![]() GAO also interviewed floodplain managers in 19 communities in Texas, Florida, and Louisiana, and officials from FEMA and floodplain management organizations. ![]() GAO analyzed FEMA data on oversight visits and substantial damage assessments from January 2008 through July 2019. This report examines (1) requirements NFIP communities must meet and challenges they face, (2) FEMA's use of community visits to ensure compliance, and (3) how FEMA oversees community implementation of NFIP requirements for conducting substantial damage assessments. GAO was asked to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of federal disaster preparedness, response, and recovery efforts. NFIP's effectiveness depends in part on communities implementing FEMA requirements on floodplain management and post-disaster rebuilding efforts. The limit for contents coverage on all residential buildings. A maximum of 250,000 of building coverage is available for single-family residential buildings 250,000 per unit for multi-family residences. Such data would help communities target substantial damage assessments after a flood. FACT: Flood insurance is available to protect homes, condominiums, apartments and non-residential buildings, including commercial structures. Furthermore, FEMA has not clarified how communities can access NFIP claims data. However, FEMA generally does not collect or analyze the results of these assessments, limiting its ability to ensure the process operates as intended. In such cases, the community must ensure the properties are rebuilt to current NFIP standards. Unreliable recordkeeping hinders FEMA's ability to assess community compliance with NFIP requirements.Īfter a flood, one key community responsibility is to assess whether flood damage on a property was substantial (50 percent or more of the property's value). However, in Florida and Texas GAO found that records for many visits remained open for several years, and FEMA staff were unsure whether this indicated unresolved deficiencies or incomplete recordkeeping. FEMA and state specialists also are to close out records of these visits in FEMA's tracking system if they find no deficiencies or violations, or when the community has resolved any issues. Without regular monitoring, FEMA's ability to ensure communities comply with requirements is limited. Many high-risk communities received only one visit in this period, and some were not visited at all. However, FEMA did not meet this goal in Texas or Florida in 2008–2019 because of a lack of resources. ![]() Until 2019, FEMA's goal was to visit all communities considered to be high-risk every 5 years. The visits include evaluations of recent construction. Community floodplain officials cited challenges, including difficulty inspecting buildings after a flood, staff turnover, and adopting new NFIP flood maps.Įxamples of How Buildings Can Meet Higher Elevation RequirementsįEMA primarily uses community assistance visits to monitor compliance with NFIP requirements. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requires communities participating in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to adopt FEMA floodplain maps limit flooding caused by new development and require that substantially damaged structures meet elevation requirements (see figure). ![]()
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