Community Mapping Act
Bill: H.R.3416 | Sponsor: Rep. Luetkemeyer, Blaine (R-MO)
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
Community Mapping Act
The bill requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish standards for the development of alternative flood insurance rate maps by local and state governments. FEMA must consider recommendations made by the Technical Mapping Advisory Council when establishing these standards. FEMA must approve the use of these alternative maps under the National Flood Insurance Program.

To allow communities to develop alternative flood insurance rate maps, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Community Mapping Act''.

SEC. 2. COMMUNITY FLOOD MAPS.

    (a) Technical Mapping Advisory Council.--Section 100215 of the 
Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 (42 U.S.C. 4101a) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (5)(B), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph 
                (9); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following 
                new paragraphs:
            ``(6) recommend to the Administrator methods or actions to 
        make the flood mapping processes more efficient;
            ``(7) recommend to the Administrator methods or actions to 
        minimize any cost, data, and paperwork requirements of the 
        flood mapping processes;
            ``(8) assist communities, and in particular smaller 
        communities, in locating the resources required to participate 
        in the development of flood elevations and flood hazard area 
        designations; and''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(m) Community Flood Maps.--
            ``(1) Standards and procedures.--In addition to the other 
        duties of the Council under this section, not later than the 
        expiration of the 12-month period beginning on the date of the 
        enactment of this subsection, the Council shall recommend to 
        the Administrator standards and requirements for chief 
        executive officers, or entities designated by chief executive 
        officers, of States and communities participating in the 
        National Flood Insurance Program to use in mapping flood 
        hazards located in States and communities that choose to 
        develop alternative maps to the flood insurance rate maps 
        developed by the Agency. The recommended standards and 
        requirements shall include procedures for providing 
        notification and appeal rights to individuals within the 
        communities of the proposed flood elevation determinations.
            ``(2) Exemption from rulemaking.--Until such time as the 
        Administrator promulgates regulations implementing paragraph 
        (1) of this subsection, the Administrator may, notwithstanding 
        any other provision of law, adopt policies and procedures 
        necessary to implement such paragraphs without undergoing 
        notice and comment rulemaking and without conducting regulatory 
        analyses otherwise required by statute, regulation, or 
        executive order.''.
    (b) FEMA Identification of Flood-Prone Areas.--Subsection (a) of 
section 1360 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
4101(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
        subparagraphs (A), and (B), respectively, and realigning such 
        subparagraphs so as to be indented 4 ems from the left margin;
            (3) by striking ``is authorized to consult'' and inserting 
        the following: ``is authorized--
            ``(1) to consult'';
            (4) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(2) to receive proposed alternative maps from communities 
        developed pursuant to standards and requirements recommended by 
        the Technical Mapping Advisory Council, as required by section 
        100215(m) of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 
        2012 (42 U.S.C. 4101a(m)) and adopted by the Administrator as 
        required by section 100216(c)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
        4101b(c)(3)), so that the Administrator may--
                    ``(A) publish information with respect to all flood 
                plain areas, including coastal areas located in the 
                United States, which have special flood hazards, and
                    ``(B) establish or update flood-risk zone data in 
                all such areas, and make estimates with respect to the 
                rates of probable flood caused loss for the various 
                flood risk zones for each of these areas until the date 
                specified in section 1319.''.
    (c) National Flood Mapping Program.--Section 100216 of the Biggert-
Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 (42 U.S.C. 4101b) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ``prepared by the 
        Administrator, or by a community pursuant to section 1360(a)(2) 
        of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968,'' after ``Program 
        rate maps'';
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting a semicolon; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraphs:
            ``(3) establish and adopt standards and requirements for 
        development by States and communities of alternative flood 
        insurance rate maps to be submitted to the Administrator 
        pursuant to section 1360(a)(2) of the National Flood Insurance 
        Act of 1968, taking into consideration the recommendations of 
        the Technical Mapping Advisory Council made pursuant to section 
        100215(m) of this Act (42 U.S.C. 4101a(m)); and
            ``(4) in the case of proposed alternative maps received by 
        the Administrator pursuant to such section 1360(a)(2), not 
        later than the expiration of the 6-month period beginning upon 
        receipt of such proposed alternative maps--
                    ``(A) determine whether such maps were developed in 
                accordance with the standards and requirements adopted 
                pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection; and
                    ``(B) approve or disapprove such proposed maps for 
                use under National Flood Insurance Program.''; and
            (3) in subsection (d)(1), by inserting ``maximum'' before 
        ``30-day period'' each place such term appears in subparagraphs 
        (B) and (C).
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