Federal Flood Risk Management Programs API? Calling on DOT, HUD, FEMA, Bur. Rec, NOAA, etc.,

[Erin R.]

Hello,

 

I work at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  My coworker has asked me for help to build a website that will allow the public to search for Federal programs that may assist them during flood disasaters.  This is work that appears to be in cooperation with the National Academy of Science (see attachment),  I suggested that this may be a great idea for an API (in which they then gave me a perplexed look). However, I was able to convince them that I should consult the experts here and see what we get.  So I am querying you folks to see what might already be out there or who is interested.  The idea is that there would be a central database of Federal programs to assist people regarding flood disasters and this could be served back to all of your websites in a consistent fashion using an API.  And, if we get really ambitious, maybe we could contact the Red Cross or others with popular mobile apps that might be interested in incorporating this information into their emergency response app.  Or, I suggested allowing users to create a customizable resport based on their interests with this information.

 

Here is the identified problem that we are trying to addresss:

uInformation about federal programs is difficult to keep up-to-date

§Programs are added, changed or discontinued

uThere are hundreds of federal programs

§Previous efforts to summarize them can be overwhelming and difficult to navigate by a particular audience with a particular need/point of view 

uFederal agency websites are often displayed programmatically or based on the internal organization of the agency

§Difficult to find information across the federal landscape

uExisting efforts do not take full advantage of web-based technology  

§A good website can help the user navigate federal programs from their own perspective

 

Objectives:

uProvide users an intuitive navigational means to gather information relevant to them based on who they are and where in the FRM cycle they are.

uProvide context and background on the limitations of Federal assistance.

uProvide guidance on Federal program mechanics – how assistance can be accessed.

uAct as a launch point to other informational resources.

 

Below is a lists of identified programs/agenecies. I have attached the National Academies proposal and a draft outline of programs.  Please contact me if you know of anything similar or are interested.

 

Thank you,

Erin Rooks

US Army Corps of Engineers

703-428-6786

 

U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Programs..................................................... 3

Emergency Relief Program.................................................................................................... 3

Repair Grants (States)........................................................................................................... 3

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Programs................................................. 4

Low Impact Development Best Management Principles........................................................... 4

State Revolving Fund (SRF)..................................................................................................... 4

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Programs.......................................... 5

Community Rating System (CRS)............................................................................................ 5

Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant Program (FMA)................................................................... 6

HAZUS Model....................................................................................................................... 7

Individuals and Households Program (IHP).............................................................................. 7

National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)............................................................................... 8

National Hurricane Program (NHP)......................................................................................... 9

Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grants (PDM)..................................................................................... 9

Public Assistance Grants...................................................................................................... 10

Repetitive Flood Claims (Severe Repetitive Loss).................................................................... 11

Risk Mapping, Assessment and Planning (Risk MAP)............................................................... 12

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Programs............................................................. 12

Coastal Barrier Resources Act Enforcement.......................................................................... 12

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Programs.................... 13

Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program (CDBG-DR)......................... 13

Mortgage Insurance for Disaster Victims.............................................................................. 14

Rental Assistance................................................................................................................ 15

National Oceanic and Atmospheric (NOAA) and National Weather Service (NWS) Programs......................................................................................................................... 15

Coastal Inundation Modeling, Forecasting and Prediction...................................................... 15

National Coastal Zone Management.................................................................................... 16

NWS Advanced Hydrological Prediction Service (AHPS)........................................................... 17

NWS Flash Flood Guidance Program..................................................................................... 17

NWS Post Flood Damage and Assessment and Reporting....................................................... 18

NWS River and Flood Forecasts............................................................................................ 19

NWS Storm Prediction Center.............................................................................................. 19

NWS Weather Warnings and Forecasts................................................................................. 20

U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Programs.................................................... 20

Disaster Loan Program  - Physical Disaster Loans................................................................... 21

Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL).................................................................................. 22

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Programs......................................................... 22

Floodplain Management Services Program............................................................................ 22

Levee Safety Program......................................................................................................... 23

National Flood Risk Management Program........................................................................... 24

Rehabilitation Program....................................................................................................... 25

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) Programs.............................................................. 26

Flood Hydrology and Emergency Management Group............................................................ 26

Flood Risk Management Activities........................................................................................ 27

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Programs........................................................ 28

USDA Crop Insurance Program............................................................................................. 28

Emergency Conservation Programs...................................................................................... 28

Emergency Loan Assistance................................................................................................. 29

Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP)........................................................................................ 30

Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).............................................................. 30

NRCS Technical Assistance................................................................................................... 31

Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations (WFPO)............................................................. 32

Watershed Rehabilitation Program....................................................................................... 32

Watershed Surveys and Planning.......................................................................................... 33

Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP)........................................................................................ 34

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Programs....................................................................... 34

Assessing Societal Vulnerability to Natural Hazards Program.................................................. 34

Flood Inundation Mapping Program..................................................................................... 35

Landslide Hazards Program.................................................................................................. 36

National Map (Elevation and Hydrography)........................................................................... 36

National Streamflow Information Program (NSIP)................................................................. 37

 

[Amin Mehr]

Hi Erin,

I'm not sure if this is going to be help, but at BusinessUSA.gov we use FEMA's Disaster Declarations API to notify (via push notifications) users of our app of when there has been a disaster declaration in their area based on state/zip-code. From there businesses can access more info in regards to programs and services the government that may help them. Here is the short URL for the FEMA resource for flooding that may have financial assistance or other links provided by FEMA: http://goo.gl/y3ayLF and also the API link for Disaster Declarations: http://goo.gl/W5XmTp

Your project sounds really great, best of luck!

Regards,

Amin Mehr

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[karl.n...@outlook.com]

Hi Erin,

Seeking technical assistance for this is a great idea, and asking about API's is very sensible as well. API's will help your information be picked up by others that may want or need to use it, especially at short notice. Think of facebook, twitter, as well as The Red Cross, knowing where and how to dispense emergency information when it's needed.

I would suggest contacting Code for America at http://codeforamerica.org and seeing about becoming a government partner. This is exactly the sort of thing this organization does, and they have plenty of resources to bring to bear.

Hope this helps.

Karl Nicholas.