REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
March 25, 2025
FROM
LUTHER SNOKE, Chief Executive Officer, County Administrative Office
SUBJECT
Title
Hazard Mitigation Grant Program Subaward Acceptance
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Accept grant subaward (State Award No. FEMA-4699-DR-CA) from the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, in the amount of $524,987, including a $124,999 local match requirement, which will be used to update San Bernardino County’s Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan, with a grant performance period of February 3, 2025 through February 3, 2028.
2. Adopt Resolution authorizing the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, Chief Executive Officer, County Chief Financial Officer, Director of Emergency Management, or Assistant Director of Emergency Management to proceed with the following actions on behalf of the County for the purpose of obtaining federal financial assistance under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, as directed by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services:
a. Execute and file grant subaward and any ancillary documents with the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to obtain grant funds.
b. Act as signatories for grant reimbursement claims, performance reports, and other documents required to administer the grant.
c. Execute any non-substantive project modifications that change the scope of the project, subject to review by County Counsel.
3. Authorize the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, Chief Executive Officer, County Chief Financial Officer, Director of Emergency Management, or Assistant Director of Emergency Management to proceed with the following actions, on behalf of the County and subject to County Counsel review, as directed by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services:
a. Execute and file grant subaward and any ancillary documents with the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to obtain grant funds.
b. Act as signatories for grant reimbursement claims, performance reports, and other documents required to administer the grant.
c. Execute any non-substantive project modifications that change the scope of the project.
4. Direct the Director of Emergency Management to transmit the executed Hazard Mitigation Grant Program subaward to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors within 30 days of execution.
(Presenter: Crisanta Gonzalez, Director of Emergency Management, 356-3998)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Promote the Countywide Vision.
Improve County Government Operations.
Ensure Development of a Well-Planned, Balanced, and Sustainable County.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of additional Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). There is a 25% in-kind match requirement on project costs for this grant. The San Bernardino County Office of Emergency Services (OES) will meet the match requirement through personnel costs for allowable program activities. A portion of the funds in the amount of $24,999 will be used for the management and administration of the grant. No matching funds are required for management and administration. Appropriations will be included in the 2026 budget and future operating budgets. Total project costs are reflected in the table below:
|
Award |
Federal Share |
County Match |
Total Project Cost |
|
Consultant/Planning Team Salaries |
$374,991 |
$124,997 |
$499,988 |
|
Management & Administration |
$ 24,999 |
$0 |
$ 24,999 |
|
Total |
$399,990 |
$124,997 |
$524,987 |
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) is offered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide funding to state and local governments for mitigation activities that reduce future disaster losses in local communities, including the development of hazard mitigation plans. Funds are made available after a presidentially-declared disaster, which was declared for the 2023 Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, Disaster Declaration No. DR-4699-CA.
OES applied for HMGP funding to update the County’s Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan, which must be updated by 2027. The current plan was updated in 2022 and requires an update every five years in order for the County to continue to be eligible to receive federal disaster funds. OES will use these HMGP grant funds to hire a consultant to review and update sections of the current FEMA-approved plan, developing additional annexes to address various types of disasters that are not included in the current plan. The consultant will be required to work with the OES Planning Team and local jurisdictions that are included in the plan to identify and reduce risks and increase overall resilience.
On November 12, 2024, OES received approval from the Chief Executive Officer to apply for the HMGP utilizing Resolution No. 2023-95, which was approved on June 27, 2023, authorizing County agents to act on behalf of the County for all matters pertaining to state and federal disaster assistance.
To streamline processes, this grant allows the adoption of an additional Board-Governed Resolution, authorizing certain officials to act as signatories and file documents specific to this grant. Therefore, a new resolution is required to authorize the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, Chief Executive Officer, County Chief Financial Officer, Director of Emergency Management, or Assistant Director of Emergency Management to execute and file documents with the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) to obtain grant funds, to act as signatories for grant reimbursement claims, performance reports, non-substantive project modifications, and other documents required to administer the grant. Non-substantive project modifications are scope-of-work changes that do not amend the grant allocation or extend the grant performance period.
On February 14, 2025, OES received notification from the Cal OES that the County’s HMGP application was approved, awarding a total of $524,987 for the Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan updates, which includes a $124,997 in-kind match requirement, $374,991 for consultant project costs, and $24,999 for management and administration costs, for a performance period of February 3, 2025 through February 3, 2028. This grant is retroactive to the FEMA approval date.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Grace B. Parsons, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on March 20, 2025; Finance (Carl Lofton, Administrative Analyst, 387-5404) on March 13, 2025; and County Finance and Administration (Robert Saldana, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on March 7, 2025.