The Washington State Department of Commerce published the final notice for the “Sumas Single-Family Elevation” activity on July 27, 2026. The final notice period ran from July 27 through Aug. 3. An early notice for the activity was published July 15, with an early notice period running through July 30.

A step toward flood mitigation

The activity is being administered through Washington’s Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Recovery program, known as CDBG-DR. The program uses federal U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development disaster-recovery funding administered by Washington Commerce.

Commerce describes CDBG-DR funding as support for long-term disaster recovery and mitigation of future hazards. In Sumas, the notices connect the activity to the severe atmospheric-river flooding that struck Washington in 2021. The city also experienced additional severe flooding during the December 2025 winter storm, prompting local and state recovery assistance.

Elevating homes can reduce the risk of repeated flood damage, but the environmental-review notices mark a review step rather than a construction start or final construction authorization. The notices do not identify how many homes will ultimately be selected, the amount awarded per household, the participating property owners or a construction start date.

Recovery assistance continues

The December 2025 flooding affected households and businesses in Sumas and elsewhere in Whatcom County. The Washington governor’s office announced $2.5 million in state disaster assistance for people whose homes were damaged by the flooding. The assistance includes household grants for short-term housing, small home repairs and food replacement, and Whatcom County was identified as eligible.

The City of Sumas has also created a utility-relief fund for residents and businesses affected by the December 2025 winter-storm flood. The city continues to post recovery-related notices and lists an Aug. 10, 2026, City Council meeting.

The home-elevation review is therefore part of a broader recovery effort: immediate assistance for flood-affected households and businesses alongside longer-term work intended to limit damage from future flooding. The next publicly identified date tied to the city’s ongoing recovery notices is the Aug. 10 council meeting.

The parish expects to submit the request on or about Aug. 4, 2026. The funding would come through Louisiana Community Development Block Grant-Mitigation funds made available under the Further Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act of 2018.

How the objection period works

The Louisiana Office of Community Development-Disaster Recovery will consider objections for 15 days after the anticipated submission date or the date it actually receives the request, whichever is later. The notice does not describe the period as a general comment window; it identifies specific grounds for objections, including procedural or certification problems, deficiencies in environmental review and activity that begins prematurely.

That means the formal review opportunity is tied to the request’s submission or receipt, rather than beginning simply because the parish announced its plans. The anticipated date is Aug. 4, but the later actual-receipt date could control the start of the 15-day period.

Part of a parishwide project list

Although the Amite locations are Peggy Lee Drive and Velma Drive, the same parishwide notice lists additional project streets in Independence, Tickfaw, Hammond and Ponchatoula. The proposed request therefore covers work in several Tangipahoa Parish communities, not only Amite.

Tangipahoa’s 2026 operating and capital outlay budget also records infrastructure priorities that include road overlays, drainage-related work, the Amite regional sewer connection and other capital projects. Those budget priorities provide broader local context for the parish’s planned request, but they do not establish that the grant has been awarded.

What is not yet decided

The request remains anticipated rather than approved. The parish notice does not state a final grant amount for the Amite work or provide construction start and completion dates. It also does not establish final approval.

If funding is ultimately approved, the project could direct disaster-mitigation dollars toward two Amite streets and support local resilience and infrastructure conditions. Until then, the next identifiable step is the parish’s expected submission around Aug. 4, followed by the qualifying 15-day objection period administered by the Louisiana Office of Community Development-Disaster Recovery.

The award, reported July 9, 2026, is connected to FEMA Disaster 4796. It is intended to help the city recover from the disaster while reducing the potential for future damage in areas affected by flooding.

Funding targets flood-damaged properties

The June 2024 disaster included severe storms, flooding, straight-line winds and tornadoes across the region. The FEMA money will support property acquisitions related to that event rather than mandatory removals.

Participation in the buyout program is voluntary. For owners of eligible flood-damaged properties, the program could provide an option to leave locations affected by the disaster while allowing the city to pursue a lower-risk pattern of future land use.

A related recovery account referenced more than 247 flood-damaged properties in connection with the disaster. That figure describes the broader recovery context and is not a count of approved buyouts.

FEMA’s award information does not identify which addresses will be acquired, how many owners have accepted buyout offers or when property closings will occur. The information also does not state the precise division between federal funding and any local or state matching funds.

City has participated in recovery applications

Hawarden’s local government has been involved in seeking flood-recovery assistance. City agenda materials dated May 13, 2026, show the Hawarden Economic Development Authority’s application activity for CDBG-DR Flood ’24 funding.

The FEMA award is part of a broader round of disaster-recovery assistance for Northwest Iowa communities. Regional reporting identified Hawarden among the communities receiving FEMA funds for recovery work.

What happens next

The city’s work will include identifying properties that meet program requirements, communicating with interested owners and completing any approved acquisitions. Because the program is voluntary, the number of properties ultimately acquired will depend on eligible owners who choose to participate and on the acquisition process.

For residents whose homes or other properties were damaged, the funding creates a potential recovery option beyond repairing a structure in place. For Hawarden, acquiring eligible properties can support the city’s stated mitigation goal by reducing the number of repeatedly vulnerable properties exposed to future flooding.

The nearly $1 million award does not establish that every property affected in June 2024 will be included. It gives Hawarden federal assistance to begin or advance a buyout effort tied to the disaster and to incorporate future flood-risk reduction into the recovery process.