National Flood Insurance Program Nationwide Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, 51286-51288 [2017-23902]
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51286
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 212 / Friday, November 3, 2017 / Notices
previously approved information
collection for which approval has
expired. FEMA will submit the
information collection abstracted below
to the Office of Management and Budget
for review and clearance in accordance
with the requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995. The submission
will describe the nature of the
information collection, the categories of
respondents, the estimated burden (i.e.,
the time, effort and resources used by
respondents to respond) and cost, and
the actual data collection instruments
FEMA will use.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on
or before December 4, 2017.
ADDRESSES: Submit written comments
on the proposed information collection
to the Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs, Office of
Management and Budget. Comments
should be addressed to the Desk Officer
for the Department of Homeland
Security, Federal Emergency
Management Agency, and sent via
electronic mail to dhsdeskofficer@
omb.eop.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection
should be made to Director, Records
Management Division, 500 C Street SW.,
Washington, DC 20472, email address
FEMA-Information-CollectionsManagement@fema.dhs.gov or Suzan
Krowel, Insurance Examiner, Federal
Insurance and Mitigation
Administration, DHS/FEMA, at (202)
701–3701.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: StateOwned properties covered under an
adequate State policy of self-insurance
satisfactory to FEMA are not required to
purchase flood insurance in accordance
with Section 102(c)(1) of the Flood
Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (42
U.S.C. 4012a(c)(1)). NFIP regulations, 44
CFR part 75, establish the standards
which a State’s insurance plan must
meet to be found exempt from the
requirement to purchase flood insurance
coverage for State-owned structures and
their contents. To be eligible for the
exemption, State properties must be
located in areas identified by the
Administrator as A, AO, AH, A1–30,
AE, AR, AR/A1–30, AR/AE, AR/AO,
AR/AH, AR/A, A99, M, V, VO, V1–30,
VE, and E zones, in which the sale of
insurance has been made available.
This proposed information collection
previously published in the Federal
Register on June 27, 2017 at 82 FR
29090 with a 60 day public comment
period. FEMA received one comment.
The commenter advocated for the
extension of the State self-insurance
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16:18 Nov 02, 2017
Jkt 244001
exemption to all entities, including
small business. FEMA appreciates this
comment but is unable to extend the
exemption because it is statutorily
prescribed. This information collection
expired on September 30, 2017. FEMA
is requesting a reinstatement, without
change, of a previously approved
information collection for which
approval has expired. The purpose of
this notice is to notify the public that
FEMA will submit the information
collection abstracted below to the Office
of Management and Budget for review
and clearance.
Collection of Information
Title: Exemption of State-Owned
Properties Under Self-Insurance.
Type of information collection:
Reinstatement, without change, of a
previously approved collection for
which approval has expired.
OMB Number: 1660–0013.
Form Titles and Numbers: None.
Abstract: Application for exemption
must be made by the Governor or other
duly authorized official of the State
accompanied by sufficient supporting
documentation which certifies that the
plan of self-insurance upon which the
application for exemption is based
meets or exceeds the standards in NFIP
regulations at 44 CFR 75.11.
Affected Public: State, Local or Tribal
Government.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
20.
Estimated Number of Responses: 20.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours: 5.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent
Cost: The estimated annual cost to
respondents for the hour burden is
$8,547. There are no annual costs to
respondents operations and
maintenance costs for technical
services. There is no annual start-up or
capital costs. The cost to the Federal
Government is $3,920.10.
Comments
Comments may be submitted as
indicated in the ADDRESSES caption
above. Comments are solicited to (a)
evaluate whether the proposed data
collection is necessary for the proper
performance of the agency, including
whether the information shall have
practical utility; (b) evaluate the
accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of
information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(c) enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and (d) minimize the burden
of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including through
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Sfmt 4703
the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other
technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology,
e.g., permitting electronic submission of
responses.
Dated: October 30, 2017.
William Holzerland,
Information Management Division Director,
Mission Support, Federal Emergency
Management Agency, Department of
Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. 2017–24005 Filed 11–2–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110–11–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Federal Emergency Management
Agency
[Docket ID FEMA–2012–0012]
National Flood Insurance Program
Nationwide Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement
Federal Emergency
Management Agency, DHS.
ACTION: Notice of availability of a final
nationwide programmatic
environmental impact statement.
AGENCY:
The Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA)
announces the availability of a final
Nationwide Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement
(NPEIS) evaluating the environmental
impacts of proposed modifications to
the National Flood Insurance Program
(NFIP). Pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969, as amended, the Council on
Environmental Quality’s (CEQs)
regulations for implementing the
procedural provisions of NEPA, and
FEMA’s Directive 108–1 titled
‘‘Environmental Planning and Historic
Preservation Responsibilities and
Program Requirements,’’ FEMA has
considered comments received on the
NFIP Draft NPEIS, which was issued in
April 2017, and identifies FEMA’s
preferred alternative in the NFIP Final
NPEIS.
DATES: FEMA will publish a Record of
Decision no sooner than 30 days after
the date of publication of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency’s
Notice of Availability in the Federal
Register.
SUMMARY:
Electronic versions of the
NFIP Final NPEIS are available at the
Federal eRulemaking Portal, https://
www.regulations.gov by searching for
Docket ID FEMA–2012–0012.
ADDRESSES:
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 212 / Friday, November 3, 2017 / Notices
For
more information on the NFIP Final
NPEIS, contact Bret Gates, FEMA,
Federal Insurance and Mitigation
Administration, Floodplain
Management Division, 400 C Street SW.,
Washington, DC 20472, or via email at
Bret.Gates@fema.dhs.gov, or by phone
at 202–646–2780.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Flooding
has been, and continues to be, a serious
risk in the United States. To address the
need, in 1968, Congress established the
NFIP as a Federal program to provide
access to federally backed flood
insurance protection. The NFIP is a
voluntary Federal program through
which property owners in participating
communities can purchase Federal
flood insurance as a protection against
flood losses. In exchange, communities
must enact local floodplain management
regulations to reduce flood risk and
flood-related damages. However, the
power to regulate floodplain
development, including requiring and
approving permits, establishing
permitting requirements, inspecting
property, and citing violations, requires
land use authority. The regulation of
land use falls under the State’s police
powers, which the Constitution reserves
to the States, and the States delegate this
power down to their respective political
subdivisions. FEMA has no direct
involvement in the administration of
local floodplain management
ordinances or in the permitting process
for development in the floodplain.
In addition to providing flood
insurance and reducing flood damages
through floodplain management, the
NFIP identifies and maps the nation’s
floodplains. Maps depicting flood
hazard information are used to promote
broad-based awareness of flood hazards,
provide data for rating flood insurance
policies, and determine the appropriate
minimum floodplain management
criteria for flood hazard areas.
The proposed modifications to the
NFIP are needed to (a) implement the
legislative requirements of the BiggertWaters Flood Insurance Reform Act of
2012 (BW–12) and the Homeowner
Flood Insurance Affordability Act of
2014 (HFIAA); and (b) to demonstrate
compliance with the Endangered
Species Act (ESA). As stated in the Draft
NPEIS the need to implement the
legislative requirements of BW–12 and
HFIAA arises from the recent concerns
over the fiscal soundness of the NFIP.
This Final NPEIS considers four
alternatives and describes the potential
environmental effects of each
alternative. The four alternatives
include:
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
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—Alternative 1 (No Action)
Æ The No Action Alternative refers to
the current implementation of the NFIP.
The No Action Alternative is prescribed
by Council on Environmental Quality
regulations (40 CFR 1502.14(d)) and
serves as a benchmark against which
impacts of the alternatives can be
evaluated.
—Alternative 2 (Legislatively Required
Changes, Floodplain Management
Criteria Guidance, and Letter of Map
Change [LOMC] Clarification)
(Preferred Alternative)
Æ Phase out of subsidies on certain
pre-FIRM properties (non-primary
residences, business properties, severe
repetitive loss properties, substantially
damaged or improved properties, and
properties for which the cumulative
claims payments exceed the fair market
value of the property) at a rate of 25
percent premium increases per year.
Æ Phase out of subsidies on all other
pre-FIRM properties through annual
premium rate increases of an average
rate of at least 5 percent, but no more
than 15 percent, per risk classification,
with no individual policy exceeding an
18 percent premium rate increase.
Æ Implement a monthly installment
plan payment option for non-escrowed
flood insurance policies.
Æ Clarify that pursuant to 44 CFR
60.3(a)(2), a community must obtain and
maintain documentation of compliance
with the appropriate Federal or State
laws, including the ESA, as a condition
of issuing floodplain development
permits.
Æ Clarify that the issuing of certain
LOMC requests (i.e., map revisions) is
contingent on the community, or the
project proponent on the community’s
behalf, submitting documentation of
compliance with the ESA.
—Alternative 3 (Legislatively Required
Changes, Proposed ESA Regulatory
Changes, and LOMC Clarification)
Æ Phase out of subsidies on certain
pre-FIRM properties (non-primary
residences, business properties, severe
repetitive loss properties, substantially
damaged or improved properties, and
properties for which the cumulative
claims payments exceed the fair market
value of the property) at a rate of 25
percent premium increases per year.
Æ Phase out of subsidies on all other
pre-FIRM properties through annual
premium rate increases of an average
rate of at least 5 percent, but no more
than 15 percent, per risk classification,
with no individual policy exceeding an
18 percent premium rate increase.
Æ Implement a monthly installment
plan payment option for non-escrowed
flood insurance policies.
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
51287
Æ Establish a new ESA-related
performance standard in the minimum
floodplain management criteria at 44
CFR 60.3 that would require
communities to obtain and maintain
documentation that any adverse impacts
caused by proposed development,
including fill, to ESA-listed species and
designated critical habitat will be
mitigated to the maximum extent
possible.
Æ Clarify that the exception to the norise performance standard in the
floodway applies only to projects that
serve a public purpose or result in the
restoration of the natural and beneficial
functions of floodplains.
Æ Increase the probation surcharge
applicable to NFIP communities placed
on probation from $50 to $100.
Æ Clarify that the issuance of certain
LOMC requests (i.e., map revisions) is
contingent on the community, or the
project proponent on the community’s
behalf, submitting documentation of
compliance with the ESA.
—Alternative 4 (Legislatively Required
Changes, ESA Guidance, and LOMC
Clarification)
Æ Phase out of subsidies on certain
pre-FIRM properties (non-primary
residences, business properties, severe
repetitive loss properties, substantially
damaged or improved properties, and
properties for which the cumulative
claims payments exceed the fair market
value of the property) at a rate of 25
percent premium increases per year.
Æ Phase out of subsidies on all other
pre-FIRM properties through annual
premium rate increases of an average
rate of at least 5 percent, but no more
than 15 percent, per risk classification,
with no individual policy exceeding an
18 percent premium rate increase.
Æ Implement a monthly installment
plan payment option for non-escrowed
flood insurance policies.
Æ Utilize the existing performance
standard in 44 CFR 60.3(a)(2) to
implement a new policy/procedure
requiring communities to ensure that,
for any floodplain development for
which a floodplain development permit
is sought, the impacts to ESA-listed
species and designated critical habitat
are identified and assessed and, if there
are any potential adverse impacts to
such species and habitat as a result of
such development, that the community
obtain and maintain documentation that
the proposed floodplain development
will be undertaken in compliance with
the ESA.
Æ Clarify that the issuance of certain
LOMC requests (i.e., map revisions) is
contingent on the community, or the
project proponent on the community’s
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51288
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 212 / Friday, November 3, 2017 / Notices
behalf, submitting documentation of
compliance with the ESA.
Environmental topics addressed in
the Final NPEIS include air quality,
noise, land use and planning, geology
and soils, water resources, biological
resources, cultural resources, aesthetics/
visual resources, infrastructure,
socioeconomic resources, hazardous
waste and materials, and climate
change. Best management practices and
mitigation measures that could alleviate
environmental effects have been
considered and are included where
relevant within the Final NPEIS. The
proposed alternatives do not have
natural or depletable resource
requirements because they are changes
in policy or regulation that do not
involve any physical activities for
which resources would be required. For
these alternatives, no significant or
unavoidable adverse impacts are
anticipated.
The Final NPEIS considers comments
on the Draft NPEIS, including those
submitted during the public comment
period that officially began on April 7,
2017 and ended on June 6, 2017,
following a 60-day comment period.
Appendix M provides the Draft NFIP
comments with FEMA responses, and
notes revisions in the Final NPEIS.
The NFIP Final NPEIS is available for
viewing on the Federal eRulemaking
Portal at https://www.regulations.gov
under Docket ID FEMA–2012–0012.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.; 40 CFR
part 1500; FEMA Instruction 108–1–1.
Dated: October 20, 2017.
Brock Long,
Administrator, Federal Emergency
Management Agency.
[FR Doc. 2017–23902 Filed 11–2–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111–A6–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
The Department of Homeland Security,
Office of Cybersecurity and
Communications, US-CERT.gov
Collection
National Protection and
Programs Directorate, DHS.
ACTION: 30-Day notice and request for
comments.
AGENCY:
The Department of Homeland
Security (DHS), National Protection and
Programs Directorate (NPPD), Office of
Cybersecurity and Communications
(CS&C), National Cybersecurity and
Communications Integration Center
(NCCIC), United States Computer
Emergency Readiness Team (US–CERT)
will submit the following Information
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SUMMARY:
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Collection Request to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and clearance in accordance
with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995. DHS previously published this
information collection request (ICR) in
the Federal Register on Tuesday, July
18, 2017 at 82 FR 32858 for a 60-day
public comment period. Zero (0)
comment was received by DHS. The
purpose of this notice is to allow an
additional 30 days for public comments.
DATES: Comments are encouraged and
will be accepted until December 4,
2017. This process is conducted in
accordance with 5 CFR 1320.1.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
invited to submit written comments on
the proposed information collection to
the Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Office of Management and
Budget. Comments should be addressed
to OMB Desk Officer, Department of
Homeland Security and sent via
electronic mail to
dhsdeskofficer@omb.eop.gov. All
submissions must include the words
‘‘Department of Homeland Security’’
and the OMB Control Number 1670—
NEW (US-CERT.gov).
Comments submitted in response to
this notice may be made available to the
public through relevant Web sites. For
this reason, please do not include in
your comments information of a
confidential nature, such as sensitive
personal information or proprietary
information. If you send an email
comment, your email address will be
automatically captured and included as
part of the comment that is placed in the
public docket and made available on the
Internet. Please note that responses to
this public comment request containing
any routine notice about the
confidentiality of the communication
will be treated as public comments that
may be made available to the public
notwithstanding the inclusion of the
routine notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
specific questions related to collection
activities, please contact Bonnie Limmer
at 1–888–282–0870 or at info@uscert.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: US–CERT
is responsible for performing,
coordinating, and supporting response
to information security incidents, which
may originate outside the Federal
community and affect users within it, or
originate within the Federal community
and affect users outside of it. Often,
therefore, the effective handling of
security incidents relies on information
sharing among individual users,
industry, state and local governments,
and the Federal Government, which
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Frm 00079
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
may be facilitated by and through US–
CERT.
US–CERT fulfills the role of the
Federal information security incident
center for the United States Federal
Government as defined in the Federal
Information Security Modernization Act
of 2014. Each Federal agency is required
to notify and consult with US–CERT
regarding information security incidents
involving the information and
information systems (managed by a
Federal agency, contractor, or other
source) that support the operations and
assets of the agency. Additional entities
report incident information to US–CERT
voluntarily.
Per the Federal Information Security
Modernization Act of 2014, as codified
in subchapter II of chapter 35 of title 44
of the United States Code, US–CERT
must inform operators of agency
information systems about current and
potential information security threats
and vulnerabilities. Per the Homeland
Security Act, as amended, the NCCIC, of
which US–CERT and ICS–CERT are a
part, is required to be the Federal
civilian interface for sharing
cybersecurity risks, incidents, analysis,
and warnings for federal and nonFederal entities.
OMB is particularly interested in
comments that:
1. Evaluate whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary
for the proper performance of the
functions of the agency, including
whether the information will have
practical utility;
2. Evaluate the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information,
including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used;
3. Enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and
4. Minimize the burden of the
collection of information on those who
are to respond, including through the
use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other
technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology,
e.g., permitting electronic submissions
of responses.
Title: Clearance for the Collection of
Routine Feedback through USCERT.gov.
OMB Number: 1670—NEW.
Frequency: Ongoing.
Affected Public: Voluntary
respondents.
Number of Respondents: 126,325
respondents (estimate).
Estimated Time per Respondent: 3
minutes.
E:\FR\FM\03NON1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 212 (Friday, November 3, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51286-51288]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-23902]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Federal Emergency Management Agency
[Docket ID FEMA-2012-0012]
National Flood Insurance Program Nationwide Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS.
ACTION: Notice of availability of a final nationwide programmatic
environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announces the
availability of a final Nationwide Programmatic Environmental Impact
Statement (NPEIS) evaluating the environmental impacts of proposed
modifications to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Pursuant
to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended,
the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQs) regulations for
implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA, and FEMA's Directive
108-1 titled ``Environmental Planning and Historic Preservation
Responsibilities and Program Requirements,'' FEMA has considered
comments received on the NFIP Draft NPEIS, which was issued in April
2017, and identifies FEMA's preferred alternative in the NFIP Final
NPEIS.
DATES: FEMA will publish a Record of Decision no sooner than 30 days
after the date of publication of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's Notice of Availability in the Federal Register.
ADDRESSES: Electronic versions of the NFIP Final NPEIS are available at
the Federal eRulemaking Portal, https://www.regulations.gov by searching
for Docket ID FEMA-2012-0012.
[[Page 51287]]
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For more information on the NFIP Final
NPEIS, contact Bret Gates, FEMA, Federal Insurance and Mitigation
Administration, Floodplain Management Division, 400 C Street SW.,
Washington, DC 20472, or via email at Bret.Gates@fema.dhs.gov, or by
phone at 202-646-2780.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Flooding has been, and continues to be, a
serious risk in the United States. To address the need, in 1968,
Congress established the NFIP as a Federal program to provide access to
federally backed flood insurance protection. The NFIP is a voluntary
Federal program through which property owners in participating
communities can purchase Federal flood insurance as a protection
against flood losses. In exchange, communities must enact local
floodplain management regulations to reduce flood risk and flood-
related damages. However, the power to regulate floodplain development,
including requiring and approving permits, establishing permitting
requirements, inspecting property, and citing violations, requires land
use authority. The regulation of land use falls under the State's
police powers, which the Constitution reserves to the States, and the
States delegate this power down to their respective political
subdivisions. FEMA has no direct involvement in the administration of
local floodplain management ordinances or in the permitting process for
development in the floodplain.
In addition to providing flood insurance and reducing flood damages
through floodplain management, the NFIP identifies and maps the
nation's floodplains. Maps depicting flood hazard information are used
to promote broad-based awareness of flood hazards, provide data for
rating flood insurance policies, and determine the appropriate minimum
floodplain management criteria for flood hazard areas.
The proposed modifications to the NFIP are needed to (a) implement
the legislative requirements of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance
Reform Act of 2012 (BW-12) and the Homeowner Flood Insurance
Affordability Act of 2014 (HFIAA); and (b) to demonstrate compliance
with the Endangered Species Act (ESA). As stated in the Draft NPEIS the
need to implement the legislative requirements of BW-12 and HFIAA
arises from the recent concerns over the fiscal soundness of the NFIP.
This Final NPEIS considers four alternatives and describes the
potential environmental effects of each alternative. The four
alternatives include:
--Alternative 1 (No Action)
[cir] The No Action Alternative refers to the current
implementation of the NFIP. The No Action Alternative is prescribed by
Council on Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR 1502.14(d)) and
serves as a benchmark against which impacts of the alternatives can be
evaluated.
--Alternative 2 (Legislatively Required Changes, Floodplain Management
Criteria Guidance, and Letter of Map Change [LOMC] Clarification)
(Preferred Alternative)
[cir] Phase out of subsidies on certain pre-FIRM properties (non-
primary residences, business properties, severe repetitive loss
properties, substantially damaged or improved properties, and
properties for which the cumulative claims payments exceed the fair
market value of the property) at a rate of 25 percent premium increases
per year.
[cir] Phase out of subsidies on all other pre-FIRM properties
through annual premium rate increases of an average rate of at least 5
percent, but no more than 15 percent, per risk classification, with no
individual policy exceeding an 18 percent premium rate increase.
[cir] Implement a monthly installment plan payment option for non-
escrowed flood insurance policies.
[cir] Clarify that pursuant to 44 CFR 60.3(a)(2), a community must
obtain and maintain documentation of compliance with the appropriate
Federal or State laws, including the ESA, as a condition of issuing
floodplain development permits.
[cir] Clarify that the issuing of certain LOMC requests (i.e., map
revisions) is contingent on the community, or the project proponent on
the community's behalf, submitting documentation of compliance with the
ESA.
--Alternative 3 (Legislatively Required Changes, Proposed ESA
Regulatory Changes, and LOMC Clarification)
[cir] Phase out of subsidies on certain pre-FIRM properties (non-
primary residences, business properties, severe repetitive loss
properties, substantially damaged or improved properties, and
properties for which the cumulative claims payments exceed the fair
market value of the property) at a rate of 25 percent premium increases
per year.
[cir] Phase out of subsidies on all other pre-FIRM properties
through annual premium rate increases of an average rate of at least 5
percent, but no more than 15 percent, per risk classification, with no
individual policy exceeding an 18 percent premium rate increase.
[cir] Implement a monthly installment plan payment option for non-
escrowed flood insurance policies.
[cir] Establish a new ESA-related performance standard in the
minimum floodplain management criteria at 44 CFR 60.3 that would
require communities to obtain and maintain documentation that any
adverse impacts caused by proposed development, including fill, to ESA-
listed species and designated critical habitat will be mitigated to the
maximum extent possible.
[cir] Clarify that the exception to the no-rise performance
standard in the floodway applies only to projects that serve a public
purpose or result in the restoration of the natural and beneficial
functions of floodplains.
[cir] Increase the probation surcharge applicable to NFIP
communities placed on probation from $50 to $100.
[cir] Clarify that the issuance of certain LOMC requests (i.e., map
revisions) is contingent on the community, or the project proponent on
the community's behalf, submitting documentation of compliance with the
ESA.
--Alternative 4 (Legislatively Required Changes, ESA Guidance, and LOMC
Clarification)
[cir] Phase out of subsidies on certain pre-FIRM properties (non-
primary residences, business properties, severe repetitive loss
properties, substantially damaged or improved properties, and
properties for which the cumulative claims payments exceed the fair
market value of the property) at a rate of 25 percent premium increases
per year.
[cir] Phase out of subsidies on all other pre-FIRM properties
through annual premium rate increases of an average rate of at least 5
percent, but no more than 15 percent, per risk classification, with no
individual policy exceeding an 18 percent premium rate increase.
[cir] Implement a monthly installment plan payment option for non-
escrowed flood insurance policies.
[cir] Utilize the existing performance standard in 44 CFR
60.3(a)(2) to implement a new policy/procedure requiring communities to
ensure that, for any floodplain development for which a floodplain
development permit is sought, the impacts to ESA-listed species and
designated critical habitat are identified and assessed and, if there
are any potential adverse impacts to such species and habitat as a
result of such development, that the community obtain and maintain
documentation that the proposed floodplain development will be
undertaken in compliance with the ESA.
[cir] Clarify that the issuance of certain LOMC requests (i.e., map
revisions) is contingent on the community, or the project proponent on
the community's
[[Page 51288]]
behalf, submitting documentation of compliance with the ESA.
Environmental topics addressed in the Final NPEIS include air
quality, noise, land use and planning, geology and soils, water
resources, biological resources, cultural resources, aesthetics/visual
resources, infrastructure, socioeconomic resources, hazardous waste and
materials, and climate change. Best management practices and mitigation
measures that could alleviate environmental effects have been
considered and are included where relevant within the Final NPEIS. The
proposed alternatives do not have natural or depletable resource
requirements because they are changes in policy or regulation that do
not involve any physical activities for which resources would be
required. For these alternatives, no significant or unavoidable adverse
impacts are anticipated.
The Final NPEIS considers comments on the Draft NPEIS, including
those submitted during the public comment period that officially began
on April 7, 2017 and ended on June 6, 2017, following a 60-day comment
period. Appendix M provides the Draft NFIP comments with FEMA
responses, and notes revisions in the Final NPEIS.
The NFIP Final NPEIS is available for viewing on the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID FEMA-
2012-0012.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.; 40 CFR part 1500; FEMA
Instruction 108-1-1.
Dated: October 20, 2017.
Brock Long,
Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency.
[FR Doc. 2017-23902 Filed 11-2-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-A6-P
