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Citation:FEMA-1603-DR-LA, Jefferson Parish, Hazard Mitigation Project 11568

Summary:

Hurricane Katrina’s flood waters breached a levee in lower Orleans Parish and overflowed the 17th Street Canal’s lower wall flooding the canal and depositing silt and trash that clogged Jefferson Parish’s (Applicant) drainage facilities. FEMA prepared PW 2605 to remove the debris from the canal. To mitigate the damage, the Applicant installed 30 flapgate prevention valves on the canal system drainage outlets to prevent backflows. On July 22, 2006, FEMA obligated PW 11568, for zero dollars because the Project Officer stated that flood waters and debris did not damage the Applicant’s drainage facilities. The Regional Administrator sustained this determination on July 25, 2008. In addition, the Regional Administrator denied the appeal because the Applicant completed the Hazard Mitigation Project (HMP) without FEMA conducting a National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) compliance review and the Applicant did not submit the first appeal in a timely manner. The Applicant asserted that it did not receive notice from GOHSEP that FEMA did not fund PW 11568 until January 30, 2008. The Applicant filed the first appeal on March 25, 2008; 20 months after the FEMA obligated PW 11568 for zero dollars.

The Applicant filed a second appeal on September 26, 2008, reiterating the arguments in the first appeal. On March 24, 2009, the Acting Assistant Administrator for the Disaster Assistance Directorate met with representatives from Jefferson Parish to discuss the appeal. The Applicant admitted that the United States Army Corps of Engineers found the facility eligible for its program. Federal Regulation 44 CFR §206.226(a)(1) prohibits FEMA from providing disaster assistance funding when another federal agency has specific authority to restore facilities damaged or destroyed by a major disaster.

Issues:

Will FEMA provide funding for a Hazard Mitigation Project on a facility that
did not sustain disaster related damage and another federal agency has specific
authority to restore facilities damaged or destroyed by a major disaster?

Findings:

No

Rationale:

44 CFR §§206.206(c), Time Limits; 206.226(a)(1), Assistance under other Federal agency (OFA) programs; Response and Recovery Policy 9526.1, Hazard Mitigation Funding Under Section 406 (Stafford Act); Response and Recovery Policy 9523.3, Duplication of Benefits –Non Governmental Funds