Home Virginia offers $103M in state grant funding for flood preparedness
Climate, Virginia

Virginia offers $103M in state grant funding for flood preparedness

Rebecca Barnabi

Two major funding opportunities are available to increase flood resilience in the Commonwealth.

A total of $103 million is available for advance projects to improve resilience to flooding through the Resilient Virginia Revolving Fund and the Virginia Community Flood Preparedness Fund.

The funding is administered by the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation and the Virginia Resources Authority. DCR is Virginia’s coordinating agency for its floodplain management program, which helps communities address flood risk and requirements related to the National Flood Insurance Program.

The Resilient Virginia Revolving Fund offers $18.5 million in grants and loans. Established in 2022 as a self-sustaining program to aid communities and property owners impacted by flooding, applications are due by midnight on Dec.12, 2023.

The following categories and amounts are available:

  • Local Match for Federal Programs: $5 million in loans to localities to meet local cost-share requirements for federal flood mitigation grants.
  • Hazard Mitigation of Buildings: $7.5 million in loans to localities to mitigate buildings from flood hazards.
  • Establishment of Local Flood Resilience Funding Programs: $5 million in grants to localities for the establishment of local flood resilience funding programs.
  • Capitalization of Local Flood Resilience Funding Programs: $1 million in loans to localities to capitalize local flood resilience revolving loan funds.

Applications and all supplementary materials must be submitted via the DCR’s grants management portal.

The Community Flood Preparedness Fund offers $85 million in grants and loans. Established in 2020 and now in its fourth round, applications are due by midnight on Nov. 12, 2023. The fund empowers localities to increase capacity for flood resilience and execution of flood protection projects. It supports the implementation of the Commonwealth Resilience Planning Principles detailed in Virginia’s Coastal Resilience Master Planning Framework.

Rebecca Barnabi

Rebecca Barnabi

Rebecca J. Barnabi is the national editor of Augusta Free Press. A graduate of the University of Mary Washington, she began her journalism career at The Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star. In 2013, she was awarded first place for feature writing in the Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia Awards Program, and was honored by the Virginia School Boards Association’s 2019 Media Honor Roll Program for her coverage of Waynesboro Schools. Her background in newspapers includes writing about features, local government, education and the arts.