Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) Program

The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, administered at the state level in Oregon by the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM), is a federal grant initiative by FEMA that focuses on proactive investments in hazard mitigation. The FY2024/FY2025 BRIC cycle provides an opportunity for communities, local governments, tribal nations, and special districts to obtain federal funding for infrastructure projects that mitigate risk and reduce disaster costs. The re-release of this dual-year NOFO was announced on March 25, 2026, and reflects updates to eligibility, priorities, and project requirements from earlier versions of the BRIC program. The BRIC program aims to reduce the reliance on post-disaster expenditures by promoting forward-looking infrastructure resilience. The current funding round emphasizes construction-ready infrastructure projects designed to protect people and property from natural hazards, including wildfires, earthquakes, severe weather, and drought. OEM oversees the application and subapplication processes for eligible Oregon-based applicants, while federally recognized tribal nations may either apply directly to FEMA or through OEM with appropriate consultation on Natural Hazard Mitigation Plans (NHMPs). All applicants—except those applying for certain capacity-building activities—must have an active FEMA-approved NHMP to be considered eligible. For FY2025, the BRIC opportunity follows a structured timeline beginning with a mandatory pre-application submission, due by April 24, 2026. Only applicants who are invited based on their pre-applications may proceed to submit full subapplications via the FEMA Grants Outcomes (FEMAGO) portal. Registration in both Login.gov and SAM.gov is required before access to FEMAGO can be granted, a process that may take up to four weeks. The full subapplication is due no later than July 1, 2026, at 5 p.m. Pacific Time. OEM must submit all subapplications to FEMA by July 23, 2026. The FY2024/FY2025 BRIC round offers $1 billion in total funding nationally. Each state and territory may access up to $2 million through a set-aside, with an additional $1 million available under the Building Code Plus-Up. Tribal applicants may access up to $2 million per applicant and a $25 million nationwide pool for building code enhancements. Projects submitted to the national competition are capped at $20 million per subapplication, and no single applicant may receive more than $150 million across all BRIC funding streams. Project eligibility is narrowly defined. Only construction and infrastructure projects with a conceptual design of at least 30% are eligible. Phased projects and general planning efforts not tied to specific infrastructure are ineligible. Capability and capacity-building activities are restricted to those supporting infrastructure resilience, such as building code adoption, enforcement, and technical training directly tied to a known infrastructure project. Cost-sharing is required: the standard is 75% federal to 25% nonfederal, though small, impoverished communities may be eligible for a 90% federal share. Evaluation criteria for the National Competition include design readiness (with higher design completion yielding more points), the status of applicants as new to the BRIC competition, building code adoption and enforcement, and narratives demonstrating risk reduction, implementation feasibility, and alignment with resilience goals. Applications will be assessed on a 100-point scale and may be considered for up to twice the available funding amount. For assistance during the application process, OEM provides technical office hours, webinars, and a point of contact for both programmatic and accounting inquiries. All questions regarding preapplications should be sent to [email protected] with “Preapplication BRIC FY2025” in the subject line. Accounting-related inquiries may be directed to Rick Bruno, Accounting Manager, via [email protected] or by phone at (503) 983-4413.

Register early in FEMAGO portals; Ensure NHMP is valid; Align design readiness to >30% to increase score