[Federal Register: November 12, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 218)]
[Notices]
[Page 68668-68671]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12no02-95]
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FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY
Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB
Review; Comment Request
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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[[Page 68669]]
SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency Management Agency has submitted the
following proposed information collection to the Office of Management
and Budget for review and clearance in accordance with the requirements
of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507).
Title: Inspection of Insured Structures by Communities.
Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently approved
collection.
OMB Number: 3067-0275.
Abstract: The purpose of the inspection procedure and need for the
community inspection report is to:
(1) To help the communities of Monroe County, City of Marathon, the
Village of Islamorada, Florida, and any other community in Monroe
County that incorporates after January 1, 1999, verify and document
that post-FIRM structures in their communities comply with the
community's floodplain management ordinance; and
(2) To ensure that property owners pay flood insurance premiums
commensurate with their flood risk due to the increased exposure to
flood damages.
The final rule (published in the Federal Register on June 27, 2000,
65 FR 39726) and the interim final rule (published in the Federal
Register on March 8, 2002, 67 FR 10631) established an inspection
procedure in Monroe County, City of Marathon, the Village of
Islamorada, Florida and any other community in Monroe County that
incorporates after January 1, 1999, that would be built around the
flood insurance policy renewal process. The requirement that a building
be inspected by the community, as a condition of renewing the flood
insurance policy on the building, would only apply to NFIP insured
buildings in Special Flood Hazard Areas that are identified as possible
violations by the community in which the property is located. The
Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA) is an area that is based on a flood
that would have a 1-pecent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any
given year, referred to as the 100-year flood.
Policyholders that have a flood insurance policy with a renewal
effective date on and after the implementation date of the pilot
inspection procedure would receive, along with their policy renewal
notice, an endorsement established in appendices (A)(4), (A)(5), and
(A)(6) of 44 CFR part 61. The endorsement would provide that an
inspection by the community may be required before a subsequent renewal
of the flood insurance policy. Policies issued as new policies after
the effective date for implementing the pilot inspection procedure
would also contain the endorsement established in appendices (A)(4),
(A)(5), and (A)(6). The endorsement amended all flood insurance
policies (pre-FIRM and post-FIRM) on buildings in Monroe County, City
of Marathon, and the Village of Islamorada, Florida (there are
approximately 28,771 flood insurance policies in these communities at
the time of this submission). Pre-FIRM insured buildings are included
for the endorsement since there may be some policies within this
category that should be rated post-FIRM because they were misrated or
substantially improved after the effective date of the community's
FIRM. A notice describing the purpose of the inspection procedure would
accompany the new endorsement to the Standard Flood Insurance Policy
regarding the inspection procedure.
Monroe County, City of Marathon, and the Village of Islamorada
would identify possible violations and forward the list to FEMA. There
are an estimated 2,000-4,000 number of insured buildings within the
three communities that may be subject to an inspection based on the
identification as possible violations. This estimate was reported to
FEMA from the communities. Based on FEMA's review of floodplain
development in these communities, FEMA is comfortable with this
estimate. Monroe County, City of Marathon, and the Village of
Islamorada would identify possible violations through a review of the
pre-FIRM and post-FIRM flood insurance policies provided by FEMA and
from a visual street inspection of the building, from tax records, and
through a review of other documents on file in the community pertaining
to the property and through other community procedures. For buildings
identified by Monroe County, City of Marathon, and the Village of
Islamorada as possible violations, the insurer of the flood insurance
policy would send a notice to policyholders approximately six months
before the policy expiration date. This notice would state that the
policyholder must obtain an inspection from the community and submit
the results of the property inspection as part of the renewal of the
flood insurance policy by the end of the renewal grade period (30 days
after date of the policy expiration). The insurer would send a reminder
notice to the policyholder with the renewal notice about 45 to 60 days
before the policy expires.
The policyholder would be responsible for contacting the community
to arrange for an inspection. The community would inspect the building
to determine whether it complies with the community's floodplain
management ordinance and document its findings in an inspection report.
The community would provide two copies of the inspection report to the
policyholder.
If the policyholder obtained a timely inspection and sent the
community's inspection report and the renewal premium payment to the
insurer by the end of the renewal grace period, the insurer would renew
the flood insurance policy whether or not the building has been
identified as a violation by the community. The insurer would review
the insurance policy for rerating upon review of the community
inspection report. If the building was not properly rated to reflect
the building's risk of flooding, the policy would be rerated to reflect
that risk. If the community's inspection found a violation, the
community would undertake an enforcement action in accordance with its
floodplain management ordinance.
If the policyholder did not obtain an inspection and submit an
inspection report with the renewal premium payment by the end of the
renewal grace period (30 days after date of expiration), the flood
insurance policy would not be renewed. The insurer would send a notice
to the insured that the flood insurance policy expired and cannot be
re-issued without the community inspection report.
The communities will not be using a FEMA designed form in
documenting the inspection of an insured structure. FEMA consulted with
local officials from the communities participating in the inspection
procedure on the type of existing building inspection reports they use
to implement their floodplain management ordinance and we determined
that the current community inspection documents could be used for
purposes of implementing the inspection procedure and for purposes of
determining whether the building's flood insurance policy needs to be
rerated by insurer.
The community inspection report is critical to the effective
implementation of the inspection procedure. Without the inspection
procedure, the Village of Islamorada, City of Marathon, and Monroe
County would continue to have limited ability to inspect properties for
illegal enclosures that violate their floodplain management ordinance
and as a result, both communities would be unable to undertake
appropriate actions to remedy the violations. There are several
potential serious consequences if these structures continue to be in
[[Page 68670]]
violation of the community's floodplain management ordinance.
Allowing uses other than parking of vehicles, building access, or
storage in the enclosed area below the Base Flood Elevation (elevation
of the 100-year flood) significantly increases the flood damage
potential to the area below the lowest floor of the elevated building.
Improperly constructed enclosure walls and utilities can tear away and
damage the upper portions of the elevated building exposing the
building to greater damage. Improperly constructed enclosures can also
result in flood forces being transferred to the elevated portion of the
building with the potential for catastrophic damage. If a flood
disaster occurs, the impact will go beyond the building itself. If the
ground level enclosure is finished with living spaces, there is an
increased risk to lives. Residents who live in these ground level
enclosures may not be fully aware of the flood risk.
Furthermore, there is limited coverage in this area for elevated
post-FIRM buildings, as provided for in the Standard Flood Insurance
Policy (SFIP) under article 6--Property Not Covered. This provision of
the SFIP, effective since October 1, 1983, limits coverage for
enclosures, including personal property contained therein. FEMA does
not cover such items as finished enclosure walls, floors, ceilings, and
personal property such as rugs, carpets, and furniture. In 1983, FEMA
limited the coverage for enclosed areas below elevated buildings due to
the financial losses experienced in the NFIP when FEMA provided full
coverage in these areas. Consequently, property owners and residents
that may live in these lower enclosed areas may have significant
uninsured losses in the event of a flood for finished items and
contents below the lowest floor.
However, in spite of the limited coverage afforded for these
enclosed areas, they do affect the rating of the policy. Because of the
increase in flood damage potential to the building resulting from flood
forces being transferred to the elevated portion of the building, the
damage potential must be recognized in the rates by adding rate
loadings based on the size of the enclosure. In addition, the rates
must also reflect whether the enclosure contains essential building
elements which are covered, namely, sump pumps, well water tanks and
pumps, electrical junction and circuit breaker boxes, elevators,
natural gas tanks, pumps or tanks related to solar energy, cisterns,
stairways and staircases attached to the building, and foundation
elements that support the building. The collection of information from
the policyholder in the inspection procedure will ensure that the
policyholders of buildings with enclosures are paying premiums
commensurate with their flood risk.
Along with significant flood damages to the building and the
potential for loss of life, the community, the State, and the Federal
Government will be faced with costly outlays for flood fighting and
rescue operations, response, and recovery as well as taxpayer funded
disaster assistance.
Under the inspection procedure, the policyholder will be required
to obtain an inspection in order to renew the policy. This will be a
one-time collection of information during the period of time for which
the inspection procedure is to be implemented. Since the primary
purpose of the inspection is to provide communities with a mechanism to
ensure compliance with the floodplain management ordinance and for FEMA
to verify flood insurance rates, less frequent collection of the
information through the inspection report is not possible.
Affected Public: Individuals or households and business or other
for-profit.
Number of Respondents: 1,500.
Estimated Time per Respondent:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frequency of
No. of respondents/type of response response Burden hours Total burden hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4,000 policyholders to receive & read a 1 15 minutes (total for both 1000 hours.
notice that an inspection is required notices).
in order for the flood insurance policy
to be renewed. These 4,000
policyholders will also receive a
reminder notice about 45-60 days before
the policy expires.
4,000 policyholders contact respective 1 1-2.5 hours*............... 10,000 hours.
community to arrange for an inspection
of the property. Local official
inspects the property with the
policyholder or his/her designee.
(Note: in any given year we expect
several hundred policyholders to
receive the notice and contact their
community.) Compliant buildings should
take less time to inspect compared to
an insured building that is non-
compliant.
*FEMA has estimated that the amount of time to contact the community to arrange for the inspection and for the
policyholder or his/her designee to be available to let the community official into the building to conduct the
inspection will range from 1 hour to 2.5 hours.
4,000 policyholders submit a copy of the 1 8 minutes.................. 533 hours.
inspection report with the renewal
premium payment.
800 estimated no. of respondents that 1 8 minutes.................. 107 hours.
did not obtain an inspection These
respondents will be sent a notice at
time of policy expiration that their
flood insurance policy expired. (FEMA
estimates that less than 20% of the
4,000 respondents will not obtain an
inspection and as a result their flood
insurance policy will not be renewed.).
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*Total number of Burden Hours to implement the inspection procedure
over a multi-year period: 11,640.
Annual (one-time) total burden hours for each policyholder is
approximately: 3 hours.
Total annual burden for approximately 500-700 inspections per year
in Monroe County: 2,100 hours.
Total annual burden for approximately 200-400 inspections per year
in the Village of Islamorada: 1,200 hours.
Total annual burden for approximately 200-400 inspections per year
in City of Marathon: 1,200 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 4,500 hours.
Frequency of Response: One time.
Comments: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments
on
[[Page 68671]]
the proposed information collection to the Desk Officer for the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503 within
30 days of the date of this notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection should be made to Muriel B.
Anderson, Chief, Records Management Branch, Information Resources
Management Division, Information Technology Services Directorate,
Federal Emergency Management Agency, 500 C Street, SW., Room 316,
Washington, DC 20472. Facsimile number (202) 646-3347, or email
address: informationcollections@fema.gov.
Dated: October 21, 2002.
Edward W. Kernan,
Division Director, Information Resources Management Division,
Information Technology Services Directorate.
[FR Doc. 02-28623 Filed 11-8-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6718-01-P