FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Community Rating System (CRS) Coordinator's Manual

Comprehensive practice vocabulary flashcards covering the key terms, activities, credit elements, administrative procedures, and prerequisites of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Community Rating System (CRS) Coordinator's Manual.

National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)

A federal program established in 1968 enabling property owners in participating communities to purchase federally backed flood insurance within communities that enact and enforce floodplain regulations.

Community Rating System (CRS)

A national program developed by FEMA that recognizes, encourages, and rewards community activities going beyond minimum NFIP standards through flood insurance premium discounts.

Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM)

An official map of a community published by FEMA delineating both the Special Flood Hazard Areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.

Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)

The base floodplain delineated on a FIRM as A Zones and V Zones that a community must regulate under the minimum requirements of the NFIP, subject to a 1% or greater chance of flooding in any given year.

Base Flood Elevation (BFE)

The elevation of the crest of the base or 1% annual chance flood (also known as the 100-year flood), expressed in relation to a national vertical datum.

Base Flood

The flood having a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year, also referred to as the 100-year or 1% chance flood.

Goals of the CRS

The three primary goals of the Community Rating System: (1) Reduce and avoid flood damage to insurable property, (2) Strengthen and support the insurance aspects of the NFIP, and (3) Foster comprehensive floodplain management.

Building (CRS Definition)

An insurable structure with two or more rigid outside walls and a fully secured roof affixed to a permanent site, a manufactured home on a permanent chassis/foundation, or an affixed travel trailer; excludes storage tanks and recreational vehicles.

CRS Coordinator

The local official designated by the community's Chief Executive Officer to coordinate local CRS activities and serve as the point of contact for verification and recertification.

Coastal A Zone

The portion of the coastal floodplain landward of Zone V and seaward of the LiMWA subject to breaking wave heights between 1.5 and 3.0 feet during a 1% annual chance storm.

Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS)

A set of undeveloped coastal barriers and otherwise protected areas designated by Congress under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act of 1982 where federal financial assistance and NFIP flood insurance are prohibited for post-designation construction.

Critical Facility

A structure or improvement that, if flooded, has the potential to cause serious bodily harm, extensive property damage, or disruption of vital socioeconomic activities (e.g., hospitals, emergency operations centers, utilities).

Floodway

The channel of a river and the portion of the overbank floodplain reserved to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing water surface elevations by more than a designated height.

Floodway Fringe

The portion of the Special Flood Hazard Area lying outside of the floodway where encroachment, fill, and construction may be allowed under NFIP regulations.

Freeboard (Glossary Definition)

A margin of safety added to the Base Flood Elevation (e.g., 1 or 2 feet) to account for wave action, debris, hydrologic miscalculations, or lack of data.

High-Hazard-Potential Dam

A dam assigned a classification indicating that dam failure or operational errors will probably cause loss of human life downstream.

Limit of Moderate Wave Action (LiMWA)

The inland boundary line shown on coastal flood maps demarcating the landward limit of the 1% annual chance coastal flood that can support a 1.5-foot breaking wave.

Low-Impact Development (LID)

An approach to land development or redevelopment that works with nature to manage stormwater as close to its source as possible, treating stormwater as a resource to maintain watershed hydrologic functions.

Natural Floodplain Functions

Ecological and physical functions of undisturbed floodplains, including floodwater conveyance/storage, wave moderation, sediment control, water quality maintenance, aquifer recharge, and wildlife habitat.

Post-FIRM Building

A building constructed or substantially improved after December 31, 1974, or after the effective date of the initial FIRM of a community, whichever is later.

Pre-FIRM Building

A building constructed or substantially improved on or before December 31, 1974, or before the effective date of the initial FIRM of a community, whichever is later.

Regulatory Floodplain

The flood-prone land area subject to a community's floodplain development regulations, comprising at minimum the SFHA and any locally regulated flood areas outside the SFHA.

Repetitive Loss Property

An insurable building for which two or more NFIP claims of at least $1,000$ each have been paid within any 10-year rolling period since 1978.

Severe Repetitive Loss Property

A 1–4 family or non-residential property that has incurred 4 or more NFIP claims of more than $5,000 each, or 2 to 3 claims cumulatively exceeding the building value.

Substantial Damage

Damage of any origin sustained by a building whereby the cost of restoring the building to its before-damaged condition equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the building before the damage occurred.

Substantial Improvement

Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a building, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the building before the start of construction.

Surcharge (Glossary Definition)

An increase in flood elevation caused by an obstruction in the floodplain that reduces its conveyance capacity.

Zone AE

Special Flood Hazard Areas on modern FIRMs where Base Flood Elevations derived from detailed hydraulic studies are provided.

Zone AO

Special Flood Hazard Areas subject to shallow flooding, sheet flow, or ponding, where base flood depths between 1 and 3 feet above grade are specified on the FIRM.

Zone VE

Coastal high hazard Special Flood Hazard Areas subject to velocity wave action of 3 feet or greater from storm surges, where Base Flood Elevations are delineated.

Zone X

Areas outside the SFHA; shaded Zone X designates 500-year flood or shallow flood areas (formerly Zone B), and unshaded Zone X designates minimal flood risk (formerly Zone C).

Verification Thresholds

The minimum implementation compliance rates discovered during file sampling: 80% for floodplain and stormwater management regulations in the 400 series, and 50% for all other activities, below which credit is denied or prorated.

Community Self-Assessment

A voluntary 5-step evaluation tool helping communities inventory floodplain assets, map hazards, identify problem areas, and select appropriate CRS activities.

Privacy Act of 1974 (CRS Restriction)

A federal statutory rule prohibiting the public release of personally identifiable flood insurance data, such as specific property addresses, policy coverage, claim histories, or dollar loss amounts.

Special Flood-Related Hazards

Seven localized natural phenomena not covered by standard NFIP minimum criteria: uncertain flow paths, closed-basin lakes, ice jams, land subsidence, mudflows, coastal erosion, and tsunamis.

Reasonably Safe from Flooding

The NFIP performance standard ensuring that a proposed development site will not be inundated by floodwaters causing structural damage, achieved through proper anchoring, flood-resistant construction materials, and protected building utilities.

44 CFR § 60.3(b) Subdivision Proposal Standard

The NFIP requirement obligating permit applicants to generate Base Flood Elevation studies for proposed subdivisions and developments exceeding $50$ lots or $5$ acres when located in approximate A Zones where FEMA provided no flood data.

44 CFR § 60.3(b)(7) Carrying Capacity Rule

The federal regulation mandating that participating communities ensure the flood-carrying capacity within any altered or relocated segment of a watercourse is permanently maintained.

44 CFR § 60.3(c)(2) Lowest Floor Elevation Requirement

The mandatory NFIP minimum standard requiring all new construction and substantial improvements of residential buildings in Zone AE to have their lowest floor (including basement) elevated to or above the Base Flood Elevation.

44 CFR § 60.3(c)(3) Non-Residential Dry Floodproofing Standard

The NFIP regulatory alternative allowing new non-residential buildings in Zone AE to be designed and certified by an engineer or architect to be completely watertight and structurally resistant to hydrostatic loads up to the Base Flood Elevation.

44 CFR § 60.3(c)(5) Enclosure Openings Requirement

The minimum standard requiring fully enclosed areas below elevated floors in Zone AE to provide at least two flood vent openings with a total net area of not less than $1\text{ sq in}$ for every $1\text{ sq ft}$ of enclosed floor area below the BFE.

44 CFR § 60.3(c)(7) Zone AO Elevation Requirement

The NFIP standard requiring lowest floors in shallow flooding areas (Zone AO) to be elevated above the highest adjacent grade at least as high as the flood depth number on the FIRM, or at least $2\text{ feet}$ if no depth is specified.

44 CFR § 60.3(c)(10) Unmapped Floodway Encroachment Rule

The NFIP riverine rule in Zone AE reaches lacking a designated regulatory floodway that prohibits encroachments unless an engineering study proves that the cumulative impact will not raise flood stages by more than $1.0\text{ foot}$.

44 CFR § 60.3(c)(12) Manufactured Home Park Exemption

The NFIP provision permitting replacement manufactured homes in existing mobile home parks to be elevated to either the Base Flood Elevation or at least $36\text{ inches}$ ($3\text{ feet}$) above ground on reinforced piers.

44 CFR § 60.3(d)(3) No-Rise Encroachment Requirement

The strict NFIP floodway mandate prohibiting any encroachment, development, or fill within an adopted regulatory floodway unless technical modeling by a registered professional engineer demonstrates that zero ($0.00\text{ ft}$) increase in flood levels will occur.

44 CFR § 60.3(e)(4) Coastal High Hazard Lowest Member Standard

The NFIP standard in Zone VE requiring all new buildings to be elevated on engineered open foundations (piles, piers, or columns) with the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member situated at or above the Base Flood Elevation.

44 CFR § 60.3(e)(5) Breakaway Walls

Non-structural walls enclosing the open space below elevated floors in coastal V Zones engineered to collapse under heavy storm waves without transferring collapse forces or damaging loads to the building foundation or superstructure.

44 CFR § 60.3(e)(6) Structural Fill Prohibition

The NFIP standard strictly barring the use of fill for the structural support of new buildings or substantial improvements within coastal high hazard areas (V Zones).

44 CFR § 60.3(e)(7) Dune and Mangrove Stand Protection

The NFIP regulation prohibiting man-made alterations to protective coastal sand dunes and mangrove stands in V Zones that would elevate the potential for flood and wave damage.

Floodplain Administrator (FPA)

The official designated by community ordinance to manage local floodplain development, oversee permit reviews, coordinate inspections, ensure code compliance, and maintain all required documentation.