FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT ORDINANCE REVISION Discussion and Direction Sausalito

FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT ORDINANCE REVISION Discussion and Direction -- Sausalito City Council 9 OCT 12

SUMMARY National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”) (created by the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968) DWR/FEMA CAV 16 MAY 12 (attachment 2) Letter to City from DWR dated 22 AUG 12 notified of the need to update the language in the City’s regulations to remain compliant with the NFIP DWR requires draft of Ord revision on or before 21 NOV 12 Staff is bringing the matter to the attention of the Council and the community in order to initiate discussion on the matter before responding to DWR

SUMMARY (CONT’D) “Minimum Necessary Update Draft” -- minimum necessary revisions identified by the DWR (along with some changes considered minor and editorial by Staff) “More Protective Update Draft” -- contemplates additional revisions to provide a higher degree of protection against potential flood losses in the community when compared with the minimum Some of the changes proposed in the More Protective Draft were recommended by DWR in its CALIFORNIA MODEL FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT ORDINANCE FOR COASTAL COMMUNITIES, December 2006 (attachment 3), and some of the changes are proposed by Staff

SUMMARY (CONT’D) The more protective changes proposed by Staff are intended to accomplish two goals: (a) better protection of new or substantially improved structures in the regulatory floodplain and areas of moderate flooding hazard against sea level rise, and (b) reduction in flood insurance premiums for those structures improved in compliance with the more protective standard when compared with the minimum.

ISSUES Having been notified that revisions to the Ordinance are necessary, failure to adopt and enforce the minimum necessary revisions creates: the potential that new or substantially improved structures built in the future are subject to flood damage, that the cost of flood insurance for structures built to standards less than the minimum required under the NFIP will become prohibitively expensive, and that the City and its property owners may be subject to sanctions from FEMA that could (among other things) (i) eliminate the availability of federally-backed flood insurance for the entire community, (ii) eliminate the availability of federal disaster assistance for floodrelated damage to otherwise insurable buildings in flood hazard areas, (iii) eliminate the availability of federal mortgage or loan guarantees for properties in flood hazard areas.

ISSUES (CONT’D) Consideration and ultimately adoption of more protective regulations creates the potential for reduced premiums for all flood insurance policy holders within the entire community …as well as the prospect of reduced flood damages More protective regulations will, however, likely increase the cost of compliance for parties funding new construction or substantial improvements in the areas of the City subject to the regulations.

ISSUES (CONT’D) With the projection of sea level rise over the next 50 to 100 years or more as a result of global climate change, the fact that parties funding new construction or substantial improvements in the areas of the City subject to 100 -year or moderate flood hazards can expect to benefit from those improvements for 30 to 50 years or more, and the fact that FEMA’s identification of flood hazard areas does not currently take potential future changes in sea level into account in identifying flood hazards, Staff recommends that the more protective regulations receive due Council and community consideration.

QUESTIONS OF STAFF

PUBLIC COMMENT

DISCUSSION

ACTION Direct Staff to Transmit: the Minimum Necessary Update Draft, the Most Protective Update Draft, or another draft Ordinance Amendment on or before November 21, 2012 as requested by the State of California and return at a future date uncertain for hearings on adoption of an Ordinance amendment.