HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013 07 22 Informational 101 FEMA Community Rating Upgrade
COMMISSION AGENDA
Informational
X
Consent
ITEM101
Public Hearings
Regular
July 22, 2013KSKL
Regular MeetingCity ManagerDepartment
REQUEST:
The Public Works Department - Stormwater Division is providing information to the City
Commission on a recent upgrade of the City's Community Class Rating under the National
Flood Insurance Program's Community Rating System.
SYNOPSIS:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has notified the City that the City's
upgraded
flood insurance rating has been from Class 7 to Class 6 in the National Flood
Insurance Program's Community Rating System.
CONSIDERATIONS:
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officially notified the City in
June 2013 that the City's flood insurance rating has been upgraded from Class 7 to
Class 6 in the National Flood Insurance Program's Community Rating System.
The Class 6 rating provides Winter Springs property owners a 20% rate reduction on
flood insurance policies issued for properties located within the 100-year floodplain.
The previous rate reduction for the City's Class 7 rating was 15%.
The upgrade to Class 6 was based on FEMA's review and field audit of the City's
floodplain management program. The upgrade is the result of the improvement
and/or implementation of the following floodplain management activities in the City
over the past five years:
Floodplain Management Planning
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Floodplain Data Maintenance
Enforcement of Higher Regulatory Standards
Preservation of open space within the 100-year floodplain
Adoption of flood studies exceeding minimum mapping standards
Public outreach and providing accessible flood protection information (website)
The U.S. Congress established the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) with the
passage of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968. The NFIP is a Federal program
enabling property owners in participating communities to purchase flood insurance as
a protection against flood losses in exchange for State and community floodplain
management regulations that reduce future flood damages. The City of Winter
Springs is a participating community in the National Flood Insurance Program.
Participation in the NFIP is based on an agreement between communities and FEMA.
If a community adopts and enforces a floodplain management ordinance to reduce
future flood risk to new construction in floodplains, FEMA will make flood insurance
available within the community as a financial protection against flood losses. This
insurance is designed to provide an insurance alternative to disaster assistance to
reduce the escalating costs of repairing damage to buildings and their contents caused
by floods.
The National Flood Insurance Program's (NFIP) Community Rating System (CRS) is
a voluntary incentive program implemented in 1990 that recognizes and encourages
community floodplain management activities that exceed the minimum NFIP
requirements. As a result, flood insurance premium rates are discounted to reflect the
reduced flood risk resulting from the community actions meeting the three goals of
the CRS: (1) reduce flood losses; (2) facilitate accurate insurance rating; and (3)
promote the awareness of flood insurance.
For CRS participating communities, including Winter Springs, flood insurance
premium rates are discounted in increments of 5%; i.e., a Class 1 community would
receive a 45% premium discount, while a Class 9 community would receive a 5%
discount (a Class 10 is not participating in the CRS and receives no discount). The
CRS classes for local communities are based on 18 creditable activities, organized
under four categories: (i) Public Information, (ii) Mapping and Regulations, (iii)
Flood Damage Reduction, and (iv) Flood Preparedness.
By participating in the CRS, everyone in the City benefits, including those who do
not own property in a floodplain. Even when there is no flooding, the City's public
information and floodplain management efforts can improve the quality of life,
protect the environment, make people safer, and save everyone money.If there is a
flood, the City’s CRS activities can:
Save lives
Prevent property damage
Avoid lost jobs and economic devastation caused by flooding of offices, stores,
and other businesses
Prevent damage and disruption to roads, schools, public buildings, and other
facilities
The City of Winter Springs has participated in the Community Rating System (CRS)
Informational 101 PAGE 2 OF 4 - July 22, 2013
program since 1992. As a condition of continued participation in the CRS program,
the City implements the credited activities and gets reviewed and recertified annually
by the Insurance Services Office. From 1992 to 2007, the City was rated as a Class 8,
which provided eligible property owners a flood insurance premium rate reduction of
10%. In 2007, the City's rating was upgraded to Class 7, which provided a premium
rate reduction of 15%.
The City has now been upgraded to a Community Rating of Class 6, which provides
a 20% flood insurance premium rate reduction. This rate reduction is available on all
flood insurance policies issued in the City for properties in the 100-year floodplain.
The table below shows the current Community Ratings for the seven cities in
Seminole County and their standard monthly stormwater utility fees. As the table
shows, the City of Winter Springs has the best Community Rating (tied with Oviedo)
and the second lowest stormwater utility fee (Lake Mary being the lowest).
CityFEMA Community Monthly Stormwater
RatingUtility Fee
(Lower is Better)
Winter Springs6$5.50
Oviedo6$7.00
Lake Mary8$3.00
Altamonte Springs8$6.75
Longwood10$6.00
Sanford10$6.79
Casselberry10$7.00
FISCAL IMPACT:
This agenda item is for information only and has no fiscal impact.
COMMUNICATION EFFORTS:
This Agenda Item has been electronically forwarded to the Mayor and City Commission,
City Manager, City Attorney/Staff, and is available on the City’s Website, LaserFiche, and
the City’s Server. Additionally, portions of this Agenda Item are typed verbatim on the
respective Meeting Agenda which has also been electronically forwarded to the individuals
noted above, and which is also available on the City’s Website, LaserFiche, and the City’s
Server; has been sent to applicable City Staff, Media/Press Representatives who have
requested Agendas/Agenda Item information, Homeowner’s Associations/Representatives
on file with the City, and all individuals who have requested such information. This
information has also been posted outside City Hall, posted inside City Hall with additional
copies available for the General Public, and posted at five (5) different locations around the
City. Furthermore, this information is also available to any individual requestors. City Staff
is always willing to discuss this Agenda Item or any Agenda Item with any interested
individuals.
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RECOMMENDATION:
Staff requests the City Commission receive and review the information provided in this
Agenda Item.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. FEMA Letter and Field Verification Report (5 pages)
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