Staff Training- Floodplains

Steuben County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). As a participating community, residents located in floodplains are eligible for flood insurance through the NFIP, which is necessary for any properties with a federally-backed mortgage. It also makes the County eligible for federal grants and loans in case of a flood disaster.

In order to be a participating community, the County must adopt and enforce the minimum floodplain management standards required by FEMA and the State of Indiana.

The Steuben County Plan Commission has several FEMA publications in the office available for review at any time by members of the public. Many publications are available digitally or by order from the FEMA NFIP website.

Two members of the Steuben County Plan Commission Staff, Plan Director Michels and Code Enforcement Technician Essenberg, attended a floodplain management course from August 10-13 in Indianapolis. The course was limited to 30 state, county, and city officials across Indiana.

The course, L-273, was taught by officials from FEMA Region V. Below is a description of the training course.

This is the field deployed version of the EMI E273 course. This course is designed to provide an organized training opportunity for local officials responsible for administering their local floodplain management ordinance. The course will focus on the NFIP and concepts of floodplain management, maps and studies, ordinance administration, and the relationship between floodplain management and flood insurance.

Last year was such a success that FEMA has again agreed to state-deploy the “E273—Managing Floodplain Development through the National Flood Insurance Program” in Indiana. The course is typically offered only a few times each year at FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, MD. FEMA Region V (Chicago) staff will be conducting the in-depth training course.\

This course is designed to provide an organized training opportunity for local officials responsible for administering their local floodplain management ordinance. The course will focus on the NFIP and concepts of floodplain management, maps and studies, ordinance administration, and the relationship between floodplain management and flood insurance. Hands-on exercises are included to allow
participants to better apply the information in their communities.

Local officials responsible for administering local floodplain management ordinances, including but not limited to floodplain management administrators, building inspectors, code enforcement/zoning officers, planners, city/county managers, attorneys, engineers, and public works officials. Federal/state/regional floodplain managers also are encouraged to attend.