NADO.org » Disaster Recovery

House Passes $50 Billion in Sandy Disaster Relief

NADO Admin — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 21:28:34 +0000

On January 15, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a supplemental spending bill providing relief funding for the victims of Hurricane Sandy. The House bill, H.R. 152, contained two amendments containing funds for hurricane relief. The first amendment, offered by Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY), provided $17 billion in relief for various federal agencies. A second amendment, offered by Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ), contained an additional $33 billion for transportation repairs, Homeland Security disaster relief, and Army Corps of Engineers projects. A number of controversial amendments that would have reduced funding for programs such as HUD’s Community Development Block Grants were rejected by the House Rules Committee and were not considered during floor debate. Including the $9 billion in funding for the National Flood Insurance Program approved on January 4, total House funding for Sandy relief is at $59 billion.

The U.S. Senate passed a separate bill at the end of the previous session of Congress. The two bodies must now reconcile the aid package when the Senate returns on January 21. Senate leaders have not indicated a timeline for passing a final aid package. Click here to view the full text of H.R. 152.

Lessons Learned from Irene: Vermont RPCs Address Transportation System Recovery

Kate Humphrey — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 15:27:29 +0000

One week after moving into the Caribbean and then striking the U.S. east coast as a category 1 hurricane, Irene arrived in Vermont on August 27, 2011. The storm caused widespread damage in 223 of the state’s 251 towns and villages. Severe flooding was particularly devastating for transportation infrastructure, requiring the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) to take a leading role in the recovery. The extent of the damage, however, proved too much for a single agency to manage alone. VTrans’ leadership sought help from the state’s 11 regional planning commissions (RPCs) to assume responsibility for assessing needed local road repairs.

While the RPCs were well positioned to assist because of their established relationships and networks within the towns, their recovery activities often went beyond their typical scope of work. The collaboration between VTrans and the RPCs offers lessons for disaster preparedness and recovery, both crucial elements for building more resilient communities.

This publication was developed with support from the Federal Highway Administration through the NADO Research Foundation’s Center for Transportation Advancement and Regional Development.

Read the report here. (PDF)
View the form the RPCs developed (PDF) to assess damage to infrastructure.
This report was also the subject of a recent NADO Research Foundation webinar. Listen to the webinar recording or view the slides here.

Get Adobe Reader to view PDF files.

Two Upcoming Webinars: Transportation & Disaster Recovery and Communication Strategies

Carrie Kissel — Wed, 30 May 2012 20:01:52 +0000

NADO and its partners are hosting two free training webinars on different topics in the next two weeks.

On Thursday, June 7 at 2 p.m. EDT, the NADO Research Foundation will hold Lessons Learned from Irene: RPC Involvement in Recovery of Vermont’s Transportation Network. Two regional planners from organizations in Vermont will discuss the steps the state’s regional planning commissions took to address the devastating results of intense rainfall occurring from Tropical Storm Irene. This webinar will focus on how the lessons learned in Vermont can help other regional planning and development organizations be a valuable asset in future disaster recovery for transportation infrastructure. The event is approved for 1 AICP CM credit.

Then, on Tuesday, June 12 at 1 p.m. EDT, The National Association of Counties (NACo), in partnership with the NADO Research Foundation, is hosting Framing the Issue: Communication Strategies for Planning Processes. During this interactive online training, participants will learn techniques to develop effective community engagement techniques for their planning programs. Presenters will share recommendations for getting the message out via traditional and social media, and strategies for communicating with the general public. Participants will engage in interactive role-play exercises to test these new skills. NADO and NACo are applying to offer AICP CM credits for this webinar.

Registration for all of these webinars is free but must be completed in advance.

Regional Resilience

Matt Black — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:44:29 +0000

The Rural Policy Research Institute (RUPRI) Rural Futures Lab™ and the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) Research Foundation Release New Report on Assessing Current Policy and Practice Relating to Regional Resilience

The NADO Research Foundation is pleased to announce the release of a new special report, Regional Resilience. The issue brief summarizes recent research and practice on economic and community resiliency, including a potential framework for regional development organizations to use in preparing and responding to economic shocks.

Disasters, whether natural or man-made disasters, often know no boundaries and a community’s ability to recover is mostly determined by its capacity to respond to the magnitude and severity of the event. A resilient region anticipates threats, develops resources to reduce their impact, responds appropriately, and recovers. A resilient approach extends beyond emergency responsiveness by utilizing advanced planning and leadership to address vulnerabilities and support vibrant, healthy communities.

In partnership with Rupri and the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), NADO is working to assist regions in taking a more pro-active approach to pre-disaster preparedness and post-disaster economic recovery. Through partnerships and training, NADO is working with regional development organizations (RDOs) and other partners to explore methods to hasten post-disaster economic recovery and reduce the long-term financial burden of disasters (natural disasters as well as economic disasters) on impacted communities, businesses, and individuals.

View the New Rupri-NADO Report on Regional Resilience (pdf)

The NADO Research Foundation, the nonprofit research affiliate of the National Association of Development Organizations, identifies, studies, and promotes regional solutions and approaches to improving local prosperity and services through the nationwide network of RDOs. For more information or to access these and other reports online, visit www.NADO.org or contact Program Manager Matt Black at 202.624.7809 or mblack@nado.org.

This report was produced under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) under cooperative agreement 08-79-04379. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of EDA.

(March 1, 2012)

Building Disaster Resilient Economies Webinar

Matt Black — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 21:20:26 +0000

On January 26, NADO joined the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) and the U.S. Chamber’s Business Civic Leadership Council (BCLC) in hosting a webinar on post-disaster, long-term economic recovery. The event provided preliminary guidance on the funding priorities and requirements for EDA’s FY2012 appropriations of $200 million for long-term disaster recovery. This money is restricted to areas receiving a major FEMA disaster designations during FY2011.

The webinar also featured three case studies from Denny Coleman of the St. Louis County Economic Council, Tish Hass Williams of the Hancock County Chamber of Commerce (MS), and Janet Thigpen of the Southern Tier Central Regional Planning and Development Board (NY). In addition, Carrie Mulcaire of IEDC provided a basic overview of available post-disaster recovery resources from IEDC and RestoreYourEconomy.org.

Click Here to watch the entire presentation. (Windows Media Player)

Speaker Powerpoints:

An Improved Federal Response to Post-Disaster Economic Recovery

Jonathan — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:31:06 +0000

Developed by a working group of representatives convened by the International Economic Development Council, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center and the National Association of Development Organizations, this report identifies capacity, resource and regulatory constraints imposed on local communities after a disaster, and presents a series of recommendations on how federal partners could better assist these communities in their recovery effort.

Click here to view An Improved Federal Response to Post-Disaster Economic Recovery (PDF).

Get Adobe Reader to view PDF files here.

A Peer Learning Forum of the NADO Research Foundation: Innovative Approaches to Disaster Recovery and Economic Resilience

Carrie Kissel — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:59:25 +0000

This report (PDF), released in July 2011, covers the discussions during a two-day forum held in June 2011 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Participants from Mississippi, North Carolina, Iowa, Texas, South Dakota, Florida, and Wisconsin shared their situations and offered examples of successful strategies, as well as shared challenges encountered.

The NADO Research Foundation completed this report under a grant with the U.S. Economic Development Administration (No 08-79-04379) to look at post disaster economic recovery initiatives of regional planning and development organizations after the catastrophic events of 2008.

Click here to view A Peer Learning Forum of the NADO Research Foundation: Innovative Approaches to Disaster Recovery and Economic Resilience (PDF).

Get Adobe Reader to view PDF files here.

Resilient Regions: Integrating Economic Development Strategies, Sustainability Principles and Hazard Mitigation Planning

Carrie Kissel — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:47:05 +0000

This new report released in July 2011 provides an in-depth look at the roles that regional planning and development organizations are taking to help local and regional economies re-build after natural disasters. The Resilient Regions (PDF) report focuses on efforts in Iowa, Florida, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Wisconsin. The document was produced under a grant with the U.S. Economic Development Administration (No 08-79-04379) to look at post disaster economic recovery initiatives of regional planning and development organizations after the catastrophic events of 2008. View the report here. (PDF)