Louisiana Transportation Conference February 10, 2009 Cindy N. O Neal, CFM
THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM (NFIP) IN LOUISIANA
If your home is located within the Special Flood Hazard Area There is a 5% chance of your home being damaged by fire. And a 26% chance that it will be damaged by a base flood
Participation in the NFIP Sale of subsidized flood insurance Communities adopt and enforce a Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance Permit all development New construction (residential, commercial and manufactured homes) Substantial improvements Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA)
Development Any man-made change to improved and unimproved real estate including: New Construction Substantial improvement Mining Dredging Filling Paving Grading Excavation or drilling operations Storage of equipment or materials Placement of Manufactured Homes
In Special Flood Hazard Areas Residential (SFHAs) New construction and substantial improvement must be elevated to or above the base flood elevation Non-Residential New construction and substantial improvement must be elevated (or floodproofed) to or above the base flood elevation
State Role Contact between FEMA and Community Monitor community compliance Evaluate and document community/agency floodplain management activities Provide technical assistance to local communities/agencies 298 participating communities in the NFIP
State Coordinating Agency for the NFIP La DOTD Floodplain Management Section
Floodplain Management Staff Cindy O Neal Pam Miller Susan Veillon
Community Assistance Program - State Support Services Element Technical Assistance CAVs CACs TeleCACs
CAVs Community Assistance Visits 50 communities per year Inspect Special Flood Hazard Areas Review Permit Records Meet with community officials
CACS Community Assistance Contacts 15 contacts per year Meet with community officials Review NFIP requirements Newly appointed community officials Previous enforcement deficiencies
Differences: CAV vs. CAC The difference between a Visit and a Contact: For a Visit we actually drive and inspect the Special Flood Hazard Areas of the Community For a Contact, we meet with the community (no inspecting)
TeleCACS Telephone Community Assistance Contacts 80 contacts per year Initiate communication Confirm contact information Discuss NFIP New communities Communities not recently assisted
Community Rating System (CRS) 38 communities participate Reduces flood insurance premiums for communities that do more than minimum NFIP requirements
General Technical Assistance (GTA) Respond to 1500+ requests for general tech assistance per year Requests are generally can we build X in the floodplain?
Newsletters Newsletters ( Fact Sheet - 4 per yr) Community officials Lending institutions Insurance agents Realtors Engineers Surveyors General Public
NFIP requirements Changes in regulations Flood loss reduction Educational opportunities Workshops Forums Conferences Classes Newsletters
Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMS) Rate maps and the studies that backup the maps Available online www.fema.gov
Digitized Flood Insurance Rate Maps (DFIRMs) A digital Flood Insurance Map (DFIRM) includes all digital data required to create the hardcopy Flood Insurance Rate Map to FEMA standards and specifications. It includes base map information, graphics, text, shading, and other geographic and graphic data.
LaMP Project The mission of the Louisiana Mapping Project is to assist Louisiana Gulf Coast Communities in making informed floodplain management decisions through understanding flood recovery data coordinating the dissemination of timely and accurate information among Federal, State and local agencies. Website: www.lamappingproject.com
LA DOTD Floodplain Management Section (225) 274-4354 http://floods.dotd.la.gov