The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is conducting 4 listening sessions, with at least two more planned, on the proposed implementation guidance for the revised Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. A session is scheduled for March 11, 2015 in Sacramento. The Standard allows agencies to use differing methodologies to define the floodplain rather than relying on the 100-year floodplain identified by FEMA. Each federal agency will be required to adopt more stringent review requirements on any federal action in or affecting a floodplain. The listening sessions are scheduled to inform the public of the new Standard and an Executive Order that revises previous policy on protecting public investment in floodplains, and to gather information on guidance that the federal agencies will adopt to implement the new Standard. There is concern that confusions will result from agencies employing differing methods to identify the floodplain, that independent federal actions could conflict with one another, and that state and local government actions must be consistent with federal agencies’ interpretations of the Standard. The implementation guidelines are open for public comment until April 6, 2015.
