The purpose of this page is to provide information on the National Mitigation Framework. The National Mitigation Framework describes the benefits of being prepared by understanding risks and what actions can help address those risks. The intended audience for this document is individuals, families, communities, the private and nonprofit sectors, faith-based organizations, and state, local, tribal, territorial, insular area, and Federal governments.
National Mitigation Framework
We cannot control when or where a tornado strikes—but we can save lives and reduce property damage by understanding the risks and taking action to address those risks. In the process, we help our families and increase resilience in our community, environment and economy.
Fostering a culture of preparedness—centered on risk and resilience—is what the second edition of the National Mitigation Framework is all about. The document provides context for how the whole community works together and how mitigation efforts relate to all other parts of national preparedness.
It is one of the five documents in a suite of National Planning Frameworks. Each Framework covers one preparedness mission area: Prevention, Protection, Mitigation, Response or Recovery.
National Mitigation Investment Strategy (NMIS)
After Hurricane Sandy, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) identified a need for a coordinated, federal government-wide investment strategy for resilience and mitigation that reduces the nation’s exposure to future losses from disasters.
In 2016, the federal government initiated a National Engagement Period and started taking stakeholder input to support its Federal Mitigation Investment Strategy (FMIS) Concept. Based on stakeholder comments, the Mitigation Framework Leadership Group (MitFLG) transformed the FMIS concept from a solely federally focused concept to a document of national significance.
The nationally focused mitigation investment strategy considers and recommends actions reflecting input and involvement from, and benefits for, all national stakeholders involved in disaster resilience, including federal, state, tribal, territorial, local and private organizations, and the public. With the National Mitigation Investment Strategy (NMIS), there is an opportunity to be more intentional about setting resilience and mitigation investment priorities. The new strategy will increase the ability of federal departments and agencies to incorporate mitigation for disaster resiliency into plans for using resources and justifying budgets. For the first time on a national scale, the federal government will be encouraged to, on a much broader scale, plan, spend and use its resources specifically to reduce disaster losses in the future.
Public Comment Period on the National Mitigation Investment Strategy (NMIS)
New Draft National Mitigation Investment Strategy for Public Comment
Reflecting on the devastation caused in several states and territories by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria in 2017, it is clear there is an urgent need for this national mitigation investment strategy. The MitFLG plans to deliver a final NMIS by the fall of 2018.
A second national engagement period has begun and comments are being considered for the Draft National Mitigation Investment Strategy. The NMIS Fact Sheet provides a shortened summary.
The public comment period on the draft National Mitigation Investment Strategy begins on January 11, 2018 and will close after a 60-day period on March 11, 2018. The MitFLG is interested in your ideas about mitigation investment, including needs, gaps, and opportunities.
Email Comment
Review the draft document and submit your comments to fema-nmis@fema.dhs.gov.
FEMA IdeaScale
You can also submit comments to the FEMA IdeaScale forum titled Mitigation Investment for the Nation.
Reading and Reference
- President Policy Directive 8 (PPD-8)
- National Preparedness Goal
- Mission Areas
- National Planning Frameworks
- National Mitigation Framework
- Core Capabilities
- Mitigation Federal Interagency Operational Plan
Resources
- National Planning Frameworks Overview
- National Mitigation Framework
- National Mitigation Information Sheet
Focus on Resilient Communities
The Mitigation Framework covers the capabilities necessary to reduce the loss of life and property by lessening the impact of disasters.
The Framework focuses on understanding the risks we face, as well as empowering communities to take actions that put them in the best position to bounce back quickly and effectively when disasters occur. This focus on risk and resilience is why the Mitigation Framework permeates all other areas of national preparedness—from prevention to recovery.
The Mitigation and Protection Frameworks both focus on activities we can do every day, not just during disasters. Protection, however, focuses on security and deterrence of threats, while Mitigation is about creating resiliency by addressing risk and creating a culture of preparedness.
The Mitigation Framework emphasizes the valuable role of local leadership, collaboration among various parts of the whole community and education—to ensure the capabilities continually develop.
Mitigation Core Capabilities
Core capabilities are the distinct elements needed to achieve the National Preparedness Goal. The Mitigation Framework describes each of its seven core capabilities and lists critical tasks for each one. The capabilities, followed by a critical task example, are listed below.
- Threats and Hazard Identification. Build cooperation between private and public sectors by protecting internal interests but sharing threats and hazard identification resources and benefits.
- Risk and Disaster Resilience Assessment. Perform credible risk assessments using scientifically valid and widely used risk assessment techniques.
- Planning. Incorporate the findings from assessment of risk and disaster resilience into the planning process.
- Community Resilience. Recognize the interdependent nature of the economy, health and social services, housing infrastructure and natural and cultural resources within a community.
- Public Information and Warning. Target messages to reach organizations representing children, individuals with disabilities or access and functional needs, diverse communities and people with limited English proficiency.
- Long-Term Vulnerability Reduction. Adopt and enforce a suitable building code to ensure resilient construction.
- Operational Coordination. Capitalize on opportunities for mitigation actions following disasters and incidents.
Mitigation Framework Leadership Group (MitFLG)
Overview
The Mitigation Framework Leadership Group (MitFLG) is a national coordinating structure established to organize mitigation efforts across the Federal Government. In particular, the MitFLG focuses on integrating federal efforts to deliver the Mitigation core capabilities in the National Mitigation Framework (NMF). The MitFLG also assesses the effectiveness of mitigation capabilities as they are developed and deployed across the Nation. Intended for MitFLG members and other parties interested in learning more about the group, this page discusses the purpose and activities of the MitFLG.
Authority & Origins
The MitFLG falls under the authority of and is consistent with the following:
- Post Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act (PKEMRA)
- 6 U.S.C. §313, §314, §321, and §743
- National Mitigation Framework (NMF)
The aim of the National Preparedness Goal (NPG) is to strengthen the security and resilience of the United States through systematic preparation for the threats that pose the greatest risk to the security of the Nation. The National Preparedness Goal directs federal departments and agencies to take specific action to mitigate risk and ensure coordination among the federal family prior to, during, and following an event. Acts of terrorism, pandemics, and catastrophic natural disasters offer a few examples of the threats and hazards that our Nation faces.
The National Preparedness Goal highlights that National preparedness is the shared responsibility of all levels of government, the private and nonprofit sectors, and individual citizens. It is aimed at facilitating an integrated, all-of-Nation, capabilities-based approach to preparedness.
Focusing on the mitigation aspect of preparedness, the National Mitigation Framework establishes a common platform and forum for coordinating and addressing how the Nation manages risk and for fostering a culture of preparedness centered on risk and resilience. The NMF addresses how the Nation will develop, employ, and coordinate core mitigation capabilities to reduce loss of life and property by lessening the impact of disasters. The National Mitigation Framework is one of five documents in the suite of National Planning Frameworks (NPFs).
Other MitFLG-related authorities include:
- Presidential Policy Directive 1 (PPD-1)
- Title VII of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Appropriations Act, 2007, Pub. L. 109-295, 120 Stat. 1355 (2006)
Mitigation Core Capabilities
Core capabilities are the distinct elements needed to achieve the National Preparedness Goals. The NMF describes each of its seven core capabilities, depicted in Figure 1, and lists critical tasks for each one. These capabilities are necessary to reduce the loss of life and property by lessening the effects of disasters.
Figure 1: Mitigation Core Capabilities
Mitigation Framework Coordinating Structure
The MitFLG is composed of representatives from multiple Executive Branch departments or federal agencies, public and/or private sector organizations, or a combination of these. The MitFLG coordinates national preparedness through the delivery of mitigation capabilities, and provides guidance, support, and integration to aid in the preparedness of the whole community to reduce long-term risk to disasters. In the process of improving preparedness, these coordinating structures also build resilience at the local, regional, and national levels.
The focus of mitigation-related coordinating structures is on creating a national culture shift that embeds risk management and mitigation in all planning, decision-making, and development.
What does the MitFLG do?
As a coordinating body, the MitFLG’s areas of responsibility include the following:
- Promoting and facilitating coordination of mitigation efforts across the federal Government (while keeping state, local, tribal, and territorial governments informed)
- Assessing the effectiveness of mitigation core capabilities as they are developed and deployed across the Nation
- Facilitating information exchange
- Coordinating policy implementation recommendations on national-level issues
- Overseeing the maintenance and successful implementation of the National Mitigation Framework and the Mitigation Federal Interagency Operational Plan (FIOP)
- Coordinate interagency efforts to inform the annual National Preparedness Report
Composition of the MitFLG
The MitFLG should consist of federal as well as state, local, tribal, territorial, and local (SLTT) representatives. Together, the federal and SLTT representatives will work to create a national culture shift that embeds risk management and mitigation in all planning, decision-making, and development.
Leadership (FEMA)
The MitFLG Leadership includes a Chairperson role in consultation with Department of Homeland Security leadership. The role is often filled by the Administrator of FEMA or, if designated, the Associate Administrator of the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration (FIMA).
Membership
The MitFLG includes state, local, tribal, territorial, and federal Government representatives to ensure integration of federal efforts across the whole community. MitFLG membership includes federal department and senior agency officials who can speak definitively on behalf of their respective government organizations.
Federal Entities Represented on the MitFLG
- Federal membership includes, but is not limited to:
- Department of Agriculture
- Department of Commerce
- Department of Defense
- Department of Energy
- Environmental Protection Agency
- General Services Administration
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Department of Homeland Security
- Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Department of the Interior
- Department of Justice
- Small Business Administration
- Department of Transportation
- Department of the Treasury
SLTT Jurisdictions Represented on the MitFLG
- Non-Federal membership has included representation from a number of different state, local, tribal, and territorial jurisdictions:
- Senator, State of Louisiana
- Georgia Environmental Finance Authority, Energy Resource Division
- Tillamook County, State of Oregon
- Cherokee of Georgia Tribal Council
- Escambia County, State of Florida
- Delaware Department of Transportation
- Abington Township Emergency Management & Planning, State of Pennsylvania
Role of SLTT Representation
Most mitigation occurs at the local level, where communities apply a localized understanding of risks to effective planning and identification of strategic mitigation options. Local governments are directly connected to community plans and goals and, in many cases, bring a more precise understanding of local vulnerabilities to bear on risk reduction activity. State, tribal, territorial, and insular area governments are responsible for the public safety, security, health, and welfare of the people who live in their jurisdictions.
These levels of government serve an integral role as a conduit for vertical coordination among federal agencies and local governments. As such, the MitFLG was designed to include representatives from state, local, and tribal governments (or their employees authorized to act on their behalf), and representatives from territorial, and insular area governments. Please see the National Mitigation Framework for more information.
SLTT Membership Process
Five (5) sponsors for SLTT nominations will be selected at random from the list of federal MitFLG members once annually. Each of the selected sponsors will then vet, select, and nominate an SLTT member. These members will serve staggered, two-year terms to maintain continuity within the MitFLG activities, and as such, there will be up to ten (10) SLTT representatives on the MitFLG at any given time.
Activities
The following list provides a sample of the endeavors and activities of the MitFLG and its members:
- Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Implementing Guidelines (E.O. 13728)
- Building Code Adoption & Enforcement Strategy (established to address Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Strategy Recommendation #25)
- Community-Level Climate and Hazard Resilience Indicators
- Federal Flood Risk Management Standard
- Federal Seismic Risk Management Standard
- National Preparedness Goal – 2015 Refresh
- National Planning Frameworks – 2015 Refresh
- Federal Interagency Operational Plans – 2015 Refresh
- National Preparedness Reports – annual input process
- Recommendation for a Federal Investment Strategy for Mitigation (GAO 15-515)