FEMA Grants Louisiana $177.6 Million for Post Gustav, Ike Hazard Mitigation

Jun 18, 2009 -- BATON ROUGE – Today, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal announced that FEMA has granted Louisiana $177.6 million in Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding to support projects to protect the state from future damage following Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.

Governor Jindal said, “In the days following two back-to-back hurricanes that devastated many communities in our state last year, we saw the benefits of previous mitigation work, as elevated homes and buildings were largely spared from floodwater. We must now work to elevate even more homes, reinforce more buildings and structures and become better prepared for future storms.”

After hurricanes Gustav and Ike, Governor Jindal named the Louisiana Recovery Authority as the state mitigation team for these storms, meaning it had to approve uses for these funds. At the recommendation of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP), which administers HMGP funds, the LRA’s board voted Wednesday to approve priorities for this funding. The board set aside the majority of the money for parishes to support local hazard mitigation programs, which could include home elevations and other measures to protect areas of the parishes from loss in future storms.

The state is setting aside a portion of the funds for state-run programs. The broad allocations are:

* $33.3 million toward a pilot coastal restoration program and/or community safe houses;
* $125.6 million to be split among affected parishes; and
* $17.7 million to fund five percent state initiative programs, which typically are designed by GOHSEP to fill an unmet mitigation need.

“Each dollar we invest in hardening structures to make them more storm resistant represents real savings for the taxpayers in the event of a future storm or future flooding,” said Paul Rainwater, executive director of the LRA. “By pushing these dollars down to local governments, community leaders will be able to incorporate safer rebuilding practices into their overall recovery plans and make informed decisions about how best to protect their facilities from future damage.”

"The grant helps to establish a more resilient Louisiana especially for our coastal parishes. We're appreciative of the funding and will continue to work with the parishes in reducing hazards," says GOHSEP Director Mark Cooper.

Based on post hurricane damage estimates, the state allocated these federal funds to 53 affected parishes as follows:

Parish / Dollars
Terrebonne $16,410,684
Cameron $9,109,896
East Baton Rouge $8,617,740
Tangipahoa $7,317,345
Calcasieu $6,472,204
Lafourche $6,425,787
Jefferson $5,782,573
St. Mary $4,734,133
Ascension $4,637,789
Rapides $4,576,489
Iberville $4,378,891
Iberia $4,084,945
Livingston $4,032,859
St. Landry $3,651,095
Vermilion $3,463,504
Assumption $3,168,226
Pointe Coupee $2,243,648
Orleans $2,105,105
St. James $1,962,311
St. Martin $1,811,242
St. John the Baptist $1,576,838
Franklin $1,567,165
Ouachita $1,468,380
St. Tammany $1,451,577
West Baton Rouge $1,424,831
Lafayette $1,303,687
Avoyelles $1,275,352
Acadia $947,364
St. Charles $883,375
Evangeline $879,632
East Feliciana $713,888
St. Helena $651,585
Catahoula $569,423
East Carroll $518,886
West Feliciana $509,910
Concordia $491,915
Plaquemines $491,305
Richland $425,188
Grant $389,917
Allen $334,914
West Carroll $321,902
Beauregard $291,436
Jefferson Davis $289,494
Morehouse $283,071
St. Bernard $273,264
Washington $206,492
La Salle $150,000
Tensas $150,000
Vernon $150,000
Madison $150,000
Winn $150,000
Sabine $150,000
Union $150,000

The $177.6 million is FEMA’s initial allocation of HMGP funds, which could grow larger as the scope of the post-Gustav and Ike Public Assistance program grows in Louisiana.

Unlike HMGP funds given to Louisiana after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, this HMGP funding comes with a requirement for local and state governments to pay matching costs, meaning the federal government pays 75 percent of the costs, with local or state government required to pay for 25 percent of the cost of the projects. Louisiana has repeatedly requested that federal government waive or lower the state and local match requirement, given the scope of the destruction wrought by four storms in three years.

Source: Louisiana Governor