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Deschutes County withdraws FEMA fuels‑reduction grant application after match rules change and administrative burden
Summary
County staff recommended, and the board approved, withdrawing a FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program application for fuels reduction after FEMA shifted match rules from in‑kind to a 25% cash requirement and issued extensive requests for information; staff cited limited administrative capacity and other secured grants.
Deschutes County commissioners voted June 3 to withdraw the county’s pending FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program application for fuels reduction. County staff told the board that since the application was submitted in February 2025 FEMA changed several material conditions, including shifting required cost‑benefit analysis work to applicants and treating a previously allowable in‑kind match as a 25% cash match, which would require the county to front substantial non‑federal funds and wait for reimbursement.
"When we applied the match could be in‑kind; FEMA now requires a cash contribution and asks the applicant to produce extensive RFIs and a cost‑benefit analysis," said Ericrop, deputy county administrator. Lauren Street, community wildfire protection supervisor, said the natural‑resources program had since secured nearly $3.9 million in other grants — including a Forest Service Community Wildfire Defense award for the La Pine area — and that staff capacity and department budgets cannot absorb a multi‑hundred‑thousand‑dollar cash match.
The original application proposed fuels‑reduction work across roughly 850 acres. Staff expressed concern that FEMA’s additional documentation demands, the shift to cash match reimbursement (FEMA would reimburse 75%), and the county’s constrained grant‑administration capacity made proceeding untenable. The board moved and seconded a formal withdrawal; the recorded vote on the motion was two members in favor and one opposed. Staff said they will continue to pursue other grant opportunities with more favorable match and administrative terms.
Next steps: Natural resources staff will continue existing awarded projects tied to other grants and will prioritize funds and applications that do not require large up‑front county cash matches.
