89 FR 238 pgs. 99890-99891 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review, Comment Request; Administrative Plan for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program

Type: NOTICEVolume: 89Number: 238Pages: 99890 - 99891
Docket number: [Docket ID: FEMA-2024-0023; OMB No. 1660-0026]
FR document: [FR Doc. 2024-29011 Filed 12-10-24; 8:45 am]
Agency: Homeland Security Department
Sub Agency: Federal Emergency Management Agency
Official PDF Version:  PDF Version
Pages: 99890, 99891

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency

[Docket ID: FEMA-2024-0023; OMB No. 1660-0026]

Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review, Comment Request; Administrative Plan for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program

AGENCY:

Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION:

30-Day notice of extension and request for comments.

SUMMARY:

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will submit the information collection abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget for review and clearance in accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. FEMA invites the general public to take this opportunity to comment on an extension of a currently approved information collection. In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice seeks comments concerning the State Administrative Plan for the procedural guide that details how the State will administer the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP).

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before January 10, 2025.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting "Currently under 30-day Review-Open for Public Comments" or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information or copies of the information collection should be made to Director, Information Management Division, 500 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20472, email address FEMA-Information-Collections-Management@fema.dhs.gov or Travis Battiest, Section Chief for Tools, SOPS, and Implementation, Hazard Mitigation Assistance Division, Mitigation Directorate, FEMA, at (202) 714-8052 or travis.battiest@fema.dhs.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

FEMA regulations in 44 CFR 206.437 require development and updates to the Administrative Plan by Applicants or Recipients as a condition of receiving Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding under Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 93-288, as amended) (42 U.S.C. 5170c). Applicants or Recipients can be any State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the government of a Federally-recognized Tribe that chooses to act as an Applicant or Recipient.

The regulation at 44 CFR 206.437 requires a State to have a FEMA-approved Administrative Plan to receive HMGP funding. At its minimum, the Administrative Plan will include the designated State agency or Indian Tribal government that will act as the Recipient, identify the State Hazard Mitigation Officer or Tribal Hazard Mitigation Officer, identify staffing requirements, and establish a guide for implementation activities and procedures to account for non-Federal cost sharing. Additional information requirements are guided by the type of mitigation activities being pursued.


[top] The State, territorial, or Tribal government must establish procedures to guide the administration of the HMGP in the Administrative Plan, as outlined in the listed activities below. page 99891 FEMA will review the information provided to ensure proper documentation of each activity.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) adopted in its entirety the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR part 200) on December 26, 2014. This rule eliminates overlapping and duplicative requirements for stakeholders, including States, territories and Indian Tribal governments, by using general terms such as "recipient" or "pass-through entity." FEMA is also avoiding unnecessary duplication, overlap and the demand for maintenance of requirements under HMGP in two documents, the State Administrative Plan, and the Tribal Administrative Plan. FEMA instead is offering and referring to one common set of requirements in an "Administrative Plan." The term "State Administrative Plan" is now referred to "Administrative Plan for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program."

This proposed information collection previously published in the Federal Register on August 19, 2024, at 89 FR 67101 with a 60-day public comment period. Three public comments were received. Two of the comments discuss policy concerns with the HMGP and are not germane to this information collection. The third public comment is a statement of support from a private non-profit organization and FEMA thanks them for their comment.

The purpose of this notice is to notify the public that FEMA will submit the information collection abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget for review and clearance.

Collection of Information

Title: Administrative Plan for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.

Type of Information Collection: Extension of a currently approved information collection.

OMB Number: 1660-0026.

FEMA Forms: Not applicable.

Abstract: The State Administrative Plan for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) is a procedural guide that details how the State, territory, or Tribal government will administer the HMGP. The State, territory, or Tribal government (who acts as a recipient) must have a current administrative plan approved by the appropriate FEMA Regional Administrator before receiving HMGP funds. The administrative plan may take any form including a chapter within a comprehensive State, territory, or Tribal mitigation program strategy.

Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal Government.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 35.

Estimated Number of Responses: 70.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 560.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost: $37,257.

Estimated Respondents' Operation and Maintenance Costs: $0.

Estimated Respondents' Capital and Start-Up Costs: $0.

Estimated Total Annual Cost to the Federal Government: $26,581.

Comments

Comments may be submitted as indicated in the ADDRESSES caption above. Comments are solicited to (a) evaluate whether the proposed data collection is necessary for the proper performance of the Agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Millicent Brown Wilson,

Records Management Branch Chief, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, Mission Support, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security.

[FR Doc. 2024-29011 Filed 12-10-24; 8:45 am]

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