Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management

Crisis and Emergency Management

Newsletter Website
return to mainpage

     

 

      

March 2008                                                                                              Volume 14 - Number 2

    

 

FEMA Update...

     

 

Examining the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Mitigation Budget for the 2008 Fiscal Year

By Rob Benedict

 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is the federal government’s primary agency for preparing, preventing, mitigating, responding and recovering for all domestic emergencies and disasters.  This agency is part of the department of homeland security with is headquarters in Washington D.C.  In addition to the headquarters FEMA has 10 regional offices, 2 area offices and 5 recovery offices designed to aid in its ultimate mission.  The mission of FEMA is wide in scope and requires a large amount of resources (FEMA employs approximately 6,651 full time employees) and funding to successfully carry out that mission.

 

 In the 2008 fiscal year FEMA requested a budget of $ 8,020,204,000 USD.  This budget is split into two main areas, gross discretionary accounts for $ 5,187,204,000 and Mandatory, Fees, and Trust Funds accounting for $ 2,833,000,000 of the total budget.[i]   The FY 2008 budget request is unique because it is the first year of a three-year phased approach designed to enhance FEMA’s commitment to serve the public, establish itself as the Nation’s Preeminent Emergency Management Agency, and rebuild the countries confidence in the agency following the Hurricane Katrina response.[ii]  The implementation of the Post-Katrina Emergency Reform Act (P.L. 109-295) and of Additional Changes Pursuant to Section 872 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, are primary reasons for the increased budget of FEMA in 2008. The Post-Katrina Act reorganized FEMA’s operational structure and expends FEMA’s scope of work. The changes and the budgetary increase accompanying them aim to bolster the Department’s emergency preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation capabilities to all hazards.[iii] 

 

The federal government recognizes hazard mitigation is an integral area in emergency management.  The 2008 fiscal budget notes that hazard mitigation is “the most proactive and successful method for reducing the physical, financial and emotional losses caused by a disaster.”  This importance has led the government to allot 1.2 million USD specifically to hazard mitigation efforts.  FEMA will devote these funds to three objectives: risk analysis, risk reduction, and flood insurance.  In the 2008 fiscal year mitigation received an increase in funding.  Figures comparing the fiscal budget since 2006 demonstrate the increased attention given to mitigation in recent years.  FEMA’s pre-disaster mitigation fund has increase approximately 50 % and the National Flood mitigation fund has increased approximately 20 % since 2006 (Page 66 of the Budget Request).[iv]  In addition to funding directly for hazard mitigation purposes the 2008 fiscal budget also allots funding to other programs that in turn can support mitigation activities such as the $3.2 Billion given to State and Local programs, Assistance to Firefighters, and the PSIC Interoperability Grants.