Flood Mitigation
Hazard Mitigation
Flood mitigation reduces the overall risk of structure experiencing flood damage, and also reduces the severity of flood damage when it occurs. Examples of mitigation in a community may include planning and zoning, floodplain management, discouraging development in high risk flood areas, or providing outreach and education. Examples of mitigation for homeowners may include purchasing flood insurance, elevation of structures, or completely relocating out of the floodplain.
Structural Mitigation
Structural mitigation projects include levees, dams, floodwalls, jetties, retention ponds, and many other examples. Structural mitigation projects aim to divert water away from people and communities. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is the federal agency tasked with building and maintain major flood mitigation projects. In Nebraska, the Natural Resources Districts (NRDs) provide flood mitigation projects at a more local level.
Non-Structural Mitigation
The purpose of non-structural flood mitigation is to change the way that people interact with the floodplain, flood risk, and also aim to move people away from flood-prone areas. Projects may include maintaining floodplain as open space, elevating structures, and in-depth community flood planning.
Mitigation Grants
FEMA's Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant Program (FMA) is administered by the Nebraska Floodplain Management Division and provides financial assistance for either planning or projects that assist in decreasing long-term risk of flood damage to structures insured under the National Flood Insurance Program.
The FMA program has priorities to mitigate structures that have suffered repeated flood claims and those with severe repetitive loss.
Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) Grant
The Flood Mitigation Assistance grant program is a competitive program that provides funding to state, territory and local governments and federally recognized Tribal Nations. Since the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 was signed into law, funds are used for projects that reduce or eliminate the risk of repetitive flood damage to buildings insured by the National Flood Insurance Program.
FEMA chooses recipients based on the applicant’s ranking of the project, eligibility, and cost-effectiveness of the project.
FEMA requires state, local, federally recognized tribal governments, and U.S. territories to develop and adopt hazard mitigation plans as a condition for receiving certain types of non-emergency disaster assistance, including funding for hazard mitigation assistance projects. For more information, refer to the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide.
The Nebraska Department of Water, Energy, and Environment is looking to pursue an application for FEMA's Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) grant. The FMA grant goal is to reduce or eliminate repetitive flood damage to properties insured under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). FEMA's FMA grant is nationally competitive with $600 million available for the following project types:
1. Capability and Capacity Building (C&CB) Activities (up to $60 million) which enhance the knowledge, skills, expertise, etc., of the current workforce to expand or improve the administration of Flood Mitigation Assistance. These activities may be used to develop future Localized Flood Risk Reduction Projects and/or Individual Flood Mitigation Projects that will subsequently reduce flood National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims. C&CB Activities include:
- Hazard Mitigation Plans
- Technical Assistance by States to Communities
- Project Scoping to develop Localized Flood Risk Reduction Projects and/or Individual Flood Mitigation Projects
- Additional C&CB Activities including Partnership Development, Enhancing Local Floodplain Management, Severe Repetitive Loss /Repetitive Loss Strategy Plan Development, and other eligible C&CB activities
2. Localized Flood Risk Reduction Projects (up to $420 million) to address community flood risk for the purpose of reducing National Flood Insurance Program flood claim payments.
3. Individual Flood Mitigation Projects (at least $120 million) that mitigate the risk of flooding to individual NFIP-insured structures such as:
- Property Acquisition and Structure Demolition/Relocation
- Structure Elevation
- Floodproofing
NOTE:
- This is a competitive grant.
- Repetitive Loss and Severe Repetitive Loss insured structures are at the greatest risk and are a priority for mitigation. Coordinate with your local Floodplain Administrator, State NFIP Coordinator, and your FEMA Regional Flood Insurance Liaison to understand the SRL and RL risk in your community.
- Social vulnerability factors, per the CDC Social Vulnerability Index, carry a high priority and may garner a significant federal cost share in FY24.
- Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) pre-calculated benefits are available for elevation and acquisitions.
- For more information on requirements, eligibility, and costing sharing amounts see the FMA Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) under the Resources tab below.
The State of Nebraska is the Applicant. Eligible sub applicants must meet the eligibility criteria listed below:
- Sub applicants must have a FEMA-approved Local or Tribal Hazard Mitigation Plan by the application deadline and at the time the grant funds are obligated. Sub applicants are exempt from the hazard mitigation plan requirement for the following C&CB Activity types: hazard mitigation plan development and hazard mitigation plan updates.
- Sub applicants must be participating and in good standing in the National Flood Insurance Program.
- Structures identified in the subapplication must have an NFIP policy in effect at the application start date (January 6, 2025) and must maintain it through completion of the flood hazard mitigation activity and for the life of the structure.
- All subapplications submitted under the C&CB Activities priority must demonstrate that the activity will reduce flood claims against the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
- All subapplications submitted under the Localized Flood Risk Reduction Project category must demonstrate that the proposed project benefits NFIP insured properties by submitting a map and associated geospatial file(s) (See Geospatial Eligibility Criteria Requirement under the Resources section below.)
- Sub applicants must demonstrate that they can provide the non-federal cost share.
- Sub applicants must submit a Notice of Interest (NOI) to by date June 12, 2026. Late NOI’s will be accepted but prioritized separately.
- For more information on requirements, eligibility, and costing sharing amounts see the FMA Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) under the Resources tab below.
The Nebraska Floodplain Management Division offered virtual briefings on the FMA Grants for interested sub applicants on May 29 and June 2, 2026.
;
Important FMA Dates:
- Application Start Date: April 30, 2026 9 a.m. ET
- Notice of Interest from sub applicants due: June 12, 2026
- Last date subapplications can be submitted to Nebraska Floodplain Management Division for review: July 15, 2026
- State of Nebraska application submission deadline: August 6, 2026 3 p.m. ET
FMA Resources:
- FMA Notice of Funding Opportunity
- FEMA FMA Grant Website
- FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance Guidance
- CDC Social Vulnerability Index
- FEMA Nature Based Solutions Guide
If your community is interested in applying for the FMA grant, please submit a Notice of Interest (NOI)
FEMA has also released the Notice of Funding Opportunities for the Building Resilient Infrastructure Communities Program (BRIC). This grant is administered by our partners at the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). Please visit the NEMA or FEMA websites for more information.
FY 2024 Swift Current
The purpose of Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current funding is to mitigate NFIP-insured buildings to reduce risk of future flooding. Swift Current funds can pay for structure elevation, relocation, property acquisition, and structure demolition. The funds may also be used for floodproofing, project scoping, structural retrofitting of existing buildings and mitigation reconstruction.
The Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current Notice of Funding Opportunity has undergone two amendments since its initial release June 1, 2024. The following explains the evolution of the funding opportunity:
- On June 1, 2024, FEMA published the FY 2024 Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current grant cycle, making $300 million available to reduce or eliminate the impacts of flooding for repetitively or substantially flood-damaged properties insured through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
- On Dec. 5, 2024, FEMA released the first FY 2024 Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current Amendment funding opportunity, increasing grant funding from $300 million to $500 million. The amendment extended the application period for new Swift Current activations during FY 2024 and required activations on or after Dec. 5, 2024, to comply with FEMA Policy 206-24-004, the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. This funding opportunity was unpublished on March 25, 2025.
- On April 30, 2026, FEMA published the second FY 2024 Flood Mitigation Assistance Swift Current amended funding opportunity on Grants.gov, providing $500 million in hazard mitigation funding for communities participating in the National Flood Insurance Program.
For its flood risk to be mitigated with Swift Current funds, a NFIP-insured building must meet the following criteria:
- Have a history of repetitive flood losses demonstrated by flood insurance claims, or
- Have been deemed Substantially Damaged after May 20, 2024 by local officials or FEMA.
The State of Nebraska is the applicant, and NFIP-participating communities are the sub-applicants. For communities to be eligible sub-applicants, they must be in good standing with the NFIP, as well as have a FEMA-approved Hazard Mitigation Plan. Interested sub-applicant communities or property owners should submit a Notice of Interest Form by September 1, 2026 and work with the Nebraska Floodplain Management Division to submit their applications for State review by December 1, 20206..
Severe repetitive loss properties may be eligible for reduced match requirements with Swift Current providing 100% of the project cost. Repetitive loss properties may receive 90% cost share. If a higher cost share is not available, a project will receive up to 75% federal funding.
FY2024_SwiftCurrentNoticeOfFundingOpportunityAmendment2
FY2024 Swift Current Notice of Funding Opportunity
Resources for the grants can be found below:
The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities Grant Program (BRIC) is administered by NEMA and support states, local communities, tribes and territories as they undertake hazard mitigation projects, reducing the risks they face from disasters and natural hazards. For more information visit the NEMA website or contact NEMA at 402-471-7421.
The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) is a mitigation grant that results from a presidential disaster declaration. After a disaster, Nebraska would receive 15% of the total public assistance funding that is made available via the declaration. The goal of the HMGP is to reduce the loss of life and property from any future disaster. The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) manages the HMGP. For more information regarding the HMPG in Nebraska, visit the NEMA HMGP website, or contact NEMA at 402-471-7421.