FLOOD00725 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

2 Because the FIRM and FIS report establishing or revising the BFEs for your community has been completed, certain additional requirements must be met under Section 1361 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, as amended, within approximately 2 to 3 months from the date of this letter. Prior to March 17, 1997, YOUf community is required, as a condition of continued eligibility in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), to adopt or show evidence of adoption of floodplain management regulations that meet the standards of Section 60.3(d) of the enclosed NFIP regulations (44 CFR 59, etc.) by the effective date of the FIRM. These standards are the minimum requirements and do not supersede any State or local requirements of a more stringent nature. It must be emphasized that all of the standards specified in Section 60.3(d) of the NFIP regulations must be enacted in a legally enforceable document. This includes adoption of the current effective FIS and FIRM to which the regulations apply and other modifications made by this map revision. Some of the standards should already have been enacted by your community in order to establish initial eligibility in the NFIP. Your community can meet any additional requirements by taking one of the following actions: I. Amending existing regulations to incorporate any additional requirements of Section 60.3(d); 2. Adopting all of the standards of Section 60.3(d) into one new, comprehensive set of regulations; or 3. Showing evidence that regulations have previously been adopted that meet or exceed the minimum requirements of Section 60.3(d). Communities that fail to enact the necessary floodplain management regulations will be suspended from participation in the NFIP and subject to the prohibitions contained in Section 202(a) of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (Public Law 93-234) as amended. In addition to your community using the FIRM and FIS report to manage development in the floodplain, FEMA will use the FIRM and FIS report to establish appropriate flood insurance rates. On the effective date of the revised FIRM, actuarial rates for flood insurance will be charged for all new structures and substantial improvements to existing structures located in the identified SFHAs. These rates may be higher if structures are not built in compliance with the floodplain management standards of the NFIP. The actuarial flood insurance rates increase as the lowest elevations (including basement) of new structures decrease in relation to the BFEs established for your community. This is an important consideration for new construction because building at a higher elevation can greatly reduce the cost of flood insurance. To assist your' community in maintaining the FIRM, we have enclosed a Summary of Map Actions to document previous Letters of Map Change (LOMCs) (Le., Letters of Map Amendment, Letters of Map Revision) that will be superseded when the revised FIRM panels referenced above become effective. Information on LOMCs is presented in three categories: (I) LOMCs that have been included on the revised FIRM panels; (2) LOMCs that have not been shown on the revised FIRM panels because of scale limitations or because the LOMC that was issued had determined that the lots or structures involved were outside the SFHA shown on the FIRM; and (3) LOMCs that have not been included on the revised FIRM panels because they are being superseded by new detailed flood hazard data. The LOMCs shown in Category 2 above will be revalidated by FEMA through a letter that will be sent to your community shortly before the FIRM effective date cited earlier in this letter.