High ground, Vol. 8, no. 1 (Winter 2003)

UPCOMING TRAINING COURSES

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will be sponsoring the following resident courses. There are no tuition fees for on-campus courses. All instruction, books, and housing are provided at no cost, and FEMA reimburses airfare. Participants are responsi-

ble for the cost of the meals provided and personal incidental expenses. All persons attending EMI courses are required to purchase a campus meal ticket for the period of their course. For additional information on the following courses, or to obtain an application, please contact

Georgia Floodplain Management Office at (404) 656-6382 or the address below. You may also contact EMI at 1-800-238-3358. It is suggested that applications for courses be submitted at least two months prior to the date of the course.

E234 - Digital Hazard Data Course (formerly Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map) - May 12-15, 2003

E273 - Managing Floodplain Development through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) - March 31- April 4, 2003; August 11-15, 2003; September 15-19, 2003

E278 - National Flood Insurance Program/Community Rating System (NFIP/CRS) - April 7-11, 2003; September 22-26, 2003

For Application Information Contact:

Georgia Floodplain Management Office 7 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive Suite 440 Atlanta, Georgia 30334 (404) 656-6383 Fax

GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES Environmental Protection Division Floodplain Management Office 7 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive Suite 440 Atlanta, Georgia 30334
HIGH GROUND A Publication of the Georgia Floodplain Management Office 404.656.6382 404.656.6383 Fax
Personnel: Collis O. Brown, State Coordinator e-mail: Collis_Brown@mail.dnr.state.ga.us
Mindy Crean, Environmental Specialist e-mail: Mindy_Crean@mail.dnr.state.ga.us
Sonya Isreal, Receptionist e-mail: Sonya_Isreal@mail.dnr.state.ga.us
Funding from FEMA's Community Assistance Program-State Support Services Element Grant of the National Flood Insurance Program supports this newsletter. The Contents do not necessarily reflect the views of the Federal Government.
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Winter 2003 IN THIS ISSUE

"Catch the Change..." No Adverse Impact......page 2 Revised Elevation Certificate.........................page 3 The 50% Rule................................................page 4 Training Courses for Insurance Professionals and Lenders..................................................page 7 Upcoming Training Courses..........................page 8

VOLUME 8, NUMBER 1

This Issue's Top Stories

ASFPM Conference Slated for St. Louis

LESSONS LEARNED
Gateway to Flood Mitigation
May 11-16, 2003 St Louis, Missouri Association of State Floodplain Managers

The Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) urges all persons who work toward reducing flood losses in the nation to attend an essential training opportunity - the national floodplain managers' conference May 11-16, 2003 in St. Louis, Missouri. "Lessons Learned: Gateway to Flood Mitigation" will be the theme followed throughout the week in formal presentations, casual discussion groups, technical field trips, opportunities for networking, training sessions, and more. The conference event will also commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Great Midwest Floods of 1993. The conference brochure, registration forms and hotel information are posted on the ASFPM website at http://www.floods.org/stlouis.

You will also find other instructions, sponsorship information, and links to exciting things to see and do in St. Louis. The discount for early registration applies until April 1, 2003.

Top 10 Facts Every Consumer Needs to Know
About the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)
1. Everyone lives in a flood zone.
2. Homeowners insurance policies do not cover flood damages.
3. You can buy flood insurance no matter were you live if your community participates in the NFIP.
4. There is a low-cost policy for homes in low-to moderate-risk areas.
5. Flood insurance is affordable.

Severe Weather Awareness Week Gives Georgians Opportunity to Review Safety Measures

Governor Sonny Perdue proclaimed the week of February 16-22, 2003 as Severe Weather Awareness Week in Georgia during a ceremony Wednesday in the Capitol Rotunda.

Severe Weather Awareness Week is designed to educate Georgians about safety, preparedness, and response procedures for a variety of severe weather events, such as floods, hurricanes, lightning, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and winter storms.

"During this time, Georgians are urged to take this time to review their family safety plans

and to make sure they have a disaster supplies kit on hand should severe weather or any

other type of emergency situation occur," said Georgia Emergency Management Director

(GEMA) Gary W. McConnell. "Every family should also have a National Oceanic

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather radio so that they can receive immediate

severe weather and emergency warnings.

continued on page 7

FEMA Offers Course On Livestock in Disasters

6. Flood insurance is easy to obtain.
7. Flood insurance is available to protect homes, condominiums and apartments. A maximum of $250,000 of building coverage is available for single-family residential buildings; $250,000 per unit for multifamily residences. The limit for contents coverage on all residential buildings is $100,000, which is also available to renters.
8. Commercial structures can be insured to a limit of $500,000 for the building and $500,000 for the contents.
9. There is usually a 30-day waiting period before flood insurance coverage goes into effect.

Owners of livestock can now learn how to protect their animals when disaster strikes through a new independent study course offered on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) training web site. The course titled "Livestock in Disaster," Course Code IS-111, specifically addresses the ramifications of hurricanes, earthquakes and floods, and provides tips on how to reduce risk to

10. Federal disaster assistance is not the answer. Ninety percent of all disasters do not qualify for federal assistance.

animals from these disasters before they strike. The course also discusses federal programs, including those at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which can aid livestock owners affected by disasters. The course takes an average of 12 to 14 hours to complete. As with all FEMA independent study courses, there are no prerequisites or enrollment fees. Information can be found at: www.training.fema.gov/emiweb. Click on Independent Study to find the course. Information also can be obtained by writing to: FEMA's Independent Study Office, Emergency Management Institute, 16825 South Seton Avenue, Emmitsburg, MD 21727.

Article excerpted from Farmers and Consumers Market Bulletin Georgia Department of Agriculture, January 2003.
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"CATCH THE CHANGE...." NO ADVERSE IMPACT

The No Adverse Impact (NAI) approach was developed by The Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) to address the problem of ever increasing flood damages. If the nation is to actually reduce the real dollar costs of average annual flood damages, new approaches are needed. Those approaches must move from "how to build in the floodplain to reduce the risk to that new structure" to "what are the cumulative and sometimes secondary impacts of current and future development on other properties"? The NAI approach is developed with this in mind.
George Riedel, ASFPM Chair
As your community, state agency or federal program moves forward in building, planning and policy creation, consider incorporating the No Adverse Impact concept into your work. You can do this by making sure that the actions taken in the floodplain, and throughout the watershed, do not lead to adverse impacts on other property. Adverse impacts need to be mitigated to prevent transferring the problems to another property or community.
To incorporate the No Adverse Impact concept, you should:
Define "adverse impact", based on your community's physical, environmental, social and economic condition;
Evaluate your hazards and programs, with the goal of lessening the impacts of actions on other property owners and communities;
Identify existing adverse impacts in the floodplain and throughout the watershed;
Use your resources to reduce or eliminate existing adverse impacts; and
Use your authorities to prevent new adverse impacts.

Below is a list of seven types of actions that your community undertakes in the normal course of business. Suggestions are included which you can incorporate as you do these day-to-day activities, thus moving your community toward the goal of No Adverse Impact.
Hazard Identification
While conducting and mapping any project, think through the comprehensive approach. Mapping efforts should realistically reflect the existing hazards and the future impacts of development. Identify all flood related hazards, including hazards not normally identified by the minimum standards of NFIP, such as dam failure, levee overtopping and channel migration. Amoung other considerations include small watershed analysis and erosion, and sedimentation controls. Analyze how new development may have an impact, such as increased flood levels, and include the results of that analysis in the mapping project.
Planning
Local planning activities that you already undertake can easily incorporate the NAI concept. All local planning, including comprehensive, watershed, mitigation, housing, neighborhood, transportation, economic and capital improvements plans should recognize flood and flood related hazards. Review these plans in light of the individual and cumulative impacts on others, now and in the future, and recommend methods to prevent or mitigate adverse impacts. Likewise, hazard planning needs to consider and incorporate all of these other planning efforts.
Infrastructure (Public Works)
All actions to maintain, repair, replace and expand infrastructure (roads, utilities and public facilities) should include a review of the haz-

ards, how the infrastructure can be
protected from those hazards and the impact that the planned action may have on others. Providing infrastructure to a high risk area can influence whether the area gets developed or not. Again, any adverse impacts need to be mitigated while not transferring the problems to another property or community.
Emergency Services
Actions taken during and after a flood or other disaster should recognize adverse impacts. Adverse impacts need to be mitigated while not transferring the problems, such as increase flood heights or flood velocities, to another property or community. Flood warning and response activities should be preplanned with accommodation for adverse impacts. For example, erecting a temporary levee during an emergency could have adverse impacts on others. Local emergency plans should identify alternative approaches, such as flood proofing, to protect property from flooding.
Regulations and Standards
Incorporate regulations and standards which prevent the adverse impacts of individual and cumulative impacts caused by current and future development. In order to protect existing and future development from the adverse impacts of new construction, regulatory policies, ordinances, standards and activities should prohibit development that causes adverse impacts. Standards should be set to evaluate the potential impact. For example, many communities require freeboard, where the first floor of new construction is placed a foot or two above today's flood level, recognizing that tomorrow's flood levels will be higher.
"Catch the Change" continued on page 3

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TRAINING COURSES FOR INSURANCE PROFESSIONALS AND LENDERS
Insurance professionals and lenders are an important part of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Insurance professionals provide property owners with the opportunity to purchase federal flood insurance. Federally-regulated lenders must require flood insurance for any loan that has as collateral a structure located in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) in a participating NFIP community. This requirement has increased the number of flood insurance policies and helped reduce the financial impact of flooding to the Federal government and taxpayers. There are several upcoming workshops offered by the NFIP for lenders and insurance professionals involved in the NFIP. Please contact the NFIP regional office at (770) 396-9117 if you wish to attend a workshop. Additional information is also available at http://www.fema.gov/nfip/a_wshop4.htm or http://www.fema.gov/nfip/l_wshop4.htm.

Training Courses for Insurance Agents

Training Courses for Lenders

April 8, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

Marietta Fire Department 205 Lawrence Street Marietta, GA 30060

April 22, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

River Resource Center 125 Pine Avenue Albany, GA 31701

April 29, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

Office Park Building, Rm 234 1803 Gloucester Street Brunswick, GA 31520

April 9, 2003 9:00am-12:00pm
April 23, 2003 9:00am-12:00pm
April 30, 2003 9:00am-12:00pm

Marietta Fire Department 205 Lawrence Street Marietta, GA 30060
River Resource Center 125 Pine Avenue Albany, GA 31701
Office Park Bdlg, Rm 234 1803 Gloucester Street Brunswick, GA 31520

May 6, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

The Boat House 101 Riverfront Drive Augusta, GA 30901

May 7, 2003 9:00am-12:00pm

The Boat House 101 Riverfront Drive Augusta, GA 30901

May 8, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

Savannah Civic Center 301 West Oglethorpe Avenue Savannah, GA 31410

May 9, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

Savannah Civic Center 301 West Oglethorpe Ave Savannah, GA 31410

May 13, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

Rome Civic Center 400 Civic Center Drive Rome, GA 30161

May 14, 2000 9:00am-12:00pm

Rome Civic Center 400 Civic Center Drive Rome, GA 30161

June 9, 2003 8:30am-12:30pm

NFIP Region IV Conf Rm 1532 Dunwoody Village Prkwy Dunwoody, GA 30338

June 10, 2003 9:00am-12:00pm

NFIP Region IV Conf Rm 1532 Dunwoody Village Prkwy Dunwoody, GA 30338

Severe Weather Awareness Week (continued from page 1) In addition to publicizing weather safety measures and severe weather events through the local news media, a statewide tornado drill was scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. The National Weather Service will initiate the drill. Schools, churches, businesses, industries, and local governments are encouraged to participate. In the event of bad weather on the drill day, the drill will be rescheduled for Friday, February 21. "With the expansion of NOAA weather transmitters across the state, Georgia is better prepared than ever for severe weather, "said McConnell.
For more information on severe weather preparedness, contact your local emergency management director, call GEMA at 1-800-TRY-GEMA, or visit the GEMA Web site at www.gema.state.ga.us.
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THE 50% RULE (continued from page 5)

Acceptable estimates of market value can be obtained from these sources:
An independent appraisal by a professional appraiser.
Detailed estimates of the structure's actual cash value--the replacement cost for a building, minus a depreciation percentage based on age and condition. For most situations, the building's actual cash value should approximate its market value.
Property appraisals used for tax assessment purposes with an adjustment recommended by the tax appraiser to reflect market conditions (adjusted assessed value).
The value of buildings taken from NFIP claims data (usually actual cash value).
Qualified estimates based on sound professional judgment made by the staff of the local building department or tax assessor's office.
For structures that fall in the 40 percent to 60 percent range, more precise market value estimates are sometimes necessary.
EXCEPTIONS
The substantial improvement and substantial damage requirements affect all buildings regardless of the reason for the improvement or the cause of the

damage. There are three exceptions to this rule:
Exempt activities, which include plans and specifications, surveys, permit fees, demolition or emergency repairs made for health or safety reasons or to prevent further damage to the structure, or improvement or repairs to items outside the building such as the driveway, fencing, landscaping, and detached structures;
Historic buildings as defined by the NFIP; and
Any projects for improvement of a building to correct existing violations of State or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications identified by local code enforcement officials as the minimum specifications necessary to assure safe living conditions.
CUMULATIVE COSTS
Some communities require that improvements be calculated cumulatively over several years. FEMA generally considers separate permits for the same structure within a 5-year period as a single improvement and/or repair. Some community ordinances include cumulative clauses for all improvement and repair projects undertaken over a period of five years, 10 years, or the life of the structure. When all projects total 50 percent, the building must be brought into compliance as if it were new construction. The community Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance should specify local

requirements regarding cumulative costs. Information packets on substantial damage and substantial improvement requirements including policy guidelines, lists of items to be included in calculating costs, sample application forms, and sample affidavits for both contractors and property owners are available through the Georgia Floodplain Management Office, (404-656-6382).
Reprinted in part from the NFIP Training Manual,
http://www.fema.gov/nfip/nfipsg.htm.
WATCH US GROW Of the 695 communities in
Georgia (counties and active municipalities) 63.5% participate in the National Flood Insurance Program Flood Insurance is available in 441 cities and counties throughout Georgia The average premium for flood insurance in Georgia is $455.00 Georgia ranks 10th nationally in the number of flood policies. (Florida ranks 1st with approxi mately 1.8 million policies.)

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"CATCH THE CHANGE...." (continued on page 3)

Corrective Actions

Take actions to correct existing

hazards that were caused by past

development and not transfer the

problems to another property or

community. Many of these actions,

often called mitigation, can be

accomplished after a disaster,

using the disaster as impetus for

change in how the community

addresses

it's

hazards.

Preventative actions can also be

taken before a disaster hits,

through planning and develop-

ment/re-development activities.

Consider all possible approaches, including elevation, acquisition, floodproofing and land treatments.
Education and Outreach
The community should convey the NAI message to specific target audiences. Target audiences can include members of the public, property owners, decision makers, design professionals and developers. Your message should be: know your community's hazards, understand how your actions could adversely impact others, make

changes now to avoid legal consequences of actions that have an adverse impact on others and identify how community members can protect themselves and others. You probably have a variety of outreach programs and dissemination tools already in place; these can be modified to incorporate the NAI concept.
Article excerpted from No Adverse Impact Status Report June, 2002 Association of State Floodplain Managers

REVISED ELEVATION CERTIFICATE

With an expiration date of December 31, 2005, FEMA has issued a revised Elevation Certificate. Changes to the Elevation Certificate are mainly clarification to the instructions with one exception. Section E has been revised to add an additional question to determine the elevation of the top of the platform of machinery and/or equipment servicing the building.
Below is a summary of changes:
Section C Section C Instruction:
Additional guidance on how to obtain crawl space elevation if access to the crawl space cannot be gained
Item C1 Instruction: Clarify the required elevations on buildings under construction (use only those elevations which can be surveyed, if the building is under construction).
Item C3.f-g Instruction: Clarify the Lowest Adjacent Grade (LAG) for Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA) and Letter of Map Revision based on Fill (LOMR-F); provide LAG elevation

measured at the deck support or stairs if that elevation is lower than the building's LAG.
Item C3.h-I Instruction: Require the certifier to identify the location of openings (foundation walls and/or garage)
Section E
Item E1. Instruction: Require the certifier to indicate in Comments area if the measurement is based on the "natural grade"
New Item E4 Instruction: Require the certifier to provide the height, in relation to highest adjacent grade, of the platform that supports the machinery and/or equipment servicing building
Elevation Certificates must be prepared and certified by a land surveyor, engineer, or architect who is authorized by the State of Georgia to certify elevation information. Community officials who are authorized by local law or ordinance to provide floodplain management information may sign the certificate (refer to Section G). A licensed engineer or surveyor must

certify elevations if the elevation certificate is intended to support an application for a Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA) or Letter of Map Revision based on Fill (LOMRF). In performing hydrologic studies to develop 100-year floodplain elevations, the Georgia Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors requires qualified professional engineers to establish Base Flood Elevations.
The Elevation Certificate and instruction packet are available from this office or the FEMA distribution Center at 800-480-2520 (ask for FEMA Form 81-31). You may also visit the online Surveyors Guide to the Elevation Certificate Tutorial at (http://training. nfipstat.com/ecsurveyor/#). For question or assistance contact the Georgia Floodplain Management Office.
Federal Emergency Management Agency
National Flood Insurance Program
Elevation Certificate and
Instructions

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THE 50% RULE

What happens if a fire, flood, tornadoes, or another cause damages a building? What happens when an owner wishes to make an improvement, such as an addition, to an existing building? These important concepts have implications for both local officials administering community floodplain management regulations and for owners of property located within designated floodplain areas.
Basic rule: If the cost of improvements or repairs of
the damage exceeds 50 percent of the market
value of the building, the building must be brought up to current floodplain management standards.
If the buildings have just been damaged, owners may be financially strapped and an elected official will want to help them, not inform them of the additional cost to comply. People who own existing buildings that are being substantially improved may be required to make an additional investment to bring the building into compliance with the law. For these reasons, it is easy to see that this basic 50% Rule can be difficult to administer. It is also the one time when a community's regulatory program can reduce future possible flood damage to existing buildings.
SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE
44 CFR 59.1. Definition: "Substantial damage" means damage of any origin sustained

by a building when the cost of restoring the building to its predamaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the building before the damage occurred. Substantial damage is determined regardless of the actual repair work performed.
Two key points: The damage can be from any
cause--flood, fire, earthquake, wind, rain, or other natural or human-induced hazard. The substantial damage rule applies to all buildings in a flood hazard area, regardless of whether the building was covered by flood insurance.
Notice the guidance uses the "cost to repair," as opposed to "cost of repairs." The cost to repair the structure must be calculated for full repair of the building before the damaged condition, even if the owner elects to not do all repairs. It must also include the cost of any improvements that the owner has opted to include during the repair project.
Basic rule: Substantial damage is determined regardless of the actual cost to the owner. You must figure the true cost of bringing the building back to its pre-damage condition using qualified
labor and materials obtained at market prices.
Properly repairing a flooded building can be more expensive than people realize. The owner

may opt not to pay for all of the items needed. The owner may:
Personally do some of the work, such as removing and discarding wallboard,
Obtain some of the materials free,
Have a volunteer organization do some of the work, or
Decide to have only some repairs completed.
The permit office and the owner may have serious disagreements over the total list of needed repairs and their cost, as the owner has a great incentive to show less damage than actually occurred in order to avoid the cost of bringing the building into compliance.
Here are four things that can help your community in assessing the total cost of the needed repairs:
Get the cost to repair from an objective third party or non-debatable source, such as: A licensed general contractor; A professional construction estimator; Insurance adjustment papers (exclude damage to contents); Damage assessment field surveys conducted by building inspection, emergency management or tax assessment agencies after a disaster; or The community's building inspection department.
The 50% Rule continued on page 5

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THE 50% RULE (continued from page 4)

Use an objective system that does not rely on varying estimates of market value or different opinions of what needs to be repaired.
Publicize the need for the regulations and the bene fits of protecting buildings from future flooding. A well-educated public won't argue as much as one that does not understand the need for the 50% Rule.
Help the owner find financial assistance to meet the extra cost of complying with the code. If there was a federal disaster declaration, there may be sources of financial assistance. If the owner had flood insurance and if a flood substantially damaged the building, the Increased Cost of Compliance coverage may give the owner additional assistance.
SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT
44 CFR 59.1. Definition: "Substantial improvement" means any rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a building when the cost of the improvement equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the building before start of construction of the improvement. The term includes buildings that have incurred "substantial damage."
PROJECTS AFFECTED
All building improvement proj-

ects worthy of a permit must be considered. These include:
Remodeling projects. Rehabilitation projects. Building additions. Repair and reconstruction
projects
If the cost of the project exceeds 50 percent of the building's value, it is considered a substantial improvement.
The 50% Rule does not address only pre-Federal Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) buildings--the rule covers all buildings, including post-FIRM construction. In most cases, a post-FIRM building will be properly elevated or otherwise compliant with regulations for new construction. However, sometimes a map change results in a higher Base Flood Elevation (BFE), or the enlargement or addition of FIRM zones. A substantial improvement to a post-FIRM building may require that the building be elevated to protect it under the new, higher, regulatory BFE. It should be remembered that all additions to a post-FIRM building must be elevated at least as high as the BFE in effect when the building is to be built. (A community cannot allow a compliant building to become noncompliant by allowing additions at grade or below BFE.) If a new, higher BFE has been adopted since the building was built, additions must be elevated to the new BFE. If the addition will result in a 50% increase in value of the structure, then the entire structure and the addition must be elevat-

ed to the new BFE.
PROJECT COST The cost of the project means all structural costs, including
all materials labor built-in appliances overhead cost profit repairs made to dam-
aged parts of the building worked on at the same time
To determine substantial improvement, you need a detailed cost estimate for the project prepared by a licensed general contractor, professional construction estimator, or a community official. The floodplain administrator must review the estimate submitted by the permit applicant.
The 50% Rule continued on page 6
MAILING UPDATE
If there has been a change in the mailing address or change in personnel to whom this newsletter is addressed, please notify the Georgia Floodplain Management Office at (404) 656-6382 so that the necessary mailing updates can be made.

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