The Monroe County commissioners approved the Monroe County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan last week.

Maryellen Keegan, the director of emergency services for the Monroe County Office of Emergency Management, said, “Federal Emergency Management Agency guidance requires local governments to maintain a current hazard mitigation plan that is updated every five years. Maintaining an adopted plan is a prerequisite for eligibility for presidential disaster declaration assistance and for federal hazard mitigation grant funding. Without a current plan in place, communities may be limited to their ability to access critical recovery and mitigation funding following a disaster.”

“The 2026 plan represents the fifth iteration of this county wide effort, which was first developed in 2006. Over time, the scope of this plan has expanded significantly. What began as a document focused primarily on natural hazards, such as flooding and winter storms, now addresses natural, technological and human-caused hazards. These range from hurricanes, wildfires and droughts to cyber incidents, public health threats and substance use disorder. In total, the plan evaluates 27 different hazard types that impact Monroe County.”

Keegan said that all 20 municipalities in the county have adopted the hazard mitigation plan for the last three iterations.

“The value of this work is clear. FEMA has found that for every dollar invested in mitigation, an average of $6 is saved in future disaster recovery costs. The 2026 Hazard Mitigation Plan identifies more than 140 new mitigation projects at both the municipal and county levels that can be pursued as funding becomes available,” Keegan said.

Commissioner John Christy, president of the commissioners, asked Keegan if a municipality can still get funding after a storm if the need wasn’t already identified in the hazard mitigation plan.

“As long as they have adopted the plan, they are eligible for that funding,” Keegan said. … “What precludes them from getting funding for projects is if the project itself is not listed in the mitigation plan.”

Keegan said that they review any new projects every year in order to get them added to the plan.

“Our county is really proactive in the hazard mitigation efforts,” she said.

Commissioner Sharon Laverdure said to residents of Monroe County, “Wherever you live, contact your municipality, tell them it’s imperative that they adopt what we just adopted today, so we can move forward for everybody.”