To meet the requirements of the Disaster Management Act of 2000 and the planning guidelines by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Hawaii State is working on preparation of Hazard Mitigation Plans for the State and for each of the four counties.

The current schedule agreed on by the State Hazard Mitigation Forum will have all of the Counties completing their plans by July 15, 2003 for inclusion in the State Hazard Mitigation Plan, which will be submitted to FEMA on September 15, 2003 to receive approval by November 2003 from FEMA, enabling Hawaii State to be eligible for future funding resources to implement programs and projects that reduce the impact of multiple hazards.

Due to the variations in availability of data, staff, and funding, and changes taking place in Hawaii, such as the change in State Government Administration and changes in the administrations for Kauai County and Maui County, the plans will be completed to the ability and best available data in each county. The County plans, along with the individual hazard plans and recommendations provided by hazard committees and councils, will form the basis of the Hawaii State Hazard Mitigation Plan. With the recognition that hazard mitigation planning is an ongoing process, under which new data and information will be developed, we will finalize the plans on the target dates, but fully intend to revise the documents in the next year and in future years.