Helen J. Housand

Helen J. Housand serves as a Contract Specialist within the Mitigation SECTION (MIT60) of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, where she plays a pivotal role in executing procurement actions that advance national resilience and disaster risk reduction. She manages the full lifecycle of acquisitions for critical services supporting the National Flood Insurance Program and catastrophe risk modeling initiatives, ensuring compliance with federal contracting regulations and alignment with FEMA’s mission of enhancing community preparedness. Her portfolio primarily consists of professional, technical, and administrative support services essential to operational continuity and data-driven mitigation planning. While no specific contractor relationships are currently identifiable in the procurement record, Housand engages with a broad spectrum of vendors providing specialized services in emergency response, data analytics, and communications support. Her contracting approach emphasizes flexibility and responsiveness, fostering partnerships with firms capable of delivering rapid, scalable solutions under dynamic operational conditions. She maintains a vendor-agnostic procurement posture, prioritizing capability and compliance over longstanding vendor relationships. Housand’s contracting activity reflects a strong preference for open competition, with 100% of her acquisitions classified as “No Set-Aside.” This indicates a focus on maximizing competition among all eligible firms rather than reserving awards for socioeconomic categories such as 8(a), HUBZone, or SDVOSB. While small business participation is not formally prioritized in her portfolio, her reliance on competitive sealed bidding ensures broad market access and transparency. Her primary procurement focus lies within three NAICS categories: 561421 (Telephone Answering Services), 519190 (All Other Information Services), and 624230 (Emergency and Other Relief Services). These reflect a strategic need for communication infrastructure, data management systems, and on-demand emergency response support—capabilities critical to sustaining FEMA’s mitigation operations during high-impact events. Her technical domain expertise centers on integrating administrative and operational support services into complex disaster resilience frameworks.