Few communities are enforcing their floodplain management regulations to the level FEMA intended.

Few floodplain management regulations contain all of the specific standards necessary to adequately regulate floodplain development.

Municipal floodplain administrators may be inadequately trained in floodplain management and the NFIP.

Most Flood Insurance Studies (FIS) and mapping are not 100 % accurate and can be corrected or modified by appeal.

FISs over 10 years old have questionable accuracy and should be updated.

Communities which provide determination services for lenders and insurance companies should be insured. Knapp Associates does not recommend this service be provided by municipalities due to the potential for litigation. This decision should be reviewed carefully by your municipal attorney.

Communities which do provide determination services for lenders and insurance companies should provide disclosures relative to accuracy of the FIRM and the availability of FEMA's appeals processes (LOMC).

A community's floodplain administrator should be a state or national C.F.M. or they should have one on retainer for assistance with floodplain management program administration and the review and issuance of floodplain development permits.

Development in unstudied "A" zones should be required to establish base or 100 year flood elevations as a condition of development for the protection of the developer as well as the permitting authority. Elevations can be established on most properties at an affordable price. Elevations can refine the delineated SFHA as well as provide an elevation for compliance, protection or appeal.

Floodplain Administrators should never waive floodplain management regulation development requirements on projects they believe are not flood prone until a successful appeal (LOMC) has been issued by FEMA.

Never rely on the impacts of State or Federal projects (bridges, highways, flood control projects etc.) to be automatically incorporated into a revised FIS or mapping. Raise this issue at the conceptual and planning stages and follow through. You could end up enforcing a FIS that has been modified and currently inaccurate.

Be aware of existing base or 100 year flood elevation data which must be used in conjunction with floodplain management regulation enforcement in unstudied areas ("A" zones).