US disasters relief agency awards AECOM nationwide programme management services contract

In a statement to shareholders on 3 June, AECOM said that it had been awarded the contract to support FEMA’s public assistance grant programme focussed on repairing and or replacing damaged public infrastructure after catastrophic disasters for the company’s four Consolidated Resource Centres in Winchester, Virginia; Denton, Texas; Sacramento, California; and Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.

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CRCs were established to improve the efficiency, precision and transparency of FEMA’s public assistance program. Under the new contract, which has a one year base period with two one year option periods that can be exercised at the government’s discretion, AECOM will support FEMA in validating, consolidating, collating and reviewing infrastructure projects as well as providing technical support for environmental planning, historic preservation and insurance.

The move comes seven months after the US Court of Federal Claims upheld FEMA’s award of the contract following a legal challenge by competing contractors Fluor Federal Services and CDM Federal Programs Corporation.

Fluor and CDM challenged FEMA’s award for a blanket purchase agreement to assist the resource centres alleging it failed to comply with regulatory requirements to establish a single source contract.

“The delivery of FEMA’s public assistance program will allow state, tribal and local governments and disaster relief non-profits to quickly respond and drive the recovery of communities impacted by major disasters,” said AECOM president, Lara Poloni.