Pre-Disaster Flood Resilience Grants announced

Governor Evers recently joined Wisconsin Emergency Management in announcing grant awards to flood prone local governments under the new Pre-Disaster Flood Resilience Grant Program. The creation of this program was priority legislation championed by the Wisconsin Wetlands Association (WWA) last legislative session.

In the 2023 legislative session, the Pre-Disaster Flood Resilience Grant program was authored by Wisconsin Senator Romaine Quinn and former Representative Loren Oldenburg and Representative Novak. It garnered wide bipartisan support throughout the legislature (35 legislative cosponsors) and among diverse stakeholder groups (20 groups registered in favor) before being signed by Governor Evers.

This competitive grant program (funded at $2 million in the 2023-25 state budget) enables flood prone communities to apply for assessment grants to better understand flood vulnerabilities in a watershed context or implementation grants to complete hydrologic restoration projects that restore wetlands, streams, and floodplains to reduce flood risks.

Click here to read Governor Evers’ announcement of the grant awards for more about the variety of projects selected for funding.

WWA Executive Director Tracy Hames provided the following observation about the program’s first grants: “It is exciting to see such strong interest in the Pre-Disaster Flood Resilience Grant Program from communities across Wisconsin. This inaugural rollout saw applications come in totaling nearly double the available funding. Communities are seeking opportunities to assess flood vulnerabilities in a watershed context and strategically pursue wetland, stream, and floodplain restoration to reduce flood risks. We are eager to see the projects enabled by this grant come to fruition and look forward to many productive years ahead for this program.”

For more information on the Pre-Disaster Flood Resilience Grant Program, visit the Wisconsin Emergency Management website. You may also contact WWA Policy Liaison Jennifer Western Hauser.

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