Development of the National Levee Safety Program, 24601-24602 [2023-08397]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
• Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 77 (Friday, April 21, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24601-24602]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-08397]



[[Page 24601]]

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers

[COE-2021-0007]


Development of the National Levee Safety Program

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) launched the new National Levee 
Safety Program, authorized by the National Levee Safety Act of 2007, in 
the fall of 2021. This program is different from the USACE Levee Safety 
Program. The purpose of the National Levee Safety Program is to improve 
the way levees are managed throughout the United States and its 
territories to reduce the impact of flooding and improve the resilience 
of communities behind levees. There are four major components that are 
intended to work together to accomplish the goals of the program: 
National Levee Safety Guidelines; Integrated Levee Management; National 
Levee Database and Data Collection; and Implementation Support. This 
notice announces the start of Phase 2 which is the solicitation of 
input on draft products and resources developed based on input received 
during Phase 1 stakeholder engagement activities.

DATES: Comments related to Phase 2 of the National Levee Safety Program 
must be submitted on or before June 30, 2023.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number COE-
2021-0007 by any of the following methods:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: Visit www.regulations.gov and follow 
the instructions for submitting comments.
    Email: Send an email to [email protected] and include 
the docket number, COE-2021-0007, in the subject line of the message.
    Mail: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Vicksburg District, ATTN: Levee 
Safety Center--Rm. 221, 4155 East Clay Street, Vicksburg, MS 39183.
    Hand Delivery/Courier: Due to security requirements, we cannot 
receive comments by hand delivery or courier.
    Instructions: If submitting comments through the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal, direct your comments to docket number COE-2021-
0007. All comments received will be included in the public docket 
without change and may be made available on-line at 
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, 
unless the commenter indicates that the comment includes information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit 
information that you consider to be CBI, or otherwise protected, 
through regulations.gov or email. The regulations.gov website is an 
anonymous access system, which means we will not know your identity or 
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. 
If you send an email directly to USACE without going through 
regulations.gov, 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. If you submit an electronic comment, we 
recommend that you include your name and other contact information in 
the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If we 
cannot read your comment because of technical difficulties and cannot 
contact you for clarification, we may not be able to consider your 
comment. Electronic comments should avoid the use of any special 
characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or 
viruses.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to www.regulations.gov. All documents in the 
docket are listed. Although listed in the index, some information is 
not publicly available, such as CBI or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as 
copyrighted material, is not placed on the internet and will be 
publicly available only in hard copy form.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Tammy Conforti at 202-365-6586, 
email [email protected] or visit www.leveesafety.org.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: One of the foundations of the National Levee 
Safety Program is stakeholder engagement with those who are responsible 
for, are impacted by, or have interest in levees and related policies 
including federal/Tribal Nations/state/local governments, levee owners/
operators, businesses, floodplain managers and residents. The goals for 
the stakeholder engagement process are to:
    1. Understand the needs of the stakeholders this program is 
intended to support;
    2. Provide opportunities for meaningful input to shape decisions 
and outcomes on program design, components, and products; and,
    3. Ensure that the unique challenges related to levees faced by 
Tribal Nations and underserved communities are well understood and 
incorporated into solutions.
    The purpose of the National Levee Safety Program is to improve the 
way levees are managed throughout the United States and its territories 
to reduce the impacts of flooding and improve the resilience of 
communities behind levees. Managing flood risk is a shared 
responsibility between federal, Tribal Nations, state, and local 
entities. USACE and FEMA are interested in the views of the public 
regarding how the National Levee Safety Program and each of its 
components can be implemented to best serve those responsible for and 
impacted by flood risk management efforts. The four major components of 
the National Levee Safety Program are intended to work together to 
accomplish the goals of the program: National Levee Safety Guidelines; 
Integrated Levee Management; National Levee Database and Data 
Collection; and Implementation Support. There are fact sheets and 
additional information related to each of these components at 
www.leveesafety.org.
    USACE and FEMA continue their commitment to seek feedback from 
stakeholders at various phases of the program's development. Phase 1 
completed in the Spring of 2022, was focused on gathering initial input 
on the purpose and scope of each of the components of the National 
Levee Safety Program to better understand the needs and priorities of 
the public. Phase 2 focuses on soliciting feedback on draft products 
and options identified during Phase 1 (scoping). Phase 3 is anticipated 
to occur during the Fall of 2023 with a focus on soliciting feedback on 
draft program implementation products. During each phase, stakeholders 
can submit comments through a variety of methods. Each phase will have 
an open comment period under docket number COE-2021-0007.
    For Phase 2, comments are being sought on the progress of the 
program, content for the National Levee Safety Guidelines, an outline 
for a new Levee Management Guide for levee owners/operators, a new 
levee cost brochure, and updates to the National Levee Database. 
Questions and supplementary information to assist in providing feedback 
can be found at www.leveesafety.org. In addition to the webinars and 
in-person meetings listed below, a separate set of coordination

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activities with national and regional Tribal organizations and Tribal 
Nations are being planned.
    Topic-Specific Webinars: USACE will offer a series of topic-
specific webinars that will provide background and supplementary 
information on the draft products being presented for stakeholder 
feedback during Phase 2. Webinars are open to anyone, and participants 
must register by visiting www.leveesafety.org. Webinar dates and topics 
include:

April 11 and May 9, 2023--National Levee Safety Guidelines (1-2:30 p.m. 
ET)
April 13 and May 11, 2023--Levee Management Resources (1-2:30 p.m. ET)
April 18 and May 31, 2023--State Levee Activities (1-2 p.m. ET)
April 20 and June 6, 2023--National Levee Database (1-2 p.m. ET)

    In-person Meetings (National Levee Safety Guidelines): In addition 
to the webinar series, USACE will host four in-person meetings focused 
specifically on seeking feedback on sample content from the National 
Levee Safety Guidelines. Meetings are open to anyone, and participants 
must register by visiting www.leveesafety.org. Each meeting will be 
limited to 100 people. Dates and locations include:

April 25, 2023--The Westin St. Louis, 811 Spruce Street, St. Louis, MO 
(12-5 p.m. CT)
May 3, 2023--Houston Marriott South, 9100 Gulf Freeway, Houston, TX 
(12-5 p.m. CT)
May 17, 2023--Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown Arena, 300 J Street, 
Sacramento, CA (12-5 p.m. PT)
May 23, 2023--Embassy Suites by Hilton, 9000 Bartram Avenue, 
Philadelphia, PA (12-5 p.m. ET)

    In-person Meetings (Levee Management Resources): USACE will also 
host four in-person meetings focused specifically on seeking feedback 
on draft levee management resources including an outline for a new 
Levee Management Guide for levee owners/operators, a new levee cost 
brochure, excerpts from operations and maintenance manual and emergency 
action plan templates, and updates to the National Levee Database. 
These meetings are geared towards those with levee responsibilities 
including Tribal Nations, states, levee owner/operators, local 
officials, and emergency managers. Participants must register by 
visiting www.leveesafety.org, and each meeting will be limited to 25 
people. Dates and locations include:

April 26, 2023--The Westin St. Louis, 811 Spruce Street, St. Louis, MO 
(12-5 p.m. CT)
May 4, 2023--Houston Marriott South, 9100 Gulf Freeway, Houston, TX 
(12-5 p.m. CT)
May 18, 2023--Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown Arena, 300 J Street, 
Sacramento, CA (12-5 p.m. PT)
May 24, 2023--Embassy Suites by Hilton, 9000 Bartram Avenue, 
Philadelphia, PA (12-5 p.m. ET)

Michael L. Connor,
Assistant Secretary of the Army, (Civil Works).
[FR Doc. 2023-08397 Filed 4-20-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P