Community Development Block Grant Mitigation Funds

Aug 5, 2022SETRPC News

*Public Hearing Information*
1st Public Hearing
Date: Tuesday, August 16, 2022
Time: 1:30 pm.
Location: South East Texas Regional Planning Commission
2210 Eastex Freeway
Beaumont, TX 77703

Click Here to view the meeting online (starting a 1:30 pm).
Agenda
Presentation
Recording

2nd Public Hearing
Date: Wednesday, August 17, 2022
Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Virtual

Join on your computer or mobile appClick here to join the meetingMeeting ID: 296 924 072 192Passcode: WpWUokDownload Teams | Join on the web

Instructions for the Virtual MOD Public Hearing
Agenda
Presentation
Recording

Conditionally Approved Preliminary MOD Documents
Download the MIT COG MOD Allocation Summary and Calculation Worksheets
Download the Public Planning Meeting – Public Comments & Responses
A hard copy of the documents above is available for public inspection at the South East Texas Regional Planning Commission. Please ask the front desk if you would like to view the documents.

Public Comments
SETRPC will accept public comments on the conditionally approved preliminary MOD until August 22, 2022, at 5:00 pm. To submit a comment or question, you may:

  • Email public comments to: mitmod@setrpc.org.
  • Hand-deliver or mail Public Comments to:
    CDBG-MIT Comments
    2210 Eastex Freeway
    Beaumont, TX 77703
  • Fax: (409)347-0138
  • Make public comments at a public hearing
  • Online Form

Please include your name and email address with your public comment. We must have the information to respond to your public comment.

 

The South East Texas Regional Planning Commission (SETRPC) is seeking input regarding a preliminary Method of Distribution (MOD) for the allocation of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) Regional Mitigation Program funds to counties and local jurisdictions for risk mitigation projects related to flooding, hurricanes, and other natural disasters.

The Texas General Land Office (GLO) is administering the CDBG-MIT Regional Mitigation Program at the state level under a federally approved State Action Plan. Under this plan, the GLO issued guidelines for regional councils of governments for the development of regional MODs. The GLO allocated $142,878,000 of CDBGMIT Regional Mitigation Program funds to the SETRPC region. The SETRPC worked with GLO to develop and submit a MOD for the funding.

Phase One (completed)
The process of developing the MOD began in early 2022. Two public planning meetings were held in February. The meeting recordings, presentations, and agenda are below.

After the public planning meetings were held and SETRPC received public comments regarding the issues that southeast Texas faces, the SETRPC developed a Preliminary MOD for Hardin, Orange, and Jefferson Counties. The preliminary MOD was submitted to GLO, and in August 2022, GLO issued conditional approval for the SETRPC’s Preliminary MOD.

Phase Two
The conditionally approved preliminary MOD includes the amount of funding available for eligible entities. The allocation is pending acceptance by eligible entities and is subject to change until the final approval by GLO. A complete list of suitable activities is available in the Texas General Land Office (GLO) guidelines for the Regional Mitigation Program – Council of Governments Method of Distribution (COG MODs).

Flood mitigation was, by far, the issue brought up most during the two public planning meetings. In addition, the majority of projects submitted from southeast Texas during Round One of the Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) competition were flood-related and went unfunded. Limiting potential projects to drainage focuses funding on larger projects that significantly impact the most people.

The Texas General Land Office (GLO) guidelines encourage the prioritization of regional investments and set a limited timeline of six years for projects. These guidelines make it vital that funding be directed to regional entities dealing with large drainage projects, making counties and drainage districts the best choice. After reviewing the guidelines, researching flood mitigation, and assessing public comments, the SETRPC believes that the best course of action is to provide direct allocations to drainage districts, with the exception of Hardin County and Jefferson County Drainage District No. 3 (DD3). Hardin County lacks a drainage district. Therefore, the county will be directly allocated funds. SETRPC’s CDBG‐MIT MOD focuses on providing funding to entities that have a history of regional projects. Drainage District No. 3 (DD3) serves approximately 40,000 acres of unincorporated land in Jefferson County. The SETRPC confirmed that DD3 lacks a hazard mitigation plan of its own and is not part of any other local hazard mitigation plan, has never received or managed this level of funding, and does not have any projects that would meet the criteria for SETRPC’s CDBG-MIT MOD. The district stated that they work closely with DD6 as projects completed by DD3 drain through DD6 and that DD3 relies on DD6’s expertise due to their size and capacity. For the reasons stated above, an allocation of funds was not provided to DD3.

Drainage districts are regional entities with a track record of working closely with cities and counties to reduce the risk of flooding. Several projects in CDBG-MIT Round One were joint applications between drainage districts, cities, and counties. Jefferson County Drainage District No. 6 (DD6), Jefferson County Drainage District No. 7 (DD7), Orange County Drainage District (OCDD), and Hardin County all have Hazard Mitigation Plans. Directing funding to regional entities with a history of coordinating actions, managing large grants, and have a hazard mitigation plan, will help accelerate flood mitigation efforts that are needed throughout the southeast Texas region.

Translations of MOD Information Notices
Spanish

Public Hearings
SETRPC will accept oral and written comments on the conditionally approved preliminary MOD during a public hearing on Tuesday, August 16, 2022, at 1:30 pm. The hearing will be held in person at the South East Texas Regional Planning Commission, 2210 Eastex Freeway, Beaumont, TX 77703, or can be viewed online. Instructions to view the meeting virtually will be posted 48 hours before the meeting. Participants will hear a brief overview of the conditionally approved MOD, and in-person attendees will be able to make comments about the MOD.

The second public hearing will be a virtual meeting on Wednesday, August 17, 2022, at 6:00 pm. Instructions to join the meeting will be posted on our website, SETRPC.org, 48 hours before the meeting.

Public Comments
SETRPC will accept public comments on the conditionally approved preliminary MOD until August 22, 2022, at 5:00 pm. To submit a comment or question, you may:

  • Email public comments to: mitmod@setrpc.org.
  • Hand-deliver or mail Public Comments to:
    CDBG-MIT Comments
    2210 Eastex Freeway
    Beaumont, TX 77703
  • Fax: (409)347-0138
  • Make public comments at a public hearing
  • Online Form

Please include your name and email address with your public comment. We must have the information to respond to your public comment.

Next Steps
After the public comment period ends on August 22, 2022:

  • The SETRPC will review the comments and make any changes if needed.
  • SETRPC’s Board of Directors will consider a final proposed method of distribution.
  • Following Board approval, SETRPC staff will submit the Final Method of Distribution to the Texas General Land Office for final approval.
  • After the GLO approves the final MOD, the entities that receive allocations will have around four months to propose projects to the GLO.

Preliminary MOD – Public Planning Meetings

The first meeting was held on Wednesday, February 16, 2022, at 1:30 pm.

The second meeting was held on Thursday, February 24, 2022, at 6:30 pm.