Swift Current

Available Funding

Eligible Projects

Definitions

Cost Share

How to Apply

Resources

The Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current (Swift Current) effort provides funding to mitigate buildings insured through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) after a major disaster declaration following a flood-related disaster event to reduce risk against future flood damage.

The full funding opportunity announcement is available on Grants.gov.

Funds will be made available to states, territories, and federally recognized tribal governments that receive a major disaster declaration following a flood-related disaster event and meet all other eligibility criteria. Swift Current is not available to all property owners and aims to provide flood mitigation funding for buildings with a current contract for flood insurance under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and a history of repetitive or substantial damage from flooding.

The total funding available for Fiscal Year 2023 is $300 million, which was made possible through an infusion of dollars by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), better known as Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

Swift Current funds Individual Flood Mitigation Projects for Flood Mitigation Assistance and/or NFIP-defined Repetitive Loss (RL), Severe Repetitive Loss (SRL), or properties deemed Substantially Damaged after the applicant’s disaster declaration date.

Eligible Individual Flood Mitigation Projects include the following project types which may be referenced in the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide:

• Property acquisition and structure demolition/relocation
• Structure elevations
• Dry floodproofing of historic residential structures or non-residential structures
• Non-structural retrofitting of existing structures and facilities
• Mitigation reconstruction
• Structural retrofitting of existing structures

Structures included in Individual Flood Mitigation Project subapplications must be Flood Mitigation Assistance and/or NFIP-defined Severe Repetitive Loss properties, Repetitive Loss properties, or properties that were deemed Substantially Damaged after the applicant’s disaster declaration date.

• Buildings identified in the subapplication must have a National Flood Insurance Program policy in effect at the application start date and must maintain it through completion of the flood hazard mitigation activity and for the life of the structure.
• Buildings included in Individual Flood Mitigation Project subapplications must be Flood Mitigation Assistance and/or NFIP-defined Severe Repetitive Loss properties, Repetitive Loss properties, or properties that were deemed Substantially Damaged after the applicant’s disaster declaration date. Please see Table 2 below for applicable definitions.

Eligible Property Type	Definition
Flood Mitigation Assistance defined Severe Repetitive Loss	Has four or more separate NFIP claims payments have been made with the amount of each claim exceeding $5,000, and with the cumulative amount of claims payments exceeding $20,000; or Has at least two separate NFIP claim payments have been made with the cumulative amount of such claims exceeding the market value of the insured structure.
Flood Mitigation Assistance defined Repetitive Loss	Have incurred flood-related damage on two occasions, in which the cost of the repair, on the average, equaled or exceeded 25 percent of the market value of the structure at the time of each such flood event, and at the time of the second incidence of flood-related damage, the contract for flood insurance contains increased cost of compliance coverage.
National Flood Insurance Program defined Severe Repetitive Loss	Has four or more separate National Flood Insurance Program claim payments of more than $5,000 each (including building and contents payments); or two or more separate claim payments (building payments only) where the total of the payments exceeds the current market value of the property.
National Flood Insurance Program defined Repetitive Loss	A structure covered by a contract for flood insurance under the National Flood Insurance Program that has incurred flood-related damage on two occasions during a 10-year period, each resulting in at least a $1,000 claim payment.
Substantial Damage	Substantial damage applies to a structure in a Special Flood Hazard Area – or floodplain – for which the total cost of repairs is 50% or more of the structure’s market value before the disaster occurred, regardless of the cause of damage. This percentage rule can vary among jurisdictions. The decision about a structure being substantially damaged is made at the local community generally by a building-department official or floodplain manager. For communities that participate in the National Flood Insurance Program, substantial damage determinations generally are required by local floodplain-management ordinances. These rules must be in place for residents of a community to purchase flood insurance.

Cost share is required for most subapplications funded under Swift Current. FEMA may contribute the federal cost share funding as indicated below. These are the definitions for Flood Mitigation Assistance and National Flood Insurance Program insured properties.

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The application period opens Nov. 15, 2023.

Disaster Declaration Deadline: May 31, 2023.

The application submission deadline will vary depending on the activation criteria met and disaster declaration date.

• The eligibility period refers to the time that the applicant may submit subapplications to Swift Current. The eligibility period start date will vary by applicant.
• Upon Swift Current activation, the application deadline date will be provided to the applicant. All applications must be received by the deadline. Subapplicants should consult with their applicant agency to confirm subapplication deadlines.
• Local governments should consult with their state, tribal or territorial agency to confirm deadlines to submit subapplications for their consideration.

All eligible applicants must submit their FY 2023 Swift Current grant applications to FEMA using the Mitigation eGrants System.

If you need help with Mitigation eGrants, reach out to:

• Mitigation eGrants Help Desk
• Programmatic Helpline at (866) 222-3580 for Hazard Mitigation Assistance programmatic support for questions

FEMA will distribute funding on a rolling basis as eligible applicants submit applications until the total available funding amount of $300 million is exhausted.

The National Flood Insurance Program helps reduce the impacts of flooding through risk mapping, mitigation, and administering flood insurance. Through careful data sharing with communities the NFIP enables local community planners, officials, and administrators to develop hazard mitigation plans and updates; effectively manage their floodplains; submit grant applications and more. FEMA provides publicly available data online. For sensitive data, there is an established protocol to follow in order to receive them; it dictates who is allowed to receive the data.

Receiving sensitive data requires that a legal data sharing agreement be drafted to ensure proper and secure processing and handling of the data. The aim is a 10-day turnaround time from FEMA’s receipt of the data request to the delivery of data.

There are two types of data sharing agreements: Routine Use Letters (RULs) and Information Sharing Access Agreements (ISAAs).

• ISAAs last for three years and can be used for multiple ongoing data requests.
• RULs are for a one-time request only. A completed data request form may be sent to a FEMA Regional Flood Insurance Liaison or Specialist.

General questions about Swift Current can be directed to your State Hazard Mitigation Officer or FEMA regional office.

Property Elevation and Acquisition Job Aids

• Elevation Job Aid
• Acquisition & Demolition Job Aid
• Acquisition & Relocation

Substantial Damage Determinations

• Substantial Improvement/Substantial Damage Desk Reference
• Substantial Damage Estimator Tool

Benefit-Cost Analysis - Severe Repetitive Loss and Repetitive Loss Pre-Calculated Benefits:

• Benefit-Cost Analysis Toolkit
• Benefit-Cost Analysis Efficiencies for Repetitive Loss and Severe Repetitive Loss Acquisition Projects Located Outside the Designated Special Flood Hazard Area
• Update to "Cost-Effectiveness Determinations for Acquisitions and Elevations in Special Flood Hazard Areas Using Pre-Calculated Benefits" Memorandum

• State Floodplain Managers List
• State Hazard Mitigation Officers List