[StBernard] More Mitigation money to homeowners of Road Home Option 1

[Westley Annis]

BATON ROUGE, La. - Thousands of Louisiana homeowners affected by hurricanes
Katrina and Rita can now apply for grant funds of up to $7,500 to take
small-scale measures to protect their homes from loss in future storms,
including installing roof-tie downs and storm shutters.

"In the aftermath of the great damage caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita,
preventing future home damage and loss is one of Louisiana's top priorities,
which is why we are offering grants to help homeowners pay to install common
sense protection like storm shutters," said Paul Rainwater, executive
director of the Louisiana Recovery Authority. "In Louisiana, we already have
put more than $846 million on the ground to help our residents raise their
homes, and these grants of up to $7,500 will help make homes even safer and
stronger than they are now. Individual Mitigation Measures have always been
considered the final phase of our rebuilding program and we are happy to be
in a position to extend additional funding opportunities to those who wish
to protect their homes."

The Individual Mitigation Measures program, originally a component of the
state's Road Home program, is now administered using Hazard Mitigation Grant
Program (HMGP) funds provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in
the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Beginning this week, the state is mailing forms to more than 100,000 Road
Home applicants who selected "Option 1" to rebuild or repair their homes,
requesting that they opt-in to the IMM program by March 10, 2010. Homeowners
can also use this form to choose to participate in the Office of Community
Development - Disaster Recovery Unit's HMGP Elevation program, which offers
eligible homeowners up to $100,000 to elevate their homes.

Homeowners will work with mitigation analysts from the OCD-DRU Hazard
Mitigation program, and not the Road Home program, for this funding.
Homeowners who need information about Individual Mitigation Measures should
call 1-877-824-8312, not the Road Home hotline.

Because of FEMA regulations surrounding how HMGP funds can be used and
because these funds are offered as reimbursement, homeowners should not
install or start work on Individual Mitigation Measures until speaking with
a Mitigation Analyst and their home has been cleared by the program.

Homeowners who already completed Individual Mitigation Measures that they
think are eligible for reimbursement should collect copies of receipts and
invoices for the work, which will be necessary to move forward with the
program.

The state will base individual grant awards on the type of Individual
Mitigation Measure a homeowner takes. Because of federal law, the state also
must ensure that it is paying homeowners for actual unmet needs and not
duplicating a benefit already provided for the same purpose.

WHAT IS AN INDIVIDUAL MITIGATION MEASURE?

IMMs are small scale improvements homeowners can make to their properties to
protect their investments in the event of future storms. Some examples of
eligible work include:

Strengthening doors; 
Protecting windows, including by installing storm shutters; 
Bolting roofs to walls and walls to foundations; 
Elevating electrical panels or air conditioning units; 
Raising washers, dryers, hot water heaters or furnaces; 
Anchoring propane tanks or heating fuel tanks. 
Mitigation Analysts can provide homeowners with more detailed information
about eligible mitigation activities.

DEADLINES

Homeowners must notify the state of their interest in the IMM program and
the HMGP elevation program by March 10, 2010. To show interest, homeowners
must return their forms to the state postmarked by March 10, 2010.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Homeowners who need information can call the IMM hotline at 1-877-824-8312
or e-mail hazardmitigation at la.gov. Information is also available online at
http://www.doa.louisiana.gov/cdbg/dr/hmgp/hmgp.htm.

Louisiana Recovery Authority Press Release)