Earlier in the week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the allocation of nearly $12 billion in Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds for communities across 24 states and territories.  The state of Hawaii's County of Maui received more than $1.6 billion for wildfires. To provide guidance for the implementation of this funding, HUD also published the Universal Notice for Community Development Block Grants - Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR).  
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HUD Senior Official Trey Reffett announced these critical funds today in Hawaii (Lahaina, Maui) alongside Mayor Richard Bissen of Maui County, Erika L. Moritsugu (Deputy Assistant to the President), Dale Hahn from the Office of U.S. Senator Brian Schatz, and Maui Field Representative Deidre Tegarden from the Office of U.S. Representative Jill Tokuda (HI-02). These funds are critical to support Maui’s recovery and rebuilding efforts, including long-term housing, after the deadly 2023 wildfires.

“Over the last two years, too many communities have been impacted by devastating disasters – damaging homes, destroying infrastructure, and stretching local capacity to recover,” said HUD Agency Head, the Honorable Adrianne Todman. “This $12 billion in disaster discovery funds will help rebuild homes, develop affordable housing, assist impacted small businesses, and repair roads, schools, water treatment plants and other critical infrastructure.  The impacts of these funds will be felt for years to come - especially for disaster survivors and communities in the most impacted areas.”  

“Survivors of the devastating Maui fires have been waiting a long time for this help to arrive in order to rebuild their homes and lives and get back on their feet, said Senator Brian Schatz, Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development.  “CDBG-DR funding has been a lifeline for so many communities struck by disasters over the years and this aid will be critical to building housing on Maui as quickly as possible.”

“We are deeply grateful for this support, which is critical as we move forward with rebuilding for our communities devastated by the August 2023 wildfires,” said Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen. “This news brings a renewed sense of hope for our residents, as well as the prospect of a future that is stronger and more resilient.”

The Universal Notice will strengthen and improve the administration of CDBG-DR, incorporating feedback received from grantees, stakeholders, and survivors of disasters. For the first time ever, HUD requested public input through the 2022 Request for Information on CDBG-DR Rules, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements. HUD received more than 700 unique comments offering feedback on how to make disaster recovery faster and more efficient, effective, resilient, and equitable.  

This critical allocation of CDBG-DR funding and the guidance in the Universal Notice will enable 47 grantees – including 23 states, 15 counties, 8 cities, and one territory – to recover from and build resilience to weather-related disasters. CDBG-DR funding supports disaster relief, long-term recovery, restoration of infrastructure and housing, economic revitalization, and mitigation, in the most impacted and distressed areas.

As the only federal disaster recovery assistance to primarily benefit low- and moderate-income households and communities, CDBG- DR funding can be used to:

• Replace damaged affordable housing and build it back more resiliently.

• Strengthen infrastructure through repairs, upgrades, and activities to increase the resilience of public facilities and infrastructure including roadways, water systems, and utilities.

• Support economic revitalization including support for small businesses, creation of jobs, and assistance for residents.

• Implement disaster mitigation measures to reduce risk of damage from future extreme weather and disaster events.  
  

“The Universal Notice published today reflects the input of communities and professionals who have been through the process of recovery and makes dozens of survivor-centered improvements to accelerate recovery.” said Marion McFadden, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development. “I’m proud to say that we did everything we could – absent permanent authorization by Congress – to strengthen the program, reduce red-tape, and support survivors as they rebuild.”  

Until HUD receives permanent authorization of the CDBG-DR program, the Universal Notice is intended to provide publicly informed, consistent guidance for communities recovering from disasters. The Universal Notice incorporates many of the public’s comments and recommendations, including updates to:  

• Improve outcomes, increasing access to information, and simplifying documentation requirements for disaster survivors

• Expand and extend eligible activities for rental assistance and disaster relief, including allowing reimbursement for these expenses.

• Create new eligible activities for local disaster preparedness and resilience.

• Align more closely with FEMA requirements for environmental reviews and community-driven relocation.

• Streamline Action Plan requirements, and encouraging broader community engagement in the Action Plan Formation process.

• Reduce administrative burden on grantees, creating greater flexibility regarding building standards, implementation requirements, and financial management procedures.
  

Today’s announcement builds upon actions taken to streamline HUD’s disaster recovery and resilience work. The public comments received through the Request for Information highlight key opportunities for improvement. In response, HUD has taken action to incorporate public feedback and strengthen the CDBG-DR program for years to come.  

Specifically, HUD will continue its partnership with FEMA on the Pre-Disaster Housing Initiative, which helps states develop plans to boost their pre-disaster housing capabilities. HUD will be announcing a Universal Notice Webinar Series that will take grantees and the public through the steps outlined in the Universal Notice and ensure they are ready to immediately begin the development of their CDBG-DR Action Plans. HUD will also provide grantees with an Action Plan Template to support their overall design and creation of the required components of the plan.  

The Universal Notice also implements a Congressional directive to allow grantees to adopt any other Federal agency environmental review, when using CDBG-DR funds to supplement another Federal project. This new broader adoption will save time and money for grantees using multiple sources of Federal assistance in one disaster recovery project. Additionally, HUD is finalizing its plans to introduce a data portal to speed up the process of sharing FEMA data with CDBG-DR grantees, this data portal will be available to grantees later this year. To learn how HUD has responded to the comments received through the Request for Information visit HUD’s website here.  

By increasing coordination, reducing bureaucracy, and increasing capacity to get recovery funding to communities more quickly, HUD is facilitating collaborative, transparent disaster recovery and mitigation.  

Click here to view the TABLE: HUD Allocates Nearly $12 Billion to States and Communities to Assist with Disaster Recovery through Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Allocations.