HUD Release | AMERICAN SAMOA

Press Release - 001-01072021

For Immediate Release

HUD Publishes Two Allocation Notices for Community Development Block Grant for

Disaster Recovery and Disaster Mitigation

Governor's Office

American Samoa Government

Executive Office Building
Utulei, American Samoa

On January 7, 2021 the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published two allocation notices for their Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) and Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) funds to states and territories.

Published allocations include American Samoa for CDBG-MIT funding at $1.47 Million. This new grant is tied to the $23 million allocation for CDBG-DR from tropical storm Gita. American Samoa has never received CDBG-MIT funds before, and this would be its first time as a CDBG-MIT grantee.

CDBG-MIT funds represent a unique and significant opportunity for American Samoa to carry out strategic and high-impact activities to mitigate disaster risks and reduce future losses. Unlike the CDBG-DR funds, which have been awarded for hurricane-specific recovery, mitigation dollars can fund projects of a varying nature to serve the island’s most important mitigation needs, regardless of tie-back to a specific disaster.

As the American Samoa administering agency for HUD’s Community Development Block Grant program over the years, the American Samoa Department of Commerce will now go through the process to secure American Samoa's CDBG-MIT allocation.

Governor Lemanu is committed to securing these funds for the improvement of the Territory’s infrastructure and meeting the unmet needs of disaster victims.