Stafford at 25: Hazard Mitigation Policy for the Post-Sandy Era

Sun. 3:30-5:00 p.m., Centennial E

Hurricane Sandy was the most deadly and costly storm of the 2012 Atlantic Hurricane Season, and the second most costly hurricane in U.S. history, partially because it struck the most densely populated area in North America. Following Sandy, Congress enacted revisions to the Stafford Act—the primary source of authority for Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster assistance programs for the past 25 years— as part of the $60.4 billion emergency appropriations in response to the storm and its aftermath. The Federal Sandy Rebuilding Task Force was created with Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan at the helm. That task force issued rebuilding standards that for the first time requires federal agencies include a one-foot freeboard to ensure additional safety from flooding and storm surges.

What do these changes mean to the state and local officials who must see their communities through the disaster cycle from beginning to end? How are the lessons of Hurricane Sandy informing resilient regional recovery while promoting hazard mitigation throughout the nation? This session will examine hazard mitigation policy and practice through the lens of local officials who consistently work to prepare their communities for floods.

Samantha Medlock, Moderator
Association of State Floodplain Managers

Terri Turner, Panelist
Augusta-Richmond County Planning Commission

Brian Varrella, Panelist
City of Fort Collins Stormwater Utility

Organizer: Samantha Medlock, Association of State Floodplain Managers