The Texas General Land Office has launched the Mitigation Reallocation Program, which will direct $92 million in available funding to Texas communities for disaster mitigation projects, according to a news release from the agency.
The agency said the money comes from deobligated and unused Community Development Block Grant Mitigation funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and that the total may grow as more funds are identified. A call for projects is open until Nov. 18.
“The GLO is setting a record pace in administering mitigation funds across several disasters,” Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, said in the release. She called the HUD mitigation funding a one-time opportunity and said the funds must be used expeditiously before the federal clock runs out.
Under the program, each eligible entity may submit up to three projects, and each must cost between $2.5 million and $10 million. Projects have a maximum of three years to finish from contract execution, the agency said. Eligible applicants are cities, counties, Indian tribes and special purpose districts in counties eligible for the mitigation funds. Projects do not need to be tied to a specific disaster.
The funds can support flood and drainage, water, wastewater, street and permanently affixed emergency communications improvements that reduce the effects of future hurricanes, storms and flooding, according to the release.
The GLO said it may favor shorter timelines and will not allow extensions because of the federal grant deadline. It cautioned that missing HUD’s expenditure or closeout deadlines could trigger recapture, requiring repayment of funds spent on incomplete projects, so it will consider only projects that can finish in time for closeout.
Applicants must submit projects through the Texas Integrated Grant Reporting system. Access forms are due Nov. 11 at 5 p.m., and the call for projects closes Nov. 18 at 5 p.m. Central time, the agency said. A recorded webinar covering eligibility, scoring and deadlines is available at recovery.texas.gov/mrp.