The Federal Emergency Management Agencyâs (FEMAâs) Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) programs use an automated grant application and management system called FEMA GO. The Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program and the FMA program also uses an automated grant application and management system called Mitigation (MT) eGrants. The FEMA GO and MT eGrants systems include application information needed to apply for funding under these grant programs. FEMA uses the BRIC Panel Review Form to solicit volunteers from state, local, tribal governments and Other Federal Agencies (OFA), to review applications that are routed to the qualitative panel reviews. The volunteers will review, and score applications based on a pre-determined scoring criteria. The PDM, FMA, and BRIC programs will use the same FEMA Form FF-206-FY-22-151 Quarterly Progress Report (QPR) Form.
The HMA programs attribute increases in burden hours to the large increases in funding to HMA programs from the IIJA and implementation of revised standardized forms, project data required to assess program effectiveness, and increases in data requirements needed to verify project conditions and compliance. The FMA, BRIC, and PDM HMA programs established new quarterly reporting data forms and that reduce QPR burden hours as reflected in the above table. Before this submission, the FMA, BRIC, and PDM programs, had not established a standardized format for quarterly reporting. The FMA, BRIC and PDM programs had relied on multiple data formats and forms generated by the recipientâs data for quarterly reporting information. Multiple forms and multiple data collection and reporting processes contributed to increased burden to report quarterly project status information. The updated quarterly reporting instrument will allow the FMA, BRIC, and PDM programs will also allow the HMA programs to collect standardized information and apply consistent project performance analysis to the quarterly reporting data.
HMA programs have designed instruments such as the FEMA Form FF-206-FY-22-158, the Acknowledgement of Conditions For Properties Using FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grant Funds; FEMA Form FF-206-FY-22-157, Model FEMA Deed Restriction; FEMA Form FF-206-FY-22-156, Model Statement of Assurances for Property Acquisition Projects; and
FEMA Form FF-206-FY-22-155, BRIC DTA Request Form, to reduce applicant burden hours and reduce the complexity of the grant application process. Usability tests confirm that overall burden hours have decreased by 54,320 hours in recent data due to revisions in forms and elimination of the collection of duplicate information on multiple forms. However, the IIJA has increased HMA program funding by a factor of 3-5 times in FY 2022 and beyond compared to FY 2021 funding levels to account for an upward trend in HMA information collection activities.
Combination Total of New and Revised Instruments -52,902 hours (1,418 hours new â 54,320 hours revised).
The new costs in quarterly reporting reflect the increases in the burden hours attributed to the large increases in funding to HMA programs from the IIJA and implementation of a standardized form, data, and data collection process. The increase in the benefit-cost determination costs reflect data updates that show decreases in the number of responses per respondent. The change in the environmental review costs reflect data updates that account for an increased number of respondents (SOC 19-3051). Usability tests on recent data have also decreased burden hour estimations on some application instruments.
Combination Total of New and Revised Instruments -$3,137,749 ($87,526 new - $3,225,275 revised).
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Benefit-Cost Determination