Mitigation is a decidedly important component of homeland security. Obviously not all hazards can be avoided, and both natural disasters and terrorist activities are an inevitable reality to our nation. While a country cannot stop every disaster from happening, what they can do is reduce the risk where possible, and reduce the severity of consequence from when a disaster does strike (Haddow, Bullock, & Coppola, 2014). One of the ways in which the government does this is through support and initiatives aimed towards assisting local communities. FEMA, in recognizing the importance of hazard mitigation, has set up a variety of programs in which to assist the states and communities it serves. It operates the majority of these programs through
