Public Comment Period Open for State of Montana’s National Disaster Resilience Grant Application

HELENA, MT – March 23, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — The Montana Department of Commerce is preparing the State of Montana’s application for Community Development Block Grant – National Disaster Resilience (CDBG-NDR) funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Between 2011 and 2013, Montana was the recipient of three Presidential Disaster Declarations for impacts resulting from severe storms, flooding and wildfires. These disaster declarations affected 48 of the 56 counties statewide, and while federal relief funds have been spent in response to these events, extensive unmet needs continue to exist across the state. Montana’s state agencies, tribal governments, local governmental entities, private businesses, and non-profit organizations that work with, support, or represent Montanans in areas that continue to experience unmet needs resulting from disasters are partnering on Montana’s Phase I application for CDBG-NDR grant funds; the Phase I application is due on March 27th, 2015.

Given the expansive geography and dispersed population of Montana, barriers to communication have the greatest impact on statewide resiliency efforts. If awarded CDBG-NDR grant funds, the State will establish an interactive digital platform to empower state, tribal, and local entities to implement resilient strategies in their own communities.

Through this platform, communities in those areas hit by disasters will be able to select and implement locally driven projects to address their unmet needs and improve long-term resiliency. The platform will also give local communities access to other public and private resiliency funding opportunities.

The Montana Department of Commerce held a public hearing to review the State’s Phase I draft application for CDBG-NDR funding on March 16th, 2015 at 10:30am. The draft Phase I application is now posted on the Department of Commerce Community Development Division’s website (http://comdev.mt.gov/default.mcpx).

The public comment period is open until March 26th, 2015 and individuals wishing to submit questions or provide comment on the State’s Phase 1 draft application may do so by emailing DOCCDBG (at) mt (dot) gov directly.

If awarded, these grant funds will provide an historic opportunity to help Montana communities address unmet recovery needs and increase long-term resiliency across the state.

Public partnership and collaboration in this application process will help guide where and how the funds will assist the State in long term resiliency efforts in the face of human, natural, and economic disasters. Community Development Division staff can be reached at (406) 841-2770 or DOCCDBG (at) mt (dot) gov.