“To amend the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 to address ecosystem restoration projects, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section revises section 22 of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 (42 U.S.C. 4101e) by (1) defining "ecosystem restoration project" as a project primarily aimed at recovering natural functions of degraded aquatic resources or floodplains or enhancing specific natural functions thereof (replacing the prior narrower exemption for certain federally or state-funded habitat restoration projects such as dam removal or fish passage installation); (2) exempting map change requests based on such projects from FEMA review or processing fees; (3) authorizing communities to permit such projects in regulatory floodways that increase base flood elevations by no more than 1 foot (or a greater amount determined by the FEMA Administrator), provided a professional engineer's certification, no adverse impacts to insurable structures or critical infrastructure, and a post-completion analysis submitted to FEMA within 180 days; and (4) preserving pre-enactment procedures for notifying landowners of regulatory floodway development. It further directs the FEMA Administrator, after consulting federal and state natural resource agencies, to issue implementing guidance within 180 days after enactment and makes conforming changes to the table of contents.