County, cities submit expanded list of mitigation projects after FEMA HMGP allocations for Helene and Milton

Pinellas County staff told the commission on July 17 that a countywide effort is underway to submit projects for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) after allocations related to hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Smita Ambari, principal planner with housing and community development, said the state-administered HMGP is a post‑disaster reimbursement program that requires a 25% local match and that the county's eligibility depends on maintaining a Local Mitigation Strategy (LMS) plan and working group. She described the current allocation as the largest the county has seen: about $146 million for Helene and $87 million for Milton, for a combined $233 million available at the county level.

Because the allocation must be shared across all eligible jurisdictions and special districts on the presidential declaration, the LMS working group compiled a much larger set of projects: as of the latest update staff reported roughly 68 countywide projects with a combined federal ask near $400 million (Helene and Milton requests together), producing an over‑subscription relative to the allocation. That over‑submission is deliberate: the state encourages jurisdictions to submit more projects than the allocation in case some projects are deemed ineligible or withdrawn during state review.

County projects on the lists include utility hardening (drinking water and wastewater facilities), elevation or hardening of critical electrical and signal infrastructure on barrier islands, and broader flood‑risk reduction actions such as Cross Bayou and the Bay Point stormwater park. Several county projects already in the capital plan—most notably the 30th Street culvert upsizing—were submitted for HMGP as a way to offset local matching costs.

Smita emphasized that the 25% local match is the responsibility of each applicant; that requirement can limit which municipalities or nonprofits can realistically apply because smaller jurisdictions may lack matching capital. The state will evaluate, perform cost‑benefit analysis and submit tiered lists to FEMA; tier 1 projects are those within a county's allocation, and tier 2 funds can be distributed later if other counties do not fully use their allotments.

Staff reported that the county's own submissions for Helene included five county projects requesting $41 million of federal share with a $13.9 million local match; for Milton the county requested about $39.9 million federal with $13.3 million local match. Applications were being finalized and due to the state July 25; the state will perform a review and forward eligible projects to FEMA. Staff and municipalities are coordinating to refine costs and eligibility through the state review period and the 12‑month lock‑in that follows the six‑month allocation estimate.

Next steps: the county and participating jurisdictions will complete applications by the state deadline, attach the LMS prioritized list and await state review. If projects are approved, project sponsors will be responsible for providing the 25% match and managing the projects through completion within the HMGP performance period.