Swift Current Initiative

Funding Availability

Definitions

Eligible Projects

Cost Share

Application Schedule

Resources

FEMA's Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) program is launching a disaster initiative called Swift Current that will distribute funding in alignment with the survivor experience.

The intent for the Swift Current Initiative is to explore how to make flood mitigation assistance available within the disaster recovery timeframe, for repetitively flooded and substantially damaged buildings insured under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) in advance of the annual grant process.

Significant additional flood mitigation assistance funding through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will become available nationally in future months, through the annual grant application cycle.

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

Severe Repetitive Loss Definition

Severe Repetitive Loss (SRL)³ refers to a structure that is covered under flood insurance and has incurred flood-related damage. A SRL property can fall under one of two categories:

• 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.
• 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.

Repetitive Loss Definition

Repetitive Loss (RL) refers to a structure that has incurred flood-related damage on two occasions in which the cost of the repair, on the average, equaled or exceeded 25% of the market value of the structure at the time of each such flood event.

Substantial Damage Definition

Substantial Damage⁴ means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. A determination of “substantial damage”⁵ applies to a severely damaged home or other structure in a Special Flood Hazard Area, regardless of the cause of damage, where the community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Individual flood mitigation projects are eligible¹ under the FMA Swift Current. Eligible individual flood mitigation projects include the following project types: 

• Property Acquisition and Structure Demolition/Relocation
• Structure Elevation
• Dry Floodproofing of Historic Residential Structures or Non-Residential Structures
• Non-Structural Retrofitting of Existing Buildings and Facilities
• Mitigation Reconstruction²
• Structural Retrofitting of Existing Buildings

Federal funding is usually available for up to 75% of the eligible activity costs. However, FEMA may contribute a higher federal cost share for properties that are insured under the NFIP at the time of application and meet the definitions of Severe Repetitive Loss or Repetitive Loss.

• Severe Repetitive Loss: Up to 100%
• Repetitive Loss: Up to 90%

Further, as a result of funding made available under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, FEMA may contribute up to 90% federal cost share for a property located within a census tract with a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) score of 0.5001 or over. 

Cost shares for FY22 Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current by property type are illustrated in the graphic below.

• Application Opens: April 1, 2022
• New Systems Issues Deadline:
  • Four months after the application period opens, estimated state allocations expire on Aug. 1, 2022 (Noon Eastern Time).
  • New system-related issues can be addressed until July 29, 2022 (Noon Eastern Time).
  • Applicants experiencing technical problems outside of their control must notify FEMA by this deadline.
• Application Submission Deadline: Oct. 3, 2022 (Noon Eastern Time). Applications should be submitted via the Mitigation eGrants Management System.

Interested subapplicants in Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania should contact their State Hazard Mitigation Officer (SHMO) for information.

Application Opening

April 1, 2022 - Eligible applicants must apply for funding using eGrants

States have four months to review and award subapplications. Therefore, subapplicants are encouraged to apply early and preferably before Aug. 1, 2022, when estimated state funding allocations may either run out or reallocated.

The timing of subapplicant submission and review is listed below. There are three phases of funding allocation, subapplication review, and project selection. States have a four-month application cycle by which subapplications are submitted for project selection.

• Phase 1 (April 1 – Aug. 1) – Subapplicant Application Submission: Funding for individual projects is made available through estimated state allocations. Subapplications (individual project applications to the state) will be identified, reviewed, and selected on a rolling basis until estimated state allocations are exhausted or Aug. 1, 2022, whichever comes first. During this period applications are reviewed on a first come – first served basis and awarded after project review.
• Phase 2 (From First Applications Received – Aug. 1) – Competitive Selection of Subapplications Prior to July 29, 2022: Four months after the application period opens, estimated state allocations expire on Aug. 1, 2022 (Noon Eastern Time) (7). Any remaining unused funds will be available to any other eligible applicant. FEMA will consider subapplications submitted to FEMA in excess of each state’s allocation prior to Aug. 1, 2022. If there are any remaining funds beyond state allocation amounts, subapplications received prior to Aug. 1 will be selected competitively using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Socially Vulnerability Index to prioritize the most socially vulnerable communities.
• Phase 3 – (Aug. 1-Oct. 3) - Rolling Selection and Award of Subapplications Submitted After Aug. 1, 2022: If there are funds remaining, FEMA will consider subapplications submitted after Aug. 1, 2022, on a continuous rolling basis until the application deadline on Oct. 3, 2022, or until all grant funding is obligated.

To apply for funding made available for Swift Current through the Flood Mitigation Assistance program, applicants must adhere to the following application and funding deadlines:

Pre-Award Selection and Period of Performance

Notification of Pre-Award Selection is given on a rolling basis as applications are reviewed by FEMA.

Period of Performance starts on the date the federal award is received and ends 36 months from start date for all other subapplications.

General questions about the FMA program can be directed to the appropriate State Hazard Mitigation Officer or FEMA Regional Office. The Hazard Mitigation Assistance Helpline is available by telephone at (866) 222-3580, Monday - Friday.

The links below provide additional information and resources related to the FMA Program are available to assist applicants and subapplicants in their development of Swift Current projects.

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention//ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index
• Flood Mitigation Assistance Program webpage
• Highlights of ASCE 24-14 Flood Resistant Design and Construction
• Hazard Mitigation Assistance Guidance
• State Floodplain Managers List
• State Hazard Mitigation Officers List
• FEMA Mitigation eGrants Management System
• Structural Retrofitting of Existing Buildings (link to come)
• Dry Floodproofing of Historic Residential Structures or Non-residential Structures (link to come)

1. If a subapplication includes a property that is not Severe Repetitive Loss, Repetitive Loss, or deemed substantially damaged after Aug. 26, 2021, FEMA reserves the right to remove the property from the subapplication prior to selection.
2. Eligible mitigation reconstruction costs are limited to a $150,000 federal share per property. Some eligible activities, such as administrative allowances and permitting fees, need not be included in the $150,000 maximum federal share.
3. SRL structures referenced here are designated as SRL (b)(ii) and SRL (b)(i) as defined by 42 U.S.C. § 4104c(h)(3)(b).
4. Substantial damage structures referenced here are designated as substantial damage as defined by 44 CFR § 59.1.
5. FEMA does not make substantial damage determinations; the determination is made by a local building official or floodplain manager.