42 U.S.C. § 4101b

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TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE

Insurance Program rate maps under section
4101b of this title, shall incorporate any future
risk assessment submitted under paragraph
(1)(B) in any such revision or update.
(e) Chairperson
The members of the Council shall elect 1 member to serve as the chairperson of the Council (in
this section referred to as the ‘‘Chairperson’’).
(f) Coordination
To ensure that the Council’s recommendations
are consistent, to the maximum extent practicable, with national digital spatial data collection and management standards, the Chairperson shall consult with the Chairperson of the
Federal Geographic Data Committee (established pursuant to Office of Management and
Budget Circular A–16).
(g) Compensation
Members of the Council shall receive no additional compensation by reason of their service
on the Council.
(h) Meetings and actions
(1) In general
The Council shall meet not less frequently
than twice each year at the request of the
Chairperson or a majority of its members, and
may take action by a vote of the majority of
the members.
(2) Initial meeting
The Administrator, or a person designated
by the Administrator, shall request and coordinate the initial meeting of the Council.
(i) Officers
The Chairperson may appoint officers to assist
in carrying out the duties of the Council under
subsection (c).
(j) Staff
(1) Staff of FEMA
Upon the request of the Chairperson, the Administrator may detail, on a nonreimbursable
basis, personnel of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency to assist the Council in
carrying out its duties.
(2) Staff of other Federal agencies
Upon request of the Chairperson, any other
Federal agency that is a member of the Council may detail, on a nonreimbursable basis,
personnel to assist the Council in carrying out
its duties.
(k) Powers
In carrying out this section, the Council may
hold hearings, receive evidence and assistance,
provide information, and conduct research, as it
considers appropriate.
(l) Report to Congress
The Administrator, on an annual basis, shall
report to the Committee on Banking, Housing,
and Urban Affairs of the Senate, the Committee
on Financial Services of the House of Representatives, and the Office of Management and Budget on the—
(1) recommendations made by the Council;
(2) actions taken by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency to address such rec-

§ 4101b

ommendations to improve flood insurance rate
maps and flood risk data; and
(3) any recommendations made by the Council that have been deferred or not acted upon,
together with an explanatory statement.
(Pub. L. 112–141, div. F, title II, § 100215, July 6,
2012, 126 Stat. 924.)
Editorial Notes
CODIFICATION
Section was enacted as part of the Biggert-Waters
Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012, and also as part of
the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act,
also known as the MAP–21, and not as part of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 which comprises this
chapter.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
DEFINITIONS
For definitions of terms used in this section, see section 4004 of this title.

§ 4101b. National Flood Mapping Program
(a) Reviewing, updating, and maintaining maps
The Administrator, in coordination with the
Technical Mapping Advisory Council established
under section 4101a of this title, shall establish
an ongoing program under which the Administrator shall review, update, and maintain National Flood Insurance Program rate maps in
accordance with this section.
(b) Mapping
(1) In general
In carrying out the program established
under subsection (a), the Administrator
shall—
(A) identify, review, update, maintain, and
publish National Flood Insurance Program
rate maps with respect to—
(i) all populated areas and areas of possible population growth located within the
100-year floodplain;
(ii) all populated areas and areas of possible population growth located within the
500-year floodplain;
(iii) areas of residual risk, including
areas that are protected by levees, dams,
and other flood control structures;
(iv) areas that could be inundated as a
result of the failure of a levee, dam, or
other flood control structure;
(v) areas that are protected by nonstructural flood mitigation features; and
(vi) the level of protection provided by
flood control structures and by non-structural flood mitigation features;
(B) establish or update flood-risk zone data
in all such areas, and make estimates with
respect to the rates of probable flood caused
loss for the various flood risk zones for each
such area; and
(C) use, in identifying, reviewing, updating, maintaining, or publishing any National
Flood Insurance Program rate map required
under this section or under the National
Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4011 et
seq.), the most accurate topography and elevation data available.

§ 4101b

TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE

(2) Mapping elements
Each map updated under this section shall—
(A) assess the accuracy of current ground
elevation data used for hydrologic and hydraulic modeling of flooding sources and
mapping of the flood hazard and wherever
necessary acquire new ground elevation data
utilizing the most up-to-date geospatial
technologies in accordance with guidelines
and specifications of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency; and
(B) develop National Flood Insurance Program flood data on a watershed basis—
(i) to provide the most technically effective and efficient studies and hydrologic
and hydraulic modeling; and
(ii) to eliminate, to the maximum extent
possible, discrepancies in base flood elevations between adjacent political subdivisions.
(3) Other inclusions
In updating maps under this section, the Administrator shall include—
(A) any relevant information on coastal
inundation from—
(i) an applicable inundation map of the
Corps of Engineers; and
(ii) data of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration relating to
storm surge modeling;
(B) any relevant information of the United
States Geological Survey on stream flows,
watershed characteristics, and topography
that is useful in the identification of flood
hazard areas, as determined by the Administrator;
(C) any relevant information on land subsidence, coastal erosion areas, changing lake
levels, and other flood-related hazards;
(D) any relevant information or data of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United States Geological
Survey relating to the best available science
regarding future changes in sea levels, precipitation, and intensity of hurricanes; and
(E) any other relevant information as may
be recommended by the Technical Mapping
Advisory Committee.
(c) Standards
In updating and maintaining maps under this
section, the Administrator shall—
(1) establish standards to—
(A) ensure that maps are adequate for—
(i) flood risk determinations; and
(ii) use by State and local governments
in managing development to reduce the
risk of flooding; and
(B) facilitate identification and use of consistent methods of data collection and analysis by the Administrator, in conjunction
with State and local governments, in developing maps for communities with similar
flood risks, as determined by the Administrator; and
(2) publish maps in a format that is—
(A) digital geospatial data compliant;
(B) compliant with the open publishing
and data exchange standards established by
the Open Geospatial Consortium; and

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(C) aligned with official data defined by
the National Geodetic Survey.
(d) Communication and outreach
(1) In general
The Administrator shall—
(A) before commencement of any mapping
or map updating process, notify each community affected of the model or models that
the Administrator plans to use in such process and provide an explanation of why such
model or models are appropriate;
(B) provide each community affected a 30day period beginning upon notification
under subparagraph (A) to consult with the
Administrator regarding the appropriateness, with respect to such community, of the
mapping model or models to be used; provided that consultation by a community
pursuant to this subparagraph shall not
waive or otherwise affect any right of the
community to appeal any flood hazard determinations;
(C) upon completion of the first Independent Data Submission, transmit a copy
of such Submission to the affected community, provide the affected community a 30day period during which the community
may provide data to Administrator 1 that
can be used to supplement or modify the existing data, and incorporate any data that is
consistent with prevailing engineering principles;
(D) work with States, local communities,
and property owners to identify areas and
features described in subsection (b)(1)(A)(v);
(E) work to enhance communication and
outreach to States, local communities, and
property owners about the effects—
(i) of any potential changes to National
Flood Insurance Program rate maps that
may result from the mapping program required under this section; and
(ii) that any such changes may have on
flood insurance purchase requirements;
(F) engage with local communities to enhance communication and outreach to the
residents of such communities, including
tenants (with regard to contents insurance),
on the matters described under subparagraph (E);
(G) not less than 30 days before issuance of
any preliminary map, notify the Senators
for each State affected and each Member of
the House of Representatives for each congressional district affected by the preliminary map in writing of—
(i) the estimated schedule for—
(I) community meetings regarding the
preliminary map;
(II) publication of notices regarding
the preliminary map in local newspapers; and
(III) the commencement of the appeals
process regarding the map; and
(ii) the estimated number of homes and
businesses that will be affected by changes
contained in the preliminary map, includ1 So

in original. Probably should be preceded by ‘‘the’’.

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ing how many structures will be 2 that
were not previously located in an area having special flood hazards will be located
within such an area under the preliminary
map; and
(H) upon the issuance of any proposed map
and any notice of an opportunity to make an
appeal relating to the proposed map, notify
the Senators for each State affected and
each Member of the House of Representatives for each congressional district affected
by the proposed map of any action taken by
the Administrator with respect to the proposed map or an appeal relating to the proposed map.
(2) Required activities
The communication and outreach activities
required under paragraph (1) shall include—
(A) notifying property owners when their
properties become included in, or when they
are excluded from, an area covered by the
mandatory flood insurance purchase requirement under section 4012a of this title;
(B) educating property owners regarding
the flood risk and reduction of this risk in
their community, including the continued
flood risks to areas that are no longer subject to the flood insurance mandatory purchase requirement;
(C) educating property owners regarding
the benefits and costs of maintaining or acquiring flood insurance, including, where applicable, lower-cost preferred risk policies
under the National Flood Insurance Act of
1968 (42 U.S.C. 4011 et seq.) for such properties and the contents of such properties;
(D) educating property owners about flood
map revisions and the process available to
such owners to appeal proposed changes in
flood elevations through their community,
including by notifying local radio and television stations; and
(E) encouraging property owners to maintain or acquire flood insurance coverage.
(e) Community remapping request
Upon the adoption by the Administrator of
any recommendation by the Technical Mapping
Advisory Council for reviewing, updating, or
maintaining National Flood Insurance Program
rate maps in accordance with this section, a
community that believes that its flood insurance rates in effect prior to adoption would be
affected by the adoption of such recommendation may submit a request for an update of its
rate maps, which may be considered at the Administrator’s sole discretion. The Administrator
shall establish a protocol for the evaluation of
such community map update requests.
(f) Authorization of appropriations
There is authorized to be appropriated to the
Administrator to carry out this section
$400,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2013 through
2017.
(Pub. L. 112–141, div. F, title II, § 100216, July 6,
2012, 126 Stat. 927; Pub. L. 113–89, §§ 27, 30, Mar.
21, 2014, 128 Stat. 1033, 1034.)
2 So in original. The words ‘‘will be’’ probably should not appear.

§ 4101c

Editorial Notes
REFERENCES IN TEXT
The National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, referred to
in subsecs. (b)(1)(C) and (d)(2)(C), is title XIII of Pub. L.
90–448, Aug. 1, 1968, 82 Stat. 572, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of
this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under
section 4001 of this title and Tables.
CODIFICATION
Section was enacted as part of the Biggert-Waters
Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012, and also as part of
the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act,
also known as the MAP–21, and not as part of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 which comprises this
chapter.
AMENDMENTS
2014—Subsec. (b)(1)(A)(v), (vi). Pub. L. 113–89, § 27(1),
added cl. (v), redesignated former cl. (v) as (vi), and, in
cl. (vi), inserted ‘‘and by non-structural flood mitigation features’’ before semicolon at end.
Subsec. (d)(1)(A). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(3), added subpar.
(A). Former subpar. (A) redesignated (D).
Pub. L. 113–89, § 27(2)(C), added subpar. (A). Former
subpar. (A) redesignated (B).
Subsec. (d)(1)(B). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(3), added subpar.
(B). Former subpar. (B) redesignated (E).
Pub. L. 113–89, § 27(2)(A), redesignated subpar. (A) as
(B). Former subpar. (B) redesignated (C).
Subsec. (d)(1)(C). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(3), added subpar.
(C). Former subpar. (C) redesignated (F).
Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(1), substituted ‘‘subparagraph (E)’’
for ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ and struck out ‘‘and’’ at end.
Pub. L. 113–89, § 27(2)(A), (B), redesignated subpar. (B)
as (C) and substituted ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ for ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’. Former subpar. (C) redesignated (D).
Subsec. (d)(1)(D). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(2), redesignated
subpar. (A) as (D). Former subpar. (D) redesignated (H).
Pub. L. 113–89, § 27(2)(A), redesignated subpar. (C) as
(D).
Subsec. (d)(1)(E), (F). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(2), redesignated subpars. (B) and (C) as (E) and (F), respectively.
Subsec. (d)(1)(G). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(4), added subpar.
(G).
Subsec. (d)(1)(H). Pub. L. 113–89, § 30(2), redesignated
subpar. (D) as (H).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
DEFINITIONS
For definitions of terms used in this section, see section 4004 of this title.

§ 4101c. Coordination
(a) Interagency budget crosscut and coordination report
(1) In general
The Secretary of Homeland Security, the
Administrator, the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget, and the heads of
each Federal department or agency carrying
out activities under sections 4101a and 4101b of
this title shall work together to ensure that
flood risk determination data and geospatial
data are shared among Federal agencies in
order to coordinate the efforts of the Nation to
reduce its vulnerability to flooding hazards.
(2) Report
Not later than 30 days after the submission
of the budget of the United States Government
by the President to Congress, the Director of
the Office of Management and Budget, in co-