FEMA has been preparing coastal flood hazard analyses for the Great Lakes coasts for several years. As a result, Flood Insurance Studies and Flood Insurance Rate Maps for Wisconsin’s Lake Michigan and Lake Superior coastal counties will be revised to include the new analyses over the next few years.

Most coastal counties on Lake Michigan have already begun the regulatory phase of the process. Local floodplain management regulations will need to be updated to reference the revised data and to include additional minimum floodplain management standards that meet the National Flood Insurance Program minimum criteria for affected communities to continue participating.

Local floodplain management officials will need to become familiar with the new types of data, the new regulations and the implications for development regulation, hazard mitigation and insurance in the affected areas. Understanding the rules and the potential financial outcomes of development decisions will help local officials counsel property owners, developers and consultants considering construction and reconstruction of facilities in coastal areas in Wisconsin.

This seminar will provide an overview of the National Flood Insurance Program’s approach to identifying and describing Great Lakes coastal hazards. It will also show how to find the needed data for development regulation in coastal hazard areas and explain the National Flood Insurance Program floodplain management standards for coastal hazard areas in detail. In addition, the seminar will include content regarding the redesigned Flood Insurance rating system, known as “Risk Rating 2.0,” with a focus on how the new rating methodology might be viewed by stakeholders making decisions about development in coastal areas.

Local officials from affected communities should attend, including those who may have attended earlier versions of this seminar given in June 2018. We also encourage other stakeholders interested or involved in regulation or design and construction in coastal areas of Wisconsin to attend.

The approximate length is 3.5 hours. The session will be led by Frank Shockey, Senior NFIP Specialist, FEMA Region 5. Please RSVP to Frank Shockey (Frank.Shockey@fema.dhs.gov) or Brian Cunningham (brian.cunningham@wisconsin.gov) if planning to attend.