How to Complete a Streamlined BCA

A Benefit-Cost Analysis (BCA) should be performed to demonstrate that a proposed mitigation project will be a wise expenditure of public funds.

For all mitigation projects, a cost-effectiveness determination is required as a basic eligibility requirement. In many cases, this means performing a full BCA in the BCA Toolkit.

However, if a project meets the following conditions, full analysis may not be required to be performed in the BCA Toolkit.

• The project type is eligible for pre-calculated benefits
• The building to be mitigated qualifies as "substantially damaged" as defined by the National Flood Insurance Program

The term “pre-calculated benefit” refers to a benefit value that has been calculated based on research and statistical analysis or computer modeling of mitigation projects.

Each pre-calculated benefit that FEMA has determined is listed below. However, note that not every mitigation project type has a corresponding pre-calculated benefit. If a pre-calculated benefit is not listed for a specific project type, then it is likely that a full BCA will need to be performed.

Be aware that using a pre-calculated benefit value does not change the eligibility requirement for developing a detailed cost estimate. A project’s cost estimate must be based on industry standards, vendor or construction estimates, or other reliable and defensible sources.

As noted in the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide, published July 30, 2024, this web page provides the current pre-calculated benefits values. This page is updated more frequently than the Program and Policy Guide. Therefore, if the number in the table below differs from the value provided in the HMA Program and Policy Guide, use the value in the table below. If you have a question about which value to use, ask the BCA Helpline

Mitigation Project type	Pre-Calculated Benefit Value	Additional Information and Resources
Acquisitions
Acquisitions in the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)	$775,411 per structure	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Sections B.1.1.4.1.1, B.1.1.4.1.3, and B.1.1.4.1.4 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 285 and 287
Acquisitions of Repetitive Loss and Severe Repetitive Loss properties located outside the SFHA	$775,411 per structure	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Sections B.1.1.4.1.2, B.1.1.4.1.3, and B.1.1.4.1.4 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 285-287 To read about how the pre-calculated benefits were determined, see the Acquisition BCA Efficiencies for HMA Programs Methodology Report1
Elevations and Mitigation Reconstruction
Elevations in the SFHA	$355,522 per structure	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.3.1.4.1 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, page 340
Mitigation reconstruction in the SFHA	$355,522 per structure	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.2.1.3 and B.3.1.4.1 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 322 and 340
Hurricane Wind Retrofits for Residences
Mitigation package: Intermediate Protection		For the definition of Intermediate Mitigation Package, refer to FEMA Publication 804, starting on page 46
No roof replacement	$21,962 per structure	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.10.1.4.1 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 475-476 To determine if the residential structure is located in an area with wind speeds greater than or equal to 120 mph: Use the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool: https://asce7hazardtool.online/ Enter Location and select the Search button Under Risk Category, select “II” Under Load Types, select “Wind” Select the View Results button Obtain the wind speed below the Wind heading Select the Full Report button to obtain the report as a PDF Provide the PDF as BCA documentation
With roof replacement	$41,609 per structure	See No Roof Replacement above
Mitigation package: Advanced Protection		For the definition of Advanced Mitigation Package, refer to FEMA Publication 804, starting on page 63
No roof replacement	$67,209 per structure	See Mitigation Package: Intermediate, No Roof Replacement above
With roof replacement	$86,856 per structure	See Mitigation Package: Intermediate, No Roof Replacement above
Hurricane Wind Retrofits for Non-Residential Structures
Non-residential wind retrofits	The total project cost is less than 10% of the building’s replacement cost value	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.10.1.4.2 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 476-477 To determine if the non-residential structure is in a wind-borne debris region, use the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool: https://asce7hazardtool.online/ Enter Location and select the Search button Under Risk Category, select “II” Under Load Types, select “Wind” Select the View Results button Select the Details button Toward the bottom of the Wind Details popup window, review that the shaded text includes the phrase “Glazed openings shall be protected against wind-borne debris as specified in Section 26.12.3.” If the wind-borne debris  text is present, select the Full Report button to obtain the report as a PDF Provide the PDF as BCA documentation
Non-residential wind retrofits in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands	The total project cost is less than 25% of the building’s replacement cost value	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Sections B.10.1.4.2 and B.10.1.4.2.1 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 476-477
Tornado Safe Rooms
Residential tornado safe rooms	Alabama: $20,796 Arkansas: $26,068 Georgia: $8,250 Illinois: $21,340 Iowa: $23,332 Indiana: $28,265 Kansas: $21,839 Kentucky: $21,136 Louisiana: $15,471 Michigan: $10,171 Missouri: $24,411 Mississippi: $31,292 Minnesota: $11,059 Nebraska: $15,471 North Carolina: $8,924 Ohio: $17,884 Oklahoma: $28,639 Pennsylvania: $6,340 South Carolina: $9,573 South Dakota: $8,155 Tennessee: $21,175 Texas: $8,453 Virginia: $6,138 West Virginia: $7,755 Wisconsin: $14,073	For guidance and application instructions, refer to the HMA Program and Policy Guide, pages 435.
Post-Wildfire
Soil stabilization: Reseeding ground cover with quick growing or native species	$38,113 per acre
Soil stabilization: Mulching with straw or chipped wood	$25,794 per acre
Soil stabilization: Placing logs and other erosion barriers to catch sediment on hill slopes	$38,113 per acre
Soil stabilization: Planting grass to prevent the spread of noxious weeds	$114,572 per acre
Flood diversion (including flash flooding prevention and sediment reduction measures)	$5,250 per acre	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.9.1.4.1 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide on page 455
Reforestation	$261,651 per acre	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.9.1.4.1 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide on page 455
Hospital Generators
Hospital generators in urban area	$6.95 per hospital building gross square footage	For guidance and documentation requirements, refer to Section B.11.1.6.3 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide, page 496 To read about how the pre-calculated benefits were determined, see the Hospital Generator Pre-calculated Benefit-Cost Analysis Methodology Report
Hospital generators in rural area	$12.62 per hospital building gross square footage	See resources for Hospital generators in urban area above

When performing a BCA using pre-calculated benefits, use the available pre-calculated benefits value provided in the table above applicable memorandum as the benefits value for the property being mitigated. If the project cost for that property is less than or equal to the pre-calculated benefits value, then mitigating that property is considered cost-effective.

Note that even though a full BCA is not required, a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) must still be calculated since it is a required data field in FEMA’s electronic grant application systems such as FEMA GO. Either the BCR can be manually calculated or the BCA Toolkit can be used.

A manual calculation can be performed by dividing the pre-calculated benefits value by the estimated cost for mitigating that specific structure.

Be sure to follow the requirements listed in the Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide for averaging the total project cost for all structures mitigated by the project.

Another example of following the requirements in a pre-calculated benefits policy involves using a location factor to boost the pre-calculated benefits value for project locations that have higher-than-average construction costs.

Structures for which pre-calculated benefits apply can be entered into the BCA Toolkit. If the BCA Toolkit detects that a project cost value qualifies for using a pre-calculated benefit policy, a sidebar will appear in the Cost Estimation Info section. If the user selects “Yes” to consider the structure under the pre-calculated benefits policy, the analysis for that structure will end and the benefits and costs will be displayed in the Project Summary screen just as they would be displayed if a full BCA was performed.

The advantages of entering data this way for structures and projects for which pre-calculated benefits apply are that (a) the latitude and longitude values will be automatically generated for each structure, (b) the BCA Toolkit can aggregate the BCR for multiple structures in the project according to the pre-calculated benefits policy, and (c) users will have an exportable BCA file to attach to their project subapplication.

Take care to understand the pre-requisites for using a pre-calculated benefits methodology. For example, the Acquisitions and Elevations in the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) policy applies only to buildings that are located within an SFHA. If the project involves mitigating buildings both inside and outside an SFHA, the pre-calculated benefits methodology can be used only for the buildings within the SFHA. Additionally, the policy prohibits aggregating buildings inside SFHAs with those outside SFHAs. Therefore, since it is often difficult to show that mitigating buildings outside of an SFHA are cost-effective due to a lack of flood data, it may be necessary to perform a full BCA in the BCA Toolkit for some or all of the buildings included in the project.

The cost estimate used as the basis for pre-calculated benefits must consider the entire project cost for the project type. For example, all required costs for an acquisition project, such as legal fees, structure demolition, and site restoration, must be included in the cost estimate and not just the cost to acquire the structure. Similarly, the cost estimate must not include ineligible project costs.

When using the hurricane wind pre-calculated benefits, make sure to verify in which county and/or wind zone the project is located, especially for cases where the structures are located near the boundary between two counties or in a county that is partially located in the appropriate wind zone.

For communities participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, “substantial damage” is defined by the local floodplain management ordinance as a structure in a Special Flood Hazard Area for which the total cost of repairs is at least 50% of the structure’s market value before the damage event occurred, regardless of the cause of damage (the local ordinance may have a lower percentage). For the official FEMA BCA guidance related to substantially damaged buildings, refer to Section B.1.2.4.2 on page 308 of the HMA Program and Policy Guide.

If the following conditions are met for a substantially damaged structure, you do not have to perform a full BCA using the BCA Toolkit:

1. The mitigation activity is structure acquisition and demolition.
2. The building is located within a riverine (not coastal) floodplain as shown on a preliminary or effective Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). Note: The building may be located in the floodplain based on its elevation instead of being located in the floodplain on a FIRM. In this case, the elevation documentation should be included in the project subapplication.
3. The Local Floodplain Administrator has supplied documentation that the building is substantially damaged (from any origin).

The following documentation must be submitted with the project subapplication:

• The FIRM or other documentation showing that the building is located in a riverine floodplain.
• The substantial damage determination letter.

The above conditions have been met in the FEMA GO Cost-Effectiveness screen, users should enter a Total Project Benefits value that is equal to the Total Project Costs value. FEMA GO will automatically calculate a BCR of 1.0 on the screen and will allow users to navigate past this screen without an error.