FEMA-4842-DR-CRST EHP INITIAL PUBLIC NOTICE

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) hereby gives notice to the public of its intent to reimburse eligible applicants for eligible costs to repair and/or replace facilities damaged by Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding during the incident period of July 13-14, 2024. This notice applies to Public Assistance (PA), Individual Assistance (IA), and Hazard Mitigation Grant Programs (HMGP) implemented under the authority of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. § 5121-5207. 

Under a major disaster declaration (FEMA-4842-DR-CRST) signed by President Biden on November 1, 2024, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe is eligible for Public Assistance and Individual Assistance. All jurisdictions of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe are eligible for HMGP under FEMA-4842-DR-CRST.

Under the PA program FEMA reimburses state and local governments and certain types of private nonprofit organizations for the cost of disaster-related debris removal, emergency protective measures to protect life and property, and permanent repair work to damaged or destroyed public infrastructure. This may be the only public notice concerning these actions.

FEMA intends to provide IA program funding for authorized assistance to individuals and households. These actions may adversely affect a floodplain or wetland or may result in continuing vulnerability to floods. These actions may include repair, restoration, or construction of housing or private bridges, or repair of structures as minimum protective measures. This will be the only public notice concerning these actions.

FEMA also intends to provide HMGP funding to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe to mitigate future disaster damages. These projects may include construction of new facilities, modification of existing facilities, undamaged facilities, relocation of facilities out of floodplains, demolition of structures, or other types of projects to mitigate future disaster damages. In the course of developing project proposals, subsequent public notices will be published, if necessary, as more specific information becomes available. 

Presidential Executive Orders 11988 and 11990 require that all federal actions in or affecting the floodplain or wetlands be reviewed for opportunities to relocate, and be evaluated for social, economic, historical, environmental, legal, and safety considerations. Where there is no opportunity to relocate, FEMA is required to undertake a detailed review to determine what measures can be taken to minimize future damages. The public is invited to participate in the process of identifying alternatives and analyzing their impacts through this notification. 

FEMA has determined that for certain types of facilities there are normally no alternatives to restoration in the floodplain/wetland. These are facilities that meet all of the following criteria: 1) FEMA’s estimate of the cost of repairs is less than 50% of the cost to replace the entire facility, and is less than $100,000; 2) the facility is not located in a floodway; 3) the facility has not sustained major structural damage in a previous Presidentially-declared flooding disaster or emergency; and 4) the facility is not critical (i.e., hospital, generating plant, emergency operations center, contains dangerous materials). FEMA intends to provide assistance for the restoration of these facilities to their pre-disaster condition, except those certain measures to mitigate the effects of future flooding or other hazards may be included in the work. For routine activities this will be the only public notice provided. Other activities and those involving facilities that do not meet the four criteria are required to undergo more detailed review, including study of alternate locations. Subsequent public notices regarding such projects will be published, if necessary, as more specific information becomes available. 

In many cases, an applicant may have started restoration of a facility prior to federal involvement. Even if the facility must undergo detailed review and analysis of alternate locations, FEMA will fund eligible restoration at the original location if the facility is functionally dependent on its floodplain location (e.g., bridges and piers), or the project facilitates open space use, or the facility is an integral part of a larger network that is impractical or uneconomical to relocate, such as a road. In such cases, FEMA must also examine the possible effects of not restoring the facility, minimize harm to and within the floodplain, and determine both that an overriding public need for the facility clearly outweighs the Executive Order requirements to avoid the floodplain/wetland, and that the site is the only practicable alternative. Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe will confirm to FEMA that proposed actions comply with all applicable state and local floodplain management and wetland protection requirements. 

The National Historic Preservation Act requires federal agencies to take into account the effects of their undertakings on historic properties. Those actions or activities affecting buildings, structures, districts, or objects 50 years or older or that affect archaeological sites or undisturbed ground will require further review to determine if the property is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (Register). If the property is determined to be eligible for the Register, and FEMA’s undertaking will adversely affect it, FEMA will provide additional public notices. For historic properties not adversely affected by FEMA’s undertaking, this will be the only public notice. 

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 protects the civil rights of persons with disabilities. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by the federal government, federal contractors, and by recipients of federal financial assistance. Any recipient or sub-recipient of federal funds is required to make their programs accessible to individuals with disabilities. Its protections apply to all programs and businesses that receive any federal funds. This applies to all elements of physical/architectural, programmatic, and communication accessibility in all services and activities conducted by or funded by FEMA. FEMA intends to comply with the Rehabilitation Act in all federally conducted and assisted programs in alignment with the principals of whole community inclusion and universal accessibility.

The public is invited to participate in the process of identifying alternatives and analyzing their impacts. A noted, this may be the only public notice regarding the above-described actions under the PA, IA, and HMGP programs. Interested persons may obtain information about these actions or a specific project by writing to the Federal Emergency Management Agency – Region 8 EHP Office, Denver Federal Center, Box 25267, Denver, Colorado 80225-0267, or by email at FEMA-R8EHP@fema.dhs.gov. Please include in the subject line of the email “DR-4842-CRST EHAD.” Comments should be sent at the above addresses within 30 days of the date of this notice.