PER-403-W: Addressing the Needs of Disaster Victims Through State, Tribal, and Territorial Housing Programs​

Course Overview:

This 90-minute web-based course will assist in preparing state, tribal, and territorial leaders to plan for administering disaster housing programs after a disaster. The course will review the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Individuals and Housing Programs that are under the Stafford Act. Information will also be presented on the Disaster Recovery Reform Act (DRRA) of 2018 and the FEMA State-Managed Direct Housing Grant guidance. This information will provide the learner with the base information needed to develop their state, tribal, or territorial housing strategy. Other considerations such as code enforcement, permitting, and the handling of personally identifiable information will also be presented. 

Learning Objectives:

This performance-level course will focus on how State, Tribal, and Territorial (STT) Housing Programs can assist disaster housing victims and meet their needs in the aftermath of a disaster. While participating in the course, learners will be presented with a slide presentation offering relevant content, supplemented by knowledge checks and interactive activities. Upon completing this course, the learner will answer post-test questions based on the following terminal learning objectives: 

1. Identify best practices for developing a housing strategy and implementation plan that meet the requirements of the DRRA and FEMA’s State-Managed Direct Housing Grant Guidance. 
2. Summarize the new types of FEMA Individuals and Households Program (IHP) assistance that an STT government may request to administer under the Stafford Act. 
3. Identify best practices for coordinating the collection, sharing, and handling of sensitive, personally identifiable information from federal and non-federal sources. 
4. Identify code enforcement, permitting, and utility restoration best practices.   

This project is supported by Cooperative Agreements EMW-2021-CA-00092, EMW-2021-CA-00093, EMW-2022-CA-00037, EMW-2023-GG019446, and EMW-2024-CA-05117 administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Points of view or opinions expressed in this document are those of the author and do not represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.