants Outcome (FEMA GO).
Draft sub-applications are to be completed in FEMA GO. The deadline to submit draft sub-applications is January 3, 2025.
•      DHSEM will review draft sub-applications for, and are required to meet, project eligibility, application completeness, Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA), engineering feasibility, mitigation plan status and Environmental and Historic Preservation (EHP) review eligibility.
•      DHSEM will convene an interagency panel to score BRIC and FMA projects the week of January 6, 2025. This panel will provide feedback on the draft sub-application as compared to the BRIC/FMA scoring criteria, as applicable. This feedback will help inform the sub-applicant to complete their final application and not impact the submission of the application.
•      DHSEM will not accept sub-applications for BRIC and FMA after that date and applications will be considered late and will not be submitted for funding consideration after this date.
Final sub-applications are due to FEMA GO by February 17, 2025.
DHSEM will submit the BRIC and FMA applications to FEMA by February 28, 2025.
Information on deadlines may change with the official NOFO posting.

Applicant Support

DHSEM will host virtual office hours open to anyone interested in applying to BRIC and FMA programs. Office hours will be held:

October 9, 2024 from 1 to 3 p.m.
- This session will cover deadlines and getting started in FEMA GO
- Google Meet joining information
  - Video call link: https://meet.google.com/pxg-iywb-atz
  - Or dial: ‪(US) +1 405-489-2124 PIN: ‪740 928 046#
  - More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/pxg-iywb-atz?pin=3413953822004
October 16, 2024 from 1 to 2 p.m.
- This session will cover project types and eligibility.
- Google Meet joining information
  - Video call link: https://meet.google.com/pxg-iywb-atz
  - Or dial: ‪(US) +1 405-489-2124 PIN: ‪740 928 046#
  - More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/pxg-iywb-atz?pin=3413953822004
More office hours will be offered once the official NOFO is posted.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for HMA funding, FEMA requires all sub-applicants to have a current FEMA approved Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP) by the application deadline and at the time of obligated funding. Communities that are not in an HMP may find a project sponsor who is or they may ask to be added to the appropriate HMP by following DHSEM’s methodology (available on request).

State Agencies
Local Governments
Tribal Governments & Communities
Special Districts

Evaluation Criteria

Applications submitted will undergo a state and federal review. Communities are strongly encouraged to review the qualitative and technical criteria for both programs. DHSEM and other state agencies that form the State Hazard Mitigation Team will score and prioritize all applications using either the BRIC or FMA program criteria as appropriate.

Contact Information

Please contact Matt West by email at matthew.west@state.co.us for any questions related to hazard mitigation plans (including adding jurisdictions) and Emily Drosselmeyer by email at emily.drosselmeyer@state.co.us with any questions about projects.

Colorado Resources

More information is available on the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance webpage.

FEMA Resources

Note

Registering and applying for an award under FEMA GO 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) FY 2024 Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities. The registration process can take up to four 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