When you have completed a final draft of the plan, the planning team can publicize the mitigation plan and ask stakeholders and the public to review and submit comments for the planning team’s final consideration. Task 3 – Create an Outreach Strategy describes how the public must be given the opportunity to review and comment on the mitigation plan prior to its adoption. Suggestions for how to meet this requirement are also described in more detail in Task 3. A good approach provides the public sufficient time to comment and explains how comments will be used.
You may also directly inform certain stakeholders of the plan’s availability for comment, such as through an email or letter. This is a particularly good approach for providing neighboring jurisdictions an opportunity to review the mitigation plan. The plan itself can include information on the types of comments received and how comments were incorporated.
Prior to submitting the plan to the State Hazard Mitigation Officer (SHMO), the planning team may validate that the local mitigation plan meets all requirements of Title 44 Code of Regulations (CFR) 201.6. FEMA uses the Local Mitigation Plan Review Tool to ensure that approved local mitigation plans meet these requirements. The planning team may view the Regulation Checklist portion of the Plan Review Tool and fill in the page numbers where your plan meets each of the required elements. This can serve as a final internal review to confirm the plan meets Federal requirements prior to submitting it for approval. Appendix B provides a copy of the Local Mitigation Plan Review Tool.