IDNR to Host Public Hearing on Federal Disaster Resilience Grant Competition

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) will host a public hearing on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) National Disaster Resilience Competition, a grant program designed to help states and their communities better prepare for and withstand natural disasters.

The National Disaster Resilience Competition will make $1 billion available to communities that have been struck by natural disasters in recent years. The competition will promote risk assessment and planning and will help pay for the implementation of projects that prepare communities for future storms and other extreme events.

More information on the HUD program can be found here: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=FactSheet_071514.pdf

The hearing will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 18, 2015 in the Lake Level C Conference Room in the IDNR building, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702. Those unable to attend can call into the meeting at: (217) 558-2618. Input and comments from the public also are being sought. Suggestions should be in line with HUD’s defined goals which can be found here: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/WaterResources/Pages/NationalDisasterResilienceCompetition.aspx.

Comments will guide Illinois’s grant application by helping to identify projects and priorities. In addition to the hearing, public comments are being accepted through March 26. To submit a comment, e-mail Wes Cattoor at wes.cattoor@illinois.gov. Include “NDRC Public Comment” in the subject line, or call (217) 782-4847. Written comments can be sent to Wes Cattoor, IDNR Office of Water Resources, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702-1271.

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