The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) plans to hold an Industry Day on Friday, June 7 to discuss the feasibility of producing small HUD temporary housing units to meet future disaster housing needs. During the meeting, industry members will be briefed on the federal contracting guidelines; provide guidance on FEMA’s plans to establish new specifications for disaster housing, and learn more about federal efforts to implement the National Disaster Housing Strategy (NDHS).

The NDHS was established by Congress in 2007, in response to Hurricane Katrina. The strategy outlines a plan to strengthen the nation’s response and recovery efforts in times of national disasters or emergencies. A major goal of the NDIS is to build and enhance federal, state and local capabilities to provide a broad range of flexible housing options, including sheltering, interim and permanent housing, and to ensure that each of these housing options are accessible to individuals with disabilities.

The June 7th Industry Day, Small Footprint HUD Temporary Housing Units, will give industry the opportunity to provide FEMA with comments and recommendations on the best methods and practices for providing disaster housing that can be utilized for temporary, interim and permanent housing for survivors of severe disasters that result in large numbers of homes that are destroyed or uninhabitable for an extended period of time.

An MHI task force was established at MHI’s Legislative Conference to develop recommendations for new specifications for FEMA disaster housing; better methods and utilization for delivery, use, disposition and tracking of temporary disaster housing units; more effective utilization of existing available housing stock and home sites that could be accessed in an emergency; and enhanced partnerships with state and local emergency management agencies.

For additional information, members can contact Lois Starkey at 703-558-0664 or lstarkey@mfghome.org.