Letter to The Honorable W. Craig Fugate Administrator Federal Emergency and Management Agency and Lieutenant General Robert L.Van Antwerp U.S. Army Chief of Engineers
Letter
Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to work together and with communities across the Southern Tier to implement a plan to improve and accredit the levees that mitigate floods. Schumer said that the two federal agencies have not been effectively talking to each other and have not been working well enough with local officials on the ground, as they seek to have their levees certified; an outcome which will lead to enhanced protection and significant cost savings for homeowners.
Standing at the Broome County Office Building, Schumer was joined by Barbara Fiala, Broome County Executive; Gerald Whitehead, Mayor of the Village of Whitney Point; Esther Woods, Mayor of the Village of Nichols and Frank Evangelisti, Acting Commissioner of Broome County Planning and Economic Development. Schumer said it was time for the two agencies to break through the red tape and work together in order to stave off huge costs for homeowners and taxpayers.
"This is a classic case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing and the end result will be thousands in costs to local taxpayers and homeowners- that's unacceptable," Schumer said. "FEMA and the Army Corps can still make this right, and I'll be working to cut through the red tape to ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals -- to ensure our safety during floods and to lower costs."
Because they reduce the risk of flooding, levees accredited by FEMA can reduce or eliminate flood insurance payments that households are required to make. If a village like Whitney Point or Nichols desires that a levee be recognized as providing protection from a flood they must submit to FEMA documentation demonstrating that the levee meets certain requirements.
Oddly, both FEMA and the USACE evaluate levees, but just because a levee is approved by one agency does not mean that it is approved by the other. Every year USACE certifies the 4 levees in Broome and Tioga County, but FEMA refuses to look at ACOE data, and demands independent verification -- a process that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, in many case double or triple a municipality's annual budget. FEMA has recently declared approximately 6,500 structures in Tioga and Broome in flood plans -- meaning that those property owners will have to pay for costly flood insurance. The majority of those additions are because FEMA does not acknowledge the levees -- it's as if they don't exist, despite the fact that ACOE certifies them every year. The same issue is occurring in Chemung County, where an additional 8000 properties will be added to FEMA's flood maps for the same reason.
Schumer said that the fact that FEMA and ACOE are not talking doesn't make any sense, and that all parties should be working together and sharing data to make sure that every home is fully projected in an affordable and efficient manner and that data is not being duplicated at the expense of the taxpayer. Schumer is today asking FEMA and ACOE to sit down with local communities, share data, and discuss a game plan for reducing costs and ensuring flood protection.
The full text of Schumer's letter to Administrator Fugate and Lieutenant Van Antwerp can be seen below:
August 24, 2010
The Honorable W. Craig Fugate
Administrator
Federal Emergency and Management Agency
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
500 C Street SW
Washington, D.C. 20472
Lieutenant General Robert L.Van Antwerp
U.S. Army Chief of Engineers
Commanding General
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
441 G. Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20314-1000
Dear Administrator Fugate and Lieutenant General Van Antwerp,
I write you today with concerns regarding the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Levee Certification Program. New York State, specifically the Southern Tier, knows firsthand the devastation floods can bring to communities and the importance of protection to protect against future disasters, and the implementation of these programs has had a significant impact on our local communities.
As I travel throughout New York State, many constituents express their frustration as they seek to navigate the flood map and levee certification process. Specifically, they are frustrated with the lack of communication and coordination between FEMA and USACE with regard to levee certification, the financial burdens these programs place on their already tight budgets, and the lack of clarity regarding who owns levees and how long levee certifications are valid.
As the federal agency that is responsible for administering the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), FEMA identifies flood hazards and risks and provides appropriate flood hazard and risk information to communities across the nationwide via Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM). If a community desires that a levee be recognized on a FIRM as providing protection from a base flood, the 1% annual flood chance, they must submit to FEMA documentation demonstrating that the map meets levee requirements as outlined in Title 44 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
USACE levee safety requirements are not as strict as those imposed by FEMA. As you know, FEMA's 1% annual-chance flood minimum safety standard requirement for NFIP levee certification is not a safety standard for USACE levee safety certification. In the Southern Tier of New York, communities such as the Village of Lisle, Port Dickinson and Whitney Point in New York's Broome County and the Village of Nichols in Tioga County all have levees that are considered structurally sound by USACE, but do not meet FEMA's levee standards. It is critical to the viability of our communities that existing levees that have adequate free board are able to become certified and recognized by both FEMA and USACE as being structurally sound and able to meet flood safety requirements.
Beyond the lack of communication, different levee safety requirements present considerable financial hardships for municipalities. If FEMA does not recognize a levee's USACE certification, large portions, if not entire Villages and Towns, will be placed in special flood hazard areas. In other words, communities either have to bust their budgets to certify a levee or impose federal mandates on already cash strapped consumers by requiring property owners to take on the additional cost of flood insurance. Not only is this costly, but it has the indirect of effect of discouraging investment and stifling growth.
Furthermore, in many cases, such as in the Village of Whitney Point in New York State's Broome County there is no clear ownership of local levees. The Village does not own it, thereby rendering it incapable of bonding to fund an engineering study. With the cost of said study likely to be at least double the Village's annual budget there is no other funding option. No agency be it the DEC, the USACE, or others to date have been willing to claim ownership.
As municipal leaders face these difficult financial decisions, they are also concerned that the standards levees are to be certified to will remain in force for only a short time. In other words, even if they were able to incur the cost of an engineering study, without a clear directive or policy outlining how long these standards will be valid and upheld it is incredibly difficult to responsibly evaluate and justify such expenditures because their validity can change at any time.
At this time, I call on FEMA and USACE to work together to develop a unified levee safety standard and to work closely with communities whose position in a flood hazard area is directly impacted by the presence of a levee. I also ask that efforts are made to clearly identify who owns these levees, to communicate this ownership to relevant stakeholders, and to provide specific guidance outlining how long levee standards are valid. This information will provide municipal leaders with critical information they require to make the best, most informed, and fiscally responsible decisions and is critical to ensuring the safety of a levee is accurately reflected in the development of FEMA's Flood Insurance Rate Maps.
Thank you for your attention to this request. If you need additional assistance, please don't hesitate to contact me or my aide, Grant Kerr, at 202-224-6542.
Sincerely,
Charles E. Schumer
Source