Considering a Consultant to Support Local Mitigation Planning Starter Kit

This fact sheet is for plan owners who are considering hiring a consultant to support the local mitigation planning process and the compilation of a mitigation plan. The planning process requires active participation and leadership from the community(ies) involved. Outside help can support the whole process or just certain phases and tasks. You do not need formal training to lead this process. However, hiring a consultant may help meet FEMA requirements and create a stronger plan. Consider support if:

• You want specific expertise. This could be from experts or specialists in community planning, engineering, public outreach and engagement, or Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
• You need help identifying hazards, risks, and vulnerabilities, or if you need help estimating potential losses.
• You want a third party to facilitate discussions about mitigation goals, actions and priorities.
• There are capacity issues within your community(ies) to lead or help with the process.

Planning consultants work under contract to give professional and technical support. They can come from private consulting firms, academic institutions, nonprofit organizations or regional planning agencies. Before you hire a consultant, you should assess their qualifications, expertise and their approach to the project as outlined in their proposal. The table below highlights the main tasks of developing a mitigation plan. It discusses which tasks can be delegated for outside assistance. It also shows which tasks the plan owner should still take ownership and responsibility for.

Examples of Consultant and Plan Owner Roles

Tasks	Contractor Role	Plan Owner Role
Planning Process, Meetings/Workshops	Minimal Assistance - Help the community start its planning process. Identify key meetings and decisions that need to occur. Create a timeline and schedule for the completion of all tasks.   Significant Assistance - Help start the planning process. Create materials for the various meetings and workshops. Lead the meetings and workshops. Prepare notes as required.	Determine key government, stakeholder and community members to be on the Planning Team. Explain the purpose of the plan/update process to the Planning Team. Make decisions about the number and location of meetings and workshops. Help coordinate meetings and attendance. Review and approve all meeting materials.
Public Outreach and Participation	Minimal Assistance: Help the jurisdiction develop a public outreach strategy. Significant Assistance: Help develop the public outreach strategy and help with implementation of the strategy (attend meetings, coordinate media, etc., help respond to public comments/questions)	Determine if the nature and number of meetings or other outreach methods are adequate to engage the public. Attend meetings and lead portions of the meetings. Address any needs for more targeted outreach to specific community members. Coordinate media and respond to public comments and questions.
Hazard Assessment	Minimal Assistance: Run a hazard assessment with data provided by the community. GIS and Hazus software are example tools for such an assessment. Significant Assistance: Help determine necessary data inputs and collect them. Run the hazard analysis. Present the results of the analysis to participants.	Determine the critical facilities, community lifelines, or other community assets to include in the assessment. Check that the assessment methodology uses appropriate parameters (e.g. timeframe, geographic boundaries, etc.) Ensure that the results of the assessment are in line with the community’s experiences (e.g. most vulnerable assets have previously been damaged during hazard events).
Compilation of the Plan	Minimal Assistance: Supply an outline or table of contents of the required sections in a plan. Significant Assistance: Collect all the information from the meetings, workshops, etc., and compile the hazard mitigation plan.	Check that the compiled elements of the plan meet the requirements in the Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide.
Multi-Jurisdictional Plan Coordination	Minimal Assistance: Provide guidance on how a multi-jurisdictional plan is different from a single-jurisdiction plan. Advise on the best approaches for multi-jurisdictional planning and supply helpful resources as needed Significant Assistance: Help the participating jurisdictions complete all parts of the plan that are specific to their communities. Fold these pieces into the plan so that all participants are eligible for plan approval and adoption.	Work directly with all participants to make sure they understand and meet all planning requirements. Make sure that all participating jurisdictions have a voice in the plan’s coordination and development.
Submit the Plan for State and FEMA Review and Approval	Minimal Assistance: Provide suggestions on how to respond to state and FEMA comments. Significant Assistance: Help the community with any required revisions that may come from the state and FEMA.	Understand the review comments from the state and FEMA and ask the consultant to address. Lead the adoption process so that the plan is approved by all participating jurisdictions.

Many communities hire consultants to help coordinate and facilitate the planning process. Consultants can also compile the entire hazard mitigation plan for state and FEMA approval. If your community decides to hire one, think about which phases you want help with. Then use these factors to assess a consultant’s background and expertise.

General: Regardless of the level of support you seek, look for a planning consultant that:

• Knows the current federal and state requirements for local hazard mitigation planning. This includes the updated policies in the Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide released April 19, 2022.
• Knows the applicable regulations, laws and guidance, and understands how to apply them to a hazard mitigation plan. For example, they must know the requirements of the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000; state, tribal and local regulations; and the NFIP requirements.
• Understands that each community has unique demographic, geographic and political conditions. Be sure to think about the differences between hiring a consultant that is local versus one that is outside the region or even the state.
• Has attended FEMA Mitigation Planning training.
• Is prepared to give references. This should include names and phone numbers for past clients.
• Can show hazard mitigation plans that were approved on first submission.
• Can show approved plans that are considered models or best examples.
• Can successfully use technical tools, research, media, graphics and communication in their work.

Planning Process: If you need support with the planning process, look for a consultant that:

• Understands that community input and participation are key to a strong hazard mitigation plan.
• For plan updates, knows how to build on the existing hazard mitigation plan rather than starting from scratch.
• Has experience with different forms of community engagement and outreach. They should show they can do successful public outreach, especially to underserved communities. 

Risk Assessment: If you need support with the risk assessment, look for a consultant that:

• Knows how to create community-specific risk assessments that help identify key vulnerabilities and mitigation needs.
• Knows how to find and use the latest FEMA Risk Mapping, Assessment and Planning data and other flood risk products. 
• Can help communities assess changes in development, hazards and vulnerability since the last plan update.
• Can help communities think about the effects of future conditions, including climate change. They should be able to describe how climate change affects the risk assessment.

Mitigation Strategy: If you need support with mitigation strategy, look for a consultant that:

• Is familiar with emergency management and multi-hazard mitigation concepts.
• Has proven experience developing successful and creative strategies that connect to the Risk Assessment. These strategies should also address the needs of underserved communities.
• Understands long-term risk reduction. They should use strategies based in community development, land management, resiliency, sustainability and smart growth practices.
• Knows how mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery are different. You can address all four, but the focus of the hazard mitigation plan is mitigation.
• Knows the financial resources a community could access for funding projects.
• Knows how long-term risk reduction connects to community development, land management, resiliency, sustainability and smart growth practices.
• Understands the connection between the hazard mitigation plan and other planning mechanisms in the community.
• Knows the overlaps between hazard mitigation plans and the CRS and Community Wildfire Protection Plans. The consultant should address the requirements for multiple programs in one plan.

Maintenance and Update: If you need support with plan maintenance and updates, look for a consultant that:

• Can support a community with project execution and progress through a successful strategy.
• Knows the requirements for a plan update as opposed to an initial plan.
• Understands the updates made in the 2022 Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide. They should also know how to apply these to hazard mitigation plans.
• Clearly states they will support you through the FEMA review process. A contract is complete when the plan has received the FEMA status of “Approvable Pending Adoption” or “Approved.”

If your community wants to hire a private consultant, you may need to do a Request for Proposals (RFP). Procurement laws and rules vary from state to state and even from community to community. However, going through an RFP process is recommended for most cases. As you develop the RFP and assess submissions, think about the following.

• Scope of Work (SOW): When hiring a consultant, you should give them a detailed SOW. Here is some advice for writing your SOW.
  • Talk to the State Hazard Mitigation Officer about the requirements for a FEMA-approved hazard mitigation plan. For example, the hazard profiles may not need detailed databases of prior events or complex geospatial analyses of location and extent. These analyses might cost more than the community has to invest. Some states may have sample scopes of work or lists of deliverables. These can be reviewed when developing the actual SOW for the planning area. 
  • what professional skills or services the community staff can provide before asking for proposals. You should engage those who know your community(ies) best first, depending on their capacity. For example, if your community has a public outreach officer, they could make the public outreach strategy for your hazard mitigation plan. If your community has GIS capabilities, you may not need outside assistance for geospatial data analysis and mapping.
  • Build in allowances for changes if the draft plan does not match your community’s vision. It is the community’s plan, not the consultant’s.
• Schedule:
  • Compare the consultant’s proposed timeline with the community’s desired schedule, staff availability, and for plan updates when the current plan expires.
  • The schedule should include multiple opportunities to review and comment on draft portions of the plan. There should be enough time for revisions. Be clear about how much time is needed for reviews.
  • The timeline and budget must have plenty of state and FEMA review time. The planning team also needs enough time to make any required or recommended revisions, if applicable, following these reviews. FEMA recommends expecting an 18 month timeline from project kickoff through review and adoption. This may not apply to every community. But if your community does not have set expectations, this can be a starting point. 
• Deliverables:
  • The consultant’s final deliverable must be a hazard mitigation plan that has received the FEMA status of “Approvable Pending Adoption” or “Approved.” The consultant should be available to help with the plan review and approval process. They should also help in the local adoption process.
  • Be sure to include in the contract that the jurisdiction will review drafts of the plan during development. The final plan should not be the first time people see the written document.
  • Include in your contract that the consultant will share digital copies of the plan any time during development. They must also share copies of the finished plan. The digital copy must be editable. The contract should also state the number of printed and/or bound copies of the final plan that the consultant will share.
  • If the consultant is doing mapping or a risk assessment, the contract should note that you will get editable versions of these as well. These could be GIS files or a spreadsheet that holds the results of an exposure analysis.
  • Make sure the final plan meets all scoped requirements. For example, if your SOW specified a Level 2 Hazus analysis then make sure that the consultant provided that deliverable unless the project scope was amended. If your plan was funded by a FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance grant, scope revisions are often complex. This is why scope development for grant funding is so important.
  • Ask for quality work over quantity. While consultants may have standard templates that they use, remember that this is your community’s plan. Each community has unique circumstances, and those should be reflected in both the plan’s development and in the final plan itself. Ask the consultant to develop a planning process that aligns with your community’s needs rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach.
• Multi-Jurisdictional Plan Scopes: Multi-jurisdictional plans will need more coordination among communities. The schedule needs to account for different jurisdictions’ timeframes and meeting schedules.
  • When a county/parish/township includes a federally recognized tribe in its planning area, the tribe can take part in the multi-jurisdictional plan. The tribe can also complete a plan on its own. If the tribe chooses to take part, the plan must include the provisions for 44 CFR §201.7 for the tribal jurisdiction. Complete all provisions for both local and tribal plan regulations at the same time. This way, the plan has only one review cycle with FEMA.
• References: References are a key part of hiring any consultant. Here are a few items to consider when asking for references.
  • Ask the consultant to provide references for their most recent work.
  • Contact the references. Ask what the working relationship was with the consultant, and if there were any lessons learned from the process.
• Cost: The cost to develop or update the plan is an important component of the SOW. Here are some items to consider:
  • Will you use grant funding for part of the process? If so, how will you meet the local match? Will it be through local funds, or in-kind services?
  • If using grant funds, ensure that the plan and the process meets all the criteria that were included in the grant application. 
  • Ensure that the consultant provides specific breakdowns of their cost. They should provide updates throughout the process. This will help ensure the project remains on schedule. 
  • Make sure that the cost includes addressing any required revisions from the state and/or FEMA. The contract should specify that the end product will be a FEMA-approved and locally adopted plan. 
  • Consider if the planning process will include bringing all the communities together for larger meetings, or if the contractor will need to reach out to them individually.
  • If the contractor is expected to facilitate the adoption of the plans with local communities, be sure to specify that in the SOW.