FEMA_National Flood Insurance Program Regulation AdoptionRECEIVED,
11 SEP -6 Pt1.12: I O
kSEP 0 2 2011: City Clerk's OifiCe
Dubu2 e, 9A
CERTIFIED MAIL
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
The Honorable Roy Buol
Mayor, City of Dubuque
50 West Thirteenth Street
Dubuque, Iowa 52001
Dear Mayor Buol:
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
500 C Street, SW
Washington, DC 20472
Jxo $ q N DSE f
FEMA
I am writing this letter as an official reminder that the City of Dubuque, Iowa, has until
October 18, 2011, to adopt and have the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) Regional Office approve floodplain management measures that
satisfy 44 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 60.3(d) of the National Flood Insurance
Program (NFIP) regulations.
The City of Dubuque must adopt floodplain management measures, such as a floodplain
management ordinance, that meet or exceed the minimum NFIP requirements (copy enclosed) by
October 18, 2011, to avoid suspension from the NFIP. If suspended, your community becomes
ineligible for flood insurance through the NFIP, new insurance policies cannot be sold, and existing
policies cannot be renewed.
Under the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973, as amended, flood insurance must be purchased by
property owners seeking any Federal financial assistance for construction or acquisition of buildings
in SFHAs. This financial assistance includes certain federally guaranteed mortgages and direct
loans, federal disaster relief loans and grants, as well as other similarly described assistance from
FEMA and other agencies.
In addition, all loans individuals obtain from Federally regulated, supervised, or insured lending
institutions that are secured by improved real estate located in SFHAs are also contingent upon the
borrower obtaining flood insurance coverage on the building. However, purchasing and maintaining
flood insurance coverage on a voluntary basis is frequently recommended for properties located
outside SFHAs.
Your NFIP State Coordinator and FEMA would like to assist the City of Dubuque to ensure it
remains in good standing with the NFIP and avoids suspension from the Program. If your
community is suspended, it may regain its eligibility in the NFIP by enacting the floodplain
management measures established in 44 CFR Section 60.3 of the NFIP regulations. As stated in my
previous correspondence, I recommend you contact your NFIP State Coordinator or the FEMA
Regional Office if the City of Dubuque is encountering difficulties in enacting its measures.
www.fema.gov
The Honorable Roy Buol
kSEP 0 2 20);
Page 2
I recognize that your community may be in the final adoption process or may have recently adopted
the appropriate floodplain management measures. Please submit these measures to the Floodplain
Management Program at the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Bill Cappuccio, the NFIP State
Coordinator, is accessible by telephone at (515) 281 -8942, in writing at 502 East Ninth Street,
Des Moines, Iowa 50319, or by electronic mail at bill.cappuccio @dnr.iowa.gov.
The FEMA Regional staff in Kansas City, Missouri, is also available to assist you with your
floodplain management measures. The FEMA Regional Office may be contacted by telephone at
(816) 283 -7002 or in writing. Please send your written inquiries to the Director, Federal Insurance
and Mitigation Division, FEMA Region VII, at 9221 Ward Parkway, Suite 300,
Kansas City, Missouri 64114 -3372.
In the event your community does not adopt and /or submit the necessary floodplain management
measures that meet or exceed the minimum NFIP requirements, I must take the necessary steps to
suspend your community from the NFIP. This letter is FEMA's final notification before your
community is suspended from the Program.
Sincerely,
.,11\f2
Sandra K. Knight, PhD, PE
Deputy Federal Insurance and
Mitigation Administrator, Mitigation
Enclosure
cc: Beth Freernan, Regional Administrator, FEMA Region VII
Bill Cappuccio, NFIP State Coordinator, Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Laura Carstens, Floodplain Administrator /Planning Services Manager, City of Dubuque
44 Code of Federal Regulations
§ 603 Flood plain management criteria for flood -prone areas.
The Federal Insurance Administrator will provide the data upon which flood plain management regulations shall be
bas_ed�If the Federal Insurance Administrator has not provided sufficient data to furnish a basis for these regulations in a
particular community, the community shall obtain, review and reasonably ujiiIize data available from other Federal,
State or other sources pending receipt of data from the Federal Insurance Administrator. However, when special flood
hazard area designations and water surface elevations have been furnished by the Federal Insurance Administrator, they
shall apply. The symbols defining such special flood hazard designations are set forth in §64.3 of this subchapter. In all
cases the minimum requirements governing the adequacy of the flood plain management regulations for flood -prone
areas adopted by a particular community depend on the amount of technical data formally provided to the community
by the Federal Insurance Administrator. Minimum standards for communities are as follows:
(a) When the Federal Insurance Administrator has not defined the special flood hazard areas within a community, has
not provided water surface elevation data, and has not provided sufficient data to identify the floodway or coastal high
hazard area, but the community has indicated the presence of such hazards by submitting an application to participate in
the Program, the community shall:
(1) Require permits for all proposed construction or other development in the community, including the placement of
manufactured homes, so that it may determine whether such construction or other development is proposed within
flood -prone areas;
(2) Review proposed development to assure that all necessary permits have been received from those governmental
agencies from which approval is required by Federal or State law, including section 404 of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972, 33 U.S.C. 1334;
(3) Review all permit applications to determine whether proposed building sites will be reasonably safe from
flooding. If a proposed building site is in a flood -prone area, all new construction and substantial improvements shall
(i) be designed (or modified) and adequately anchored to prevent flotation, collapse, or lateral movement of the
structure resulting from hydrodynamic and hydrostatic loads, including the effects of buoyancy, (ii) be constructed
with materials resistant to flood damage, (iii) be constructed by methods and practices that minimize flood damages,
and (iv) be constructed with electrical, heating, ventilation, plumbing, and air conditioning equipment and other
service facilities that are designed and/or located so as to prevent water from entering or accumulating within the
components during conditions of flooding.
(4) Review subdivision proposals and other proposed new development, including manufactured home parks or
subdivisions, to determine whether such proposals will be reasonably safe from flooding. If a subdivision proposal or
other proposed new development is in a flood -prone area, any such proposals shall be reviewed to assure that (i) all
such proposals are consistent with the need to minimize flood damage within the flood -prone area, (ii) all public
utilities and facilities, such as sewer, gas, electrical, and water systems are located and constructed to minimize or
eliminate flood damage, and (iii) adequate drainage is provided to reduce exposure to flood hazards;
(5) Require within flood -prone areas new and replacement water supply systems to be designed to minimize or
eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems; and
(6) Require within flood -prone areas (i) new and replacement sanitary sewage systems to be designed to minimize or
eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems and discharges from the systems into flood waters and (ii)
onsite waste disposal systems to be located to avoid impairment to them or contamination from them during flooding.
(b) When the Federal Insurance Administrator has designated areas of special flood hazards (A zones) by the
publication of a community's FHBM or FIRM, but has neither produced water surface elevation data nor identified a
floodway or coastal high hazard area, the community shall:
(1) Require permits for all proposed construction and other developments including the placement of manufactured
homes, within Zone A on the community's FHBM or FIRM;
(2) Require the application of the standards in paragraphs (a) (2), (3), (4), (5) and (6) of this section to development
within Zone A on the community's FHBM or FIRM;
[41 FR 46975, Oct. 26, 1976] http: / /ecfr.gpoaccess.gov Accessed July 20, 2009.
44 Code of Federal Regulations
flooding shall be provided. The bottom of all openings shall be no higher than one foot above grade. Openings may
be equipped with screens, louvers, valves, or other coverings or devices provided that they permit the automatic entry
and exit of floodwaters.
(6) Require that manufactured homes that are placed or substantially improved within Zones A1-30, AH, and A E on
the community's FIRM on sites
(i) Outside of a manufactured home park or subdivision,
(ii) In a new manufactured home park or subdivision,
(iii) In an expansion to an existing manufactured home park or subdivision, or
(iv) In an existing manufactured home park or subdivision on which a manufactured home has incurred "substantial
damage" as the result of a flood, be elevated on a permanent foundation such that the lowest floor of the
manufactured home is elevated to or above the base flood elevation and be securely anchored to an adequately
anchored foundation system to resist floatation collapse and lateral movement.
(7) Require within any AO zone on the community's FIRM that all new construction and substantial improvements of
residential structures have the lowest floor (including basement) elevated above the highest adjacent grade at least as
high as the depth number specified in feet on the community's FIRM (at feast two feet if no depth number is
specified);
(8) Require within any AO zone on the community's FIRM that all new construction and substantial improvements of
nonresidential structures (i) have the lowest floor (including basement) elevated above the highest adjacent grade at
least as high as the depth number specified in feet on the community's FIRM (at least two feet if no depth number is
specified), or (ii) together with attendant utility and sanitary facilities be completely floodproofed to that level to meet
the floodproofing standard specified in §60.3(c)(3)(ii);
(9) Require within any A99 zones on a community's FIRM the standards of paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(4)(i) and
(b)(5) through (b)(9) of this section;
(10) Require until a regulatory floodway is designated, that no new construction, substantial improvements, or other
development (including fill) shall be permitted within Zones A1-30 and AE on the community's FIRM, unless it is
demonstrated that the cumulative effect of the proposed development, when combined with all other existing and
anticipated development, will not increase the water surface elevation of the base flood more than one foot at any
point within the community.
(11) Require within Zones AH and AO, adequate drainage paths around structures on slopes, to guide floodwaters
around and away from proposed structures.
(12) Require that manufactured homes to be placed or substantially improved on sites in an existing manufactured
home park or subdivision within Zones A -1 -30, AH, and AE on the community's FIRM that are not subject to the
provisions of paragraph (c)(6) of this section be elevated so that either
(i) The lowest floor of the manufactured home is at or above the base flood elevation, or
(ii) The manufactured home chassis is supported by reinforced piers or other foundation elements of at least
equivalent strength that are no less than 36 inches in height above grade and be securely anchored to an adequately
anchored foundation system to resist floatation, collapse, and lateral movement.
(13) Notwithstanding any other provisions of §60.3, a community may approve certain development in Zones A1-30,
AE, and AH, on the community's FIRM which increase the water surface elevation of the base flood by more than
one foot, provided that the community first applies for a conditional FIRM revision, fulfills the requirements for such
a revision as established under the provisions of §65.12, and receives the approval of the Federal Insurance
Administrator.
(14) Require that recreational vehicles placed on sites within Zones Al -30, AH, and AE on the community's FIRM
either
(i) Be on the site for fewer than 180 consecutive days,
(ii) Be fully licensed and ready for highway use, or
[41 FR 46975, Oct. 26, 1976] http: / /ecfr.gpoaccess.gov Accessed July 20, 2009.
44 Code of Federal Regulations
codes) may be permitted only if a registered professional engineer or architect certifies that the designs proposed meet
the following conditions:
(i) Breakaway wall collapse shall result from a water load less than that which would occur during the base flood;
and,
(ii) The elevated portion of the building and supporting foundation system shall not be subject to collapse,
displacement, or other structural damage due to the effects of wind and water loads acting simultaneously on all
building components (structural and non - structural). Water loading values used shall be those associated with the base
flood. Wind loading values used shall be those required by applicable State or local building standards.
Such enclosed space shall be useable solely for parking of vehicles, building access, or storage.
(6) Prohibit the use of fill for structural support of buildings within Zones V1-30, VE, and V on the community's
FIRM;
(7) Prohibit man -made alteration of sand dunes and mangrove stands within Zones V1-30, VE, and Von the
community's FIRM which would increase potential flood damage.
(8) Require that manufactured homes placed or substantially improved within Zones V1 -30, V, and VE on the
community's FIRM on sites
(i) Outside of a manufactured home park or subdivision,
(ii) In a new manufactured home park or subdivision,
(iii) In an expansion to an existing manufactured home park or subdivision, or
(iv) In an existing manufactured home park or subdivision on which a manufactured home has incurred "substantial
damage" as the result of a flood, meet the standards of paragraphs (e)(2) through (7) of this section and that
manufactured homes placed or substantially improved on other sites in an existing manufactured home park or
subdivision within Zones VI -30, V, and VE on the community's FIRM meet the requirements of paragraph (c)(12) of
this section.
(9) Require that recreational vehicles placed on sites within Zones V1-30, V, and VE on the community's FIRM
either
(i) Be on the site for fewer than 180 consecutive days,
(ii) Be fully licensed and ready for highway use, or
(iii) Meet the requirements in paragraphs (b)(1) and (e) (2) through (7) of this section.
A recreational vehicle is ready for highway use if it is on its wheels or jacking system, is attached to the site only by
quick disconnect type utilities and security devices, and has no permanently attached additions.
(f) When the Federal Insurance Administrator has provided a notice of final base flood elevations within Zones Al -30
or AE on the community's FIRM, and, if appropriate, has designated AH zones, AO zones, A99 zones, and A zones on
the community's FIRM, and has identified flood protection restoration areas by designating Zones AR, AR/A1 -30,
AR/AE, AR/AH, AR/AO, or AR/A, the community shall:
(1) Meet the requirements of paragraphs (c)(1) through (14) and (d)(1) through (4) of this section.
(2) Adopt the official map or legal description of those areas within Zones AR, AR/A1-30, AR/AE, AR/AH, AR/A,
or AR/AO that are designated developed areas as defined in §59.1 in accordance with the eligibility procedures under
§65.14.
(3) For all new construction of structures in areas within Zone AR that are designated as developed areas and in other
areas within Zone AR where the AR flood depth is 5 feet or less:
(i) Determine the lower of either the AR base flood elevation or the elevation that is 3 feet above highest adjacent
grade; and
(ii) Using this elevation, require the standards of paragraphs (c)(1) through (14) of this section.
[41 FR 46975, Oct. 26, 1976] http: / /ecfr.gpoaccess.gov Accessed July 20, 2009.