Grants Administration Community Development Block Grant – Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) On January 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) allocated $2,288,000 in Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funds to the State of Alaska recovering from the 2018 Cook Inlet Earthquake. Under this notice, HUD allocated a minimum of $1,144,000 (50%) to be expended within the Municipality of Anchorage, and the remaining $1,144,000 (50%) to be expended within the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and the Kenai Peninsula Borough. CDBG–MIT funds represent a unique and significant opportunity for the State of Alaska to use this assistance in areas impacted by the 2018 Cook Inlet Earthquake to carry out strategic and high-impact activities to mitigate disaster risks and reduce future losses. While it is impossible to eliminate all risks, CDBG–MIT funds will enable the State of Alaska to mitigate against disaster risks, while at the same time allowing the State of Alaska the opportunity to transform State and local planning. HUD seeks to: Support data-informed investments in high-impact projects that will reduce risks attributable to natural disasters, with particular focus on repetitive loss of property and critical infrastructure. Build the capacity of States and local governments to comprehensively analyze disaster risks and to update hazard mitigation plans through the use of data and meaningful community engagement; Support the adoption of policies that reflect local and regional priorities that will have long-lasting effects on community risk reduction, to include the risk reduction to community lifelines such as Safety and Security, Communications, Food, Water, Sheltering, Transportation, Health and Medical, Hazardous Material (management) and Energy (Power & Fuel); and future disaster costs (e.g., adoption of forward-looking land use plans that integrate the hazard mitigation plan, latest edition of the published disaster-resistant building codes and standards (to include wildland urban interface, flood and all hazards, ASCE–24, and ASCE–7 respectively), vertical flood elevation protection, and policies that encourage hazard insurance for private and public facilities); and Maximize the impact of available funds by encouraging leverage, private-public partnerships, and coordination with other Federal programs. The alignment of CDBG–MIT funds with other federal mitigation programs must also occur within the basic CDBG framework. The national objectives of the CDBG program are: (a) Providing benefit to low- and moderate-income persons; (b) preventing or eliminating slum and blighting conditions; or (c) addressing a severe and recently arising urgent community welfare or health need. Unlike other forms of Federal disaster recovery assistance, CDBG–DR and CDBG–MIT grants have a statutory focus on benefiting vulnerable lower-income people and communities and targeting the most impacted and distressed area, which HUD designated as the Municipality of Anchorage. Resilience Planning and Practices Planning is essential to ensure Alaskan communities, residents and businesses are prepared for future disasters. Hazard Mitigation Planning activities help local leadership and the public decide how to allocate funds for housing and infrastructure that is more resilient and reduces the risk of death, property damage, and suffering from natural disasters. Community Development Block Grant- Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funds may also be used on physical housing and infrastructure projects. A range of activities are eligible to be funded by CDBG-MIT Funds. The State of Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development (DCCED) is collecting input on which activities could do the most to decrease risk and benefit the most people. Resilience Planning: Uses hazard risk assessment to identify where floods, seismic activity, tsunamis, and landslides can cause harm to residents. It determines places where new housing will be safer, but where people will still be connected to transportation, schools, grocery stores and houses of worship. With lots of people looking for temporary and permanent housing, there is a shortage of safe, affordable housing in areas affected by disasters. Resilience planning helps to ensure housing and infrastructure are safe for the next generation and beyond. Watershed Management: Brings together communities that are connected by a river or stream to balance the effects of disasters and helps people work together to understand and manage flooding, seismic activity, and other risks. Natural Flood Protection: Includes strategies like creating constructed wetlands for floodwater storage and restoration of vegetated buffers as well as agricultural practices such as no-till or cover-crop plantings. Learning Tools of the Trade: Includes training and learning from local government officials, businesses or nonprofit organizations to help communities be more prepared and safer from disasters. Home Retrofits: Includes updates and fortifications to homes and individual residences that reduce risks during earthquakes. Retrofits can also include improvements to reduce risk of wildfire events. Community Rating System Grant: Helps communities preserve open space to reduce disaster risk. These and similar actions can help communities qualify for insurance discounts through the federal government’s Community Rating System Program. To provide your input, you can access the survey by following the link here: https://forms.microsoft.com/r/fKCwLGGNaq Related Documents Public Notice - Community Development Block Grant – Mitigation Needs Assessment Professional Services Agreement - 22000047 Public Notice IRFP 220000125 Informal Requests For Proposals - IRFP 220000125Issued Monday, May 9, 2022 IRFP 220000125 Amendment 1 Related Applicable Laws and Regulations Federal Register :: Allocations, Common Application, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements for Community Development Block Grant Mitigation Grantees FR-6109-N-04 dated January 27, 2020: Federal Register :: Allocations, Common Application, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements for Community Development Block Grant Mitigation Grantees; Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Allocation For more information about Alaska CDBG-MIT Grants contact Contact DCRA staff at ced.cra.cdbgmit@alaska.gov Pauletta Bourne Division of Community and Regional Affairs Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development Location: Fairbanks Phone: (907) 451-2721 Fax: (907) 451-2742 pauletta.bourne@alaska.gov Anita Baker Division of Community and Regional Affairs Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development Location: Anchorage Phone: (907) 269-4252 anita.baker@alaska.gov Revised 08/09/2021 Content Reviewed 08/09/2021 The State of Alaska, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development (DCCED), complies with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. This publication is available in alternative communication formats upon request. Please contact the DCRA publication Specialist at 1-907-269-4560