TL;DR: Local governments need a FEMA-approved and adopted hazard mitigation plan, updated every five years, to stay eligible for certain non-emergency disaster assistance, and the June 2025 Local Mitigation Planning Handbook shows how to build it.
Why the Handbook matters for eligibility
According to Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan | FEMA.gov, FEMA requires state, local, tribal and territorial governments to have approved and adopted hazard mitigation plans to be eligible for certain types of non-emergency disaster assistance, including funding for mitigation projects. The same source states that jurisdictions must update their hazard mitigation plans and resubmit them for FEMA approval every five years to remain eligible.
The handbook does not replace those requirements. According to the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook, the June 2025 edition is titled Local Mitigation Planning Handbook and was prepared by FEMA Headquarters Mitigation Planning. According to the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services page titled Local Hazard Mitigation Plans | California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, the updated FEMA Local Mitigation Planning Handbook took effect on June 12, 2025, while the updated FEMA Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide took effect on April 11, 2025.
According to Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan | FEMA.gov, the Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide carries the identifier FP-206-21-0002 and is effective April 11, 2025 for all plan approvals. The same source describes the 2025 Local Mitigation Planning Handbook as aligning with the most recent local policy requirements and guiding local planning teams through the planning process.
According to the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, the Handbook serves as a companion to the Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide and supports local governments, including special districts, in developing or updating hazard mitigation plans. The California Governor's Office of Emergency Services also states that the Policy Guide outlines the required components that need to be included in a local hazard mitigation plan based on the April 11, 2025 FEMA policy updates, and outlines the process to complete an approved mitigation plan under applicable laws and regulations cited as 44 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 201.6.
How requirements and guidance fit together
According to Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan | FEMA.gov, the State and Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guides and the Tribal Mitigation Plan Review Guide detail the process to complete an approved mitigation plan under applicable laws and regulations referenced as 44 Code of Federal Regulations Part 201 Mitigation Planning. That structure explains why local teams use two documents together: the Policy Guide states required components, while the handbook suggests approaches for meeting them.
For local planners, the practical sequence is therefore straightforward. Confirm whether the effort is a new plan or a plan update, confirm participants and planning area, review the previous plan where one exists, organize people and data, work through risk assessment and capabilities, build a mitigation strategy, keep the plan current, and complete review and adoption. Those stages reflect the task titles listed in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook table of contents.
The California Governor's Office of Emergency Services lists additional review aids for this workflow, including the Local Hazard Mitigation Plan Review Tool dated 2025 and, for multi-jurisdictional plans, the Annex Review Tool. According to that office, the Plan Review Tool is used to ensure local hazard mitigation plans meet the elements of the Local Policy Guide, and it should be filled in with sections or page numbers showing where the plan meets each required element before submission to Cal OES.
Start with planning area, process and resources
Task 1 in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook is titled Determine the Planning Area, Process and Resources. Its subsections address initial considerations, right-sizing the scope of the planning process, and organizing resources. Initial considerations include new plan or plan update, confirming participants and planning area, and reviewing the previous plan and scoping the update.
Right-sizing covers preliminary questions and schedule considerations. Organizing resources covers people and partnerships, plans, studies and data, and technical assistance. For a household or neighborhood readiness reader, the lesson is to define who is covered, what process will be used, and what information is already available before writing goals.
According to the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, questions about local planning in California can be directed to the Local Planning Unit at [email protected]. That contact is listed on the office's Local Hazard Mitigation Plans page alongside the 2025 federal guidance.
Build the team and plan outreach
Task 2 in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook is titled Build the Planning Team. It addresses building the planning team, including multi-jurisdictional planning team considerations, identifying planning team members, promoting participation and buy-in, and engaging local leadership.
Task 3 is titled Create an Outreach Strategy. Its subsections address planning for public involvement, the Community Rating System, developing the outreach strategy, planning ahead for engaging meetings, coordinating multi-jurisdictional outreach, and describing the planning process. The inclusion of a Community Rating System subsection signals that outreach and floodplain program coordination are treated as part of plan development, not as an afterthought.
The handbook's annexes provide starter materials for this phase. Annex B, titled Worksheets, Samples and Starter Kits, includes a sample planning process schedule, a sample voluntary participation agreement, a sample public opinion survey, a sample plan organization, a starter kit on considering a consultant to support local mitigation planning, a press release starter kit for a local hazard mitigation plan, and a crosswalk starter kit for the local hazard mitigation plan and Community Rating System.
Assess risk and review capabilities
Task 4 in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook is titled Conduct a Risk Assessment. The handbook defines risk assessment and then lists steps to conduct one: identify hazards, describe hazards, identify assets, analyze impacts, and summarize vulnerability. A separate subsection addresses documenting the risk assessment.
Supporting tools listed in Annex B include Worksheet 2 on hazard identification, Worksheet 3 on identifying vulnerable assets, and a Risk Assessment Starter Kit. According to Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan | FEMA.gov, hazard mitigation planning begins with state, tribal and local governments identifying natural disaster risks and vulnerabilities that are common in their area, and after identifying these risks they develop long-term strategies for protecting people and property from similar events.
Task 5 is titled Review Community Capabilities. It covers capability assessment and types of capabilities, listed as planning and regulatory, administrative and technical, financial, and education and outreach. It also includes a National Flood Insurance Program section addressing participation, adoption of standards and maps, staffing, enforcement and continued compliance, and substantial damage and substantial improvement. Annex B adds Worksheet 4 on capability assessment, Worksheet 5 on the National Flood Insurance Program, and Worksheet 6 on hazard information integration.
Turn findings into a mitigation strategy
Task 6 in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook is titled Develop a Mitigation Strategy. The handbook describes the mitigation strategy as goals, actions and an action plan. Subsections address mitigation goals, mitigation actions, prioritizing mitigation actions, creating an action plan for implementation, implementing mitigation actions, and updating the mitigation strategy.
Mitigation action topics include types of mitigation actions and identifying mitigation actions. Prioritization topics include cost-benefit review, criteria for analysis, and action prioritization. Implementation topics include assigning a responsible agency, identifying potential resources, estimating the timeframe, and communicating the mitigation action plan. Update topics include describing changes in priorities and evaluating progress in implementation.
Annex B supports this stage with Worksheet 7 on mitigation action selection and Worksheet 8 on mitigation action implementation. According to Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan | FEMA.gov, mitigation plans are key to breaking the cycle of disaster damage and reconstruction. That statement is presented on FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Planning overview as the purpose of moving from assessment to long-term protective strategies.
Keep the plan current, then review and adopt
Task 7 in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook is titled Keeping the Plan Current. It covers plan maintenance overview, monitoring, evaluating, updating, and continuing public involvement. Annex B adds Worksheet 9, an action monitoring form, and Worksheet 10, a plan update evaluation form.
Task 8 is titled Review and Adopt the Plan. Review topics include local plan review, state review, and FEMA plan review. Adoption topics include multi-jurisdictional adoption considerations, submission of all adoption resolutions with the plan, and approvable pending adoption. Later subsections address plan approval, additional considerations, and celebrating success. Annex B includes a sample adoption resolution.
According to the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plans should be submitted with the Annex Review Tool in addition to the Plan Review Tool, with one tab per annex. The same office states that the Annex Review Tool specifies the elements that each jurisdiction must meet individually, and that it should be filled in with section or page numbers showing where each jurisdiction addresses the required elements.
Use the plan to build resilience
Task 9 in the Local Mitigation Planning Handbook is titled Create a Safe and Resilient Community. It addresses what resilience is, the role of local officials in resilience, assessing capacity, preparing for future opportunities, and what implementation looks like. Local-official topics include leveraging partnerships, involving the whole community, and planning holistically.
Implementation topics include identifying projects and developing and leveraging momentum. Annex A, titled Resources for Resilience, lists local resources, state resources, federal resources, FEMA mitigation grant programs, technical assistance, and best practices. According to Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan | FEMA.gov, additional training is available through the National Hazard Mitigation Planning Program in partnership with the Emergency Management Institute, with fundamental trainings tailored for state, local, tribal and territorial governments, plus advanced trainings and technical assistance.
Vermont Emergency Management also posted the June 2025 handbook edition as Local Mitigation Planning Handbook June 2025, listing the file as a PDF of 3.81 MB. That posting illustrates how states redistribute the federal handbook for local use alongside FEMA's own Create a Hazard Mitigation Plan page and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services local-plans page.