[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 25 (Thursday, February 6, 1997)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 5734-5738]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-2963]



[[Page 5733]]

_______________________________________________________________________

Part VII





Federal Emergency Management Agency





_______________________________________________________________________



44 CFR Parts 65, 70, and 72



Identification and Mapping of Special Flood Hazard Areas, Procedures 
for Map Correction, and Procedures and Fees for Processing Map Changes, 
Final Rule and Fee Schedule for Processing Requests for Map Changes and 
for Flood Insurance Study Backup Data for Fiscal Year 1997, Notice

  Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 25 / Thursday, February 6, 1997 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 5734]]



FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

44 CFR Parts 65, 70, and 72

RIN 3067-AC53


Identification and Mapping of Special Flood Hazard Areas, 
Procedures for Map Correction, and Procedures and Fees for Processing 
Map Changes

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This final rule revises the National Flood Insurance Program 
(NFIP) regulations concerning the identification and mapping of Special 
Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs) and correction of NFIP maps by revising the 
fee requirements and fee schedule for processing certain changes to 
NFIP maps. Under this final rule, the fees will be adjusted 
periodically, but no more than once annually, to provide for changes in 
the prevailing private-sector labor rate on which the fees are 
predicated. Revised fees will be published as a notice in the Federal 
Register.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This rule is effective March 10, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frederick H. Sharrocks, Jr., Chief, 
Hazard Identification Branch, 500 C Street SW., Washington, DC 20472, 
(202) 646-2796.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule revises the NFIP regulations 
governing identification and mapping of SFHAs and correction of NFIP 
maps by revising the fee requirements and fee schedule for processing 
certain changes to NFIP maps. FEMA established the current fee 
requirements under a final rule published in the Federal Register, at 
57 FR 29036, on June 30, 1992.
    This action reduces expenses to the NFIP and contributes to 
maintaining the NFIP as a self-supporting program by: (1) Establishing 
flat user fees for most requests for Conditional Letters of Map 
Amendment (CLOMAs), Letters of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-Fs), 
Conditional Letters of Map Revision Based on Fill (CLOMR-Fs), Letters 
of Map Revision (LOMRs), Conditional Letters of Map Revision (CLOMRs), 
and Physical Map Revisions (PMRs); (2) reducing the number of user fee 
categories; (3) requiring full payment of user fees before FEMA begins 
work on a request; (4) changing the initial fee and hourly rate for 
LOMR, CLOMR, and PMR requests based on structural measures on alluvial 
fans; (5) limiting exemptions; and (6) replacing the mechanism for 
recovering the cartographic production costs related to incorporating 
map changes made by letter in Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and 
Flood Boundary and Floodway Maps (FBFMs).
    This final rule supersedes the fee schedules that FEMA established 
on June 30, 1992. It also expands the payment method to include credit 
card payments.
    The listing of fees that are effective as of the date of this rule 
is published as a notice elsewhere in this issue of the Federal 
Register. A primary component of the fees is the prevailing private-
sector rates charged to FEMA for labor and materials. Because these 
rates and the actual review and processing costs may vary from year to 
year, FEMA will evaluate the fees at the end of each fiscal year and 
publish revised fee schedules, when needed, as notices in the Federal 
Register.
    These revisions to the NFIP regulations are a result of the 
continuing reappraisal of the NFIP to achieve administrative and fiscal 
effectiveness and to encourage sound floodplain management so that the 
Program can realize reductions in the loss of life and property and in 
disaster-related expenditures.

Revisions to Interim Final Rule

    FEMA published an interim final rule concerning these regulation 
changes in the Federal Register, at 61 FR 46330, on August 30, 1996. In 
the interim final rule, we invited the public to comment on the 
regulation changes within 30 days. One commenter wrote:

    In view of the fact that the National Flood Insurance Program 
was promulgated by the United States Congress and assigned to the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency as a regulative measure in order 
to ensure that minimal development occurs in the floodplain areas, I 
feel that promulgation of this regulation is a mandate upon local 
government in that it closes access to appealing errors and 
omissions or changes on the National Flood Insurance Program maps * 
* *. It may well thwart applications for appropriate regulations and 
changes due to the fact that many municipalities and counties do not 
have sufficient funding to cover the costs without overburdening 
their budgets. Accordingly, I disagree with the statement on Page 
46631 concerning the Regulatory Flexibility Act, wherein the Acting 
Associate Director of the Mitigation Directorate certifies that the 
interim [final] rule does not have a significant economic impact on 
substantial number of small entities * * *.
    There are numerous small communities and rural counties that 
adjoin rivers throughout the United States and are impacted by 
flooding. They have not, in many cases, been offered the opportunity 
for protection by levees or urban flood walls and, therefore, remain 
at the mercy of the rivers upon which they were located a century or 
two ago. To now require them to pay fees to have maps revised is not 
an acceptable position.
    I feel that if the federal government wishes to continue this 
program that it should stand the costs fully for carrying out the 
administrative, mapping and implementation requirements of the 
National Flood Insurance Program.

    In response to these comments the changes published in this final 
rule do not establish completely new requirements for the payment of 
user fees. They expand an existing system established during the 1980s 
to allow the NFIP to recover costs for providing certain map products 
and services and, at the same time, to allow the NFIP to remain self-
supporting for the historic average flood loss year. The objective of 
the changes is to distribute the costs of certain products and services 
equitably between flood insurance policyholders and the users of the 
products and services, rather than to distribute these costs to the 
general taxpayer who may or may not benefit from the product or 
service. This effort is in keeping with 31 U.S.C. 9701, under which the 
U.S. Congress allows Federal agencies to charge fees for products and 
services. 31 U.S.C. 9701 provides, in part:
    ``(a) It is the sense of Congress that each service or thing of 
value provided by an agency * * * to a person * * * is to be self-
sustaining to the extent possible.
    ``(b) The head of each agency * * * may prescribe regulations 
establishing the charge for a service or thing of value provided by the 
agency. * * * Each charge shall--(1) be fair; and (2) based on: (A) The 
costs to the Government; (B) the value of the service or thing to the 
recipient; (C) public policy or interest served; and (D) other relevant 
facts.''
    This rule also does not ``close access to appealing errors and 
omissions'' on the NFIP map as suggested in the commenter's September 
27 letter. Community officials and property owners may continue to 
appeal proposed base (1-percent-annual-chance) flood elevations shown 
on NFIP maps under 44 CFR part 67 of the NFIP regulations without 
charge. In addition, map revision requests submitted under 44 CFR part 
65 of the NFIP regulations will be exempt from fees if the requests are 
made to correct mapping or study analysis errors. Furthermore, 
community officials who believe a FEMA-contracted restudy of flood 
hazards is necessary because conditions have changed since the NFIP map 
for their community was last published

[[Page 5735]]

may continue to request such restudies from FEMA. Funding for such 
restudies comes from the National Flood Insurance Fund, and FEMA bears 
the costs of revising the NFIP maps fully as a result of these 
restudies.
    FEMA is aware that flooding impacts numerous small communities and 
rural counties throughout the United States. FEMA, working in 
conjunction with many State and Federal agencies, works with these 
communities to develop an overall strategy for mitigating the damage 
caused by flooding. Numerous funding options are made available to 
communities by FEMA, other Federal agencies, and State agencies to 
ensure proper mitigation options are exercised. The regulation changes 
promulgated by this final rule will have no impact on those activities.
    As indicated in Sec. 72.4(e) of the revised regulations, the entity 
that applies to FEMA through the local community for review is 
responsible for the cost of the review. The local community incurs no 
financial obligation under the reimbursement procedures set forth in 
this part as a result of transmitting the application by another party 
to FEMA.
    Finally, since the requirements for user fees for certain types of 
map changes were established, the number of requests for CLOMAs, CLOMR-
Fs, LOMR-Fs, CLOMRs, LOMRs, and PMRs received each year has grown and 
is expected to continue to grow. Therefore, the available statistics do 
not support the contention that promulgation of these regulation 
changes will ``thwart applications for appropriate regulations and 
changes * * *'' in the future.
    As a result of internal FEMA review, we incorporated the following 
changes in this final rule:
    1. We revised Sec. 72.3(c) to include two new categories to cover 
LOMR-Fs based on as-built information for projects for which CLOMR-Fs 
were issued previously by FEMA.
    2. We revised Category 6 (now Category 7) in Sec. 72.3(c) to 
clarify that this category does not apply to requests based on as-built 
information for projects involving structural measures on alluvial 
fans. The $5,000 initial fee will be charged to all map revision 
requests involving structural measures on alluvial fans.
    3. We added Sec. 72.3(d) which reads: ``If a request involves more 
than one of the above categories, the highest applicable flat user fee 
must be submitted.''
    4. We revised Sec. 72.3(e) (now Sec. 72.3(f)) to read: ``The flat 
user fees for conditional and final map amendments and map revisions 
are based on the actual costs for reviewing and processing the 
requests. The fees for requests for LOMR-Fs, LOMRs, and PMRs also 
include a fee of $35 to cover FEMA's costs for physically revising 
affected FIRM and FBFM panels to reflect the map changes.''
    5. We deleted Sec. 72.3(e), which covered cartographic production 
fees.
    6. We added Sec. 72.5(c), which reads:

    (c) Map change requests based on the following shall be exempt 
from fees:
    (1) Federally sponsored flood-control projects where 50 percent 
or more of the project's costs are federally funded; and
    (2) Detailed hydrologic and hydraulic studies conducted by 
Federal, State, or local agencies to replace approximate studies 
conducted by FEMA and shown on the effective FIRM.

Establishment of Flat User Fees

    The existing fee collection process is complex and requires time-
intensive efforts on the part of FEMA to administer. More importantly, 
it also increases the time required to provide the requesters with the 
Letter of Map Change (LOMC) product or PMR they require. The current 
system requires requesters to submit an initial fee that is not 
intended to cover the full review and processing costs or the 
cartographic production costs. Requesters subsequently receive invoices 
for the balance. The current system is complicated further by the pre-
authorized spending limits placed on each product. When FEMA determines 
that these limits will be exceeded, we must obtain written 
authorization before proceeding with their review. We must then delay 
the request until we receive the written authorization.
    Under this final rule, FEMA charges a single flat user fee for most 
LOMC and PMR requests, thereby reducing the turnaround time for 
preparing and issuing determination letters and reducing FEMA costs of 
administering the fee-charge system. FEMA can recover more of the 
actual costs than are recovered by the current system and redistribute 
the overall cost of operations.

Requirement for Full Payment Before Work Begins

    Under this final rule, the requester must submit the full fee 
payment before FEMA begins work on most map change requests. This 
minimizes the need for followup invoicing and ensures that FEMA 
collects appropriate fees for services rendered.

Consolidation of Product Categories

    Under this final rule, we consolidate LOMC products and PMRs with 
similar review and processing requirements into the same fee category. 
As a result, we reduced the number of fee categories from 19 to 10.

Limitation of Fee Exemptions

    Under current standards, we exempt requesters from paying user fees 
when they submit requests for changes to (1) remove properties or 
structures from the SFHA shown on the FIRM that were inadvertently 
included in the SFHA because of map scale limitations, which is handled 
by the LOMA process detailed in 44 CFR part 70 of the NFIP regulations; 
(2) reflect more detailed information on flooding sources, floodways, 
or topographic data; (3) correct mapping errors or errors in the 
effective Flood Insurance Study analysis; or (4) reflect projects that 
are for public benefit and are primarily intended for flood loss 
reduction to insurable structures in identified flood hazard areas that 
were in existence prior to the commencement of the projects. Such 
exemptions preclude FEMA from recovering fees for a substantial volume 
of work.
    Under this final rule, we maintain the exemptions for: Requests for 
LOMAs; requests to correct mapping or analysis errors; map change 
requests based on federally sponsored flood-control projects where 50 
percent or more of the project's costs are federally funded; and map 
change requests based on detailed hydrologic and hydraulic studies 
conducted by Federal, State, or local agencies to replace approximate 
studies conducted by FEMA and shown on the effective FIRM.

Maintenance of Initial Fee for Requests Based on Structural Measures on 
Alluvial Fans

    Under this final rule, we maintain the initial fee for LOMC 
requests based on structural measures on alluvial fans. These requests 
are rare, the FEMA engineering review for these requests is usually 
very complex, and FEMA's costs for processing these requests can 
fluctuate significantly. Based on a review of actual processing costs 
for Fiscal Year 1995, we established $5,000 as the initial fee for such 
requests. The remaining costs are recovered before we issue the LOMC, 
consistent with current fee-reimbursement practices. Under this final 
rule, we increased to $50 the hourly rate used to calculate the total 
fees that must be reimbursed.

National Environmental Policy Act

    This final rule is categorically excluded from the requirements of 
44 CFR part 10, Environmental Consideration. No environmental impact 
assessment has been prepared.

[[Page 5736]]

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Executive Associate Director, Mitigation Directorate, certifies 
that this final rule does not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities in accordance with the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. et seq., because it is not expected (1) to 
have significant secondary or incidental effects on a substantial 
number of small entities, nor (2) to create any additional burden on 
small entities. A regulatory flexibility analysis has not been 
prepared.

Executive Order 12612, Federalism

    This final rule involves no policies that have federalism 
implications under Executive Order 12612, Federalism, dated October 26, 
1987.

Executive Order 12778, Civil Justice Reform

    This final rule meets the applicable standards of Sec. 2(b)(2) of 
Executive Order 12778, Civil Justice Reform.

Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review

    Promulgation of this final rule is required by statute, 42 U.S.C. 
4014(f), which also specifies the regulatory approach taken in the 
final rule. To the extent possible under the statutory requirements of 
42 U.S.C. 4014(f), this final rule adheres to the principles of 
regulation as set forth in Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning 
and Review.

List of Subjects in 44 CFR Parts 65, 70, and 72

    Administrative practice and procedure, Flood insurance, 
Floodplains, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Accordingly, 44 CFR Parts 65, 70, and 72 are amended as follows:

PART 65--IDENTIFICATION AND MAPPING OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREAS

    1. The authority citation for part 65 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.; Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 
1978, 43 FR 41943, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 329; E.O. 12127, 44 FR 
19367, 3 CFR, 1979 Comp., p.376.

    2. Section 65.4(c) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 65.4  Right to submit new technical data.

* * * * *
    (c) Requests for changes to effective Flood Insurance Rate Maps 
(FIRMs) and Flood Boundary and Floodway Maps (FBFMs) are subject to the 
cost recovery procedures described in 44 CFR part 72. As indicated in 
part 72, revisions requested to correct mapping errors or errors in the 
Flood Insurance Study analysis are not to be subject to the cost-
recovery procedures.
    3. In section 65.5 the heading and paragraph (d) are revised to 
read as follows:


Sec. 65.5  Revision to special flood hazard area boundaries with no 
change to base flood elevation determinations.

* * * * *
    (d) Submission procedures. All requests shall be submitted to the 
FEMA Regional Office servicing the community's geographic area or to 
the FEMA Headquarters Office in Washington, DC, and shall be 
accompanied by the appropriate payment, in accordance with 44 CFR part 
72.
    4. In section 65.6(g) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 65.6  Revision of base flood elevation determinations.

* * * * *
    (g) Submission procedures. All requests shall be submitted to the 
FEMA Regional Office servicing the community's geographic area or to 
the FEMA Headquarters Office in Washington, DC, and shall be 
accompanied by the appropriate payment, in accordance with 44 CFR part 
72.
    5. Section 65.8 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 65.8  Review of proposed projects.

    A community, or an individual through the community, may request 
FEMA's comments on whether a proposed project, if built as proposed, 
would justify a map revision. FEMA's comments will be issued in the 
form of a letter, termed a Conditional Letter of Map Revision, in 
accordance with 44 CFR part 72. The data required to support such 
requests are the same as those required for final revisions under 
Secs. 65.5, 65.6, and 65.7, except as-built certification is not 
required. All such requests shall be submitted to the FEMA Headquarters 
Office in Washington, DC, and shall be accompanied by the appropriate 
payment, in accordance with 44 CFR part 72.
    6. In section 65.9 the heading and paragraph (h) are revised to 
read as follows:


Sec. 65.9  Review and response by the Administrator.

* * * * *
    (h) The required payment has not been submitted in accordance with 
44 CFR part 72, no review will be conducted and no determination will 
be issued until payment is received.

PART 70--PROCEDURE FOR MAP CORRECTION

    7. The authority citation for part 70 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.; Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 
1978, 43 FR 41943, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 329; E.O. 12127, 44 FR 
19367, 3 CFR, 1979 Comp., p. 376.

    8. Section 70.9 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 70.9  Review of proposed projects.

    An individual who proposes to build one or more structures on a 
portion of property that may be included inadvertently in a Special 
Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) may request FEMA's comments on whether the 
proposed structure(s), if built as proposed, will be in the SFHA. 
FEMA's comments will be issued in the form of a letter, termed a 
Conditional Letter of Map Amendment. The data required to support such 
requests are the same as those required for final Letters of Map 
Amendment in accordance with Sec. 70.3, except as-built certification 
is not required and the requests shall be accompanied by the 
appropriate payment, in accordance with 44 CFR part 72. All such 
requests for CLOMAs shall be submitted to the FEMA Regional Office 
servicing the community's geographic area or to the FEMA Headquarters 
Office in Washington, DC.

PART 72--PROCEDURES AND FEES FOR PROCESSING MAP CHANGES

    9. The authority citation for part 72 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.; Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 
1978, 43 FR 41943, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 329; E.O. 12127, 44 FR 
19367, 3 CFR, 1979 Comp., p. 376.

    10. Section 72.1 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.1  Purpose of part.

    This part provides administrative and cost-recovery procedures for 
the engineering review and administrative processing associated with 
FEMA's response to requests for Conditional Letters of Map Amendment 
(CLOMAs), Conditional Letters of Map Revision (CLOMRs), Conditional 
Letters of Map Revision Based on Fill (CLOMR-Fs), Letters of Map 
Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-Fs), Letters of Map Revision (LOMRs), and 
Physical Map Revisions (PMRs). Such requests are based on proposed or 
actual manmade alterations within the floodplain, such as the

[[Page 5737]]

placement of fill; modification of a channel; construction or 
modification of a bridge, culvert, levee, or similar measure; or 
construction of single or multiple residential or commercial structures 
on single or multiple lots.
    11. Section 72.2 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.2  Definitions.

    Except as otherwise provided in this part, the definitions in 44 
CFR part 59 are applicable to this part. For the purposes of this part, 
the products are defined as follows:
    CLOMA. A CLOMA is FEMA's comment on a proposed structure or group 
of structures that would, upon construction, be located on existing 
natural ground above the base (1-percent-annual-chance) flood elevation 
on a portion of a legally defined parcel of land that is partially 
inundated by the base flood.
    CLOMR. A CLOMR is FEMA's comment on a proposed project that would, 
upon construction, affect the hydrologic or hydraulic characteristics 
of a flooding source and thus result in the modification of the 
existing regulatory floodway, the effective base flood elevations, or 
the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA).
    CLOMR-F. A CLOMR-F is FEMA's comment on a proposed project that 
would, upon construction, result in a modification of the SFHA through 
the placement of fill outside the existing regulatory floodway.
    LOMR. A LOMR is FEMA's modification to an effective Flood Insurance 
Rate Map (FIRM), or Flood Boundary and Floodway Map (FBFM), or both. 
LOMRs are generally based on the implementation of physical measures 
that affect the hydrologic or hydraulic characteristics of a flooding 
source and thus result in the modification of the existing regulatory 
floodway, the effective base flood elevations, or the SFHA. The LOMR 
officially revises the FIRM or FBFM, and sometimes the Flood Insurance 
Study (FIS) report, and, when appropriate, includes a description of 
the modifications. The LOMR is generally accompanied by an annotated 
copy of the affected portions of the FIRM, FBFM, or FIS report.
    LOMR-F. A LOMR-F is FEMA's modification of the SFHA shown on the 
FIRM based on the placement of fill outside the existing regulatory 
floodway.
    PMR. A PMR is FEMA's physical revision and republication of an 
effective FIRM, FBFM, or FIS report. PMRs are generally based on 
physical measures that affect the hydrologic or hydraulic 
characteristics of a flooding source and thus result in the 
modification of the existing regulatory floodway, the effective base 
flood elevations, or the SFHA.
    12. Section 72.3 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.3  Fee schedule.

    (a) For requests for CLOMRs, LOMRs, and PMRs based on structural 
measures on alluvial fans, an initial fee of $5,000, subject to the 
provisions of Sec. 72.4, shall be paid to FEMA before FEMA begins its 
review of the request. The initial fee represents the minimum cost for 
reviewing these requests and is based on the prevailing private-sector 
labor rate. A revision to this initial fee, if necessary, will be 
published as a notice in the Federal Register.
    (b) For requests for CLOMRs, LOMRs, and PMRs based on structural 
measures on alluvial fans, the total fee will be calculated based on 
the total hours by FEMA to review and process the request multiplied by 
an hourly rate based on the prevailing private-sector labor rate. The 
hourly rate is published as a notice in the Federal Register. A 
revision to the hourly rate, if necessary, shall be published as a 
notice in the Federal Register.
    (c) For conditional and final map revision requests for the 
following categories, flat user fees, subject to the provisions of 
Sec. 72.4, shall be paid to FEMA before FEMA begins its review of the 
request:
    (1) Requests for CLOMAs, CLOMR-Fs, and LOMR-Fs for single 
structures or single lots;
    (2) Requests for CLOMAs for multiple structures or multiple lots;
    (3) Requests for CLOMR-Fs and LOMR-Fs for multiple structures or 
multiple lots;
    (4) Requests LOMR-Fs for single structures or single lots based on 
as-built information for projects for which FEMA issued CLOMR-Fs 
previously;
    (5) Requests for LOMR-Fs for multiple structures or multiple lots 
based on as-built information for projects for which FEMA issued CLOMR-
Fs previously;
    (6) Requests for LOMRs and PMRs based on projects involving 
bridges, culverts, or channels, or combinations thereof;
    (7) Requests for LOMRs and PMRs based on projects involving levees, 
berms, or other structural measures;
    (8) Requests for LOMRs and PMRs based on as-built information for 
projects for which FEMA issued CLOMRs previously, except those based on 
structural measures on alluvial fans;
    (9) Requests for LOMRs and PMRs based solely on more detailed data;
    (10) Requests for CLOMRs based on projects involving new hydrologic 
information, bridges, culverts, or channels, or combinations thereof; 
and
    (11) Requests for CLOMRs based on projects involving levees, berms, 
or other structural measures.
    (d) If a request involves more than one of the categories listed 
above, the highest applicable flat user fee must be submitted.
    (e) The flat user fees for conditional and final map amendments and 
map revisions are based on the actual costs for reviewing and 
processing the requests. The fees for requests for LOMR-Fs, LOMRs, and 
PMRs also include a fee of $35 to cover FEMA's costs for physically 
revising affected FIRM and FBFM panels to reflect the map changes.
    (f) Revisions to the fees, if necessary, shall be published as a 
notice in the Federal Register.
    13. Section 72.4 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.4  Submittal/payment procedures and FEMA response.

    (a) The initial fee shall be submitted with a request for FEMA 
review and processing of CLOMRs, LOMRs, and PMRs based on structural 
measures on alluvial fans; the appropriate flat user fee shall be 
submitted with all other requests for FEMA review and processing.
    (b) FEMA must receive initial or flat user fees before it will 
begin any review. The fee is non-refundable once FEMA begins its 
review.
    (c) Following completion of FEMA's review for any CLOMR, LOMR, or 
PMR based on structural measures on alluvial fans, FEMA shall invoice 
the requester at the established hourly rate for any actual costs 
exceeding the initial fee incurred for review and processing. FEMA 
shall not issue a determination letter or revised map panel(s) until it 
receives the invoiced amount.
    (d) For all map revision requests, FEMA shall bear the cost of 
reprinting and distributing the revised FIRM panel(s), FBFM panel(s), 
or combination.
    (e) The entity that applies to FEMA through the local community for 
review is responsible for the cost of the review. The local community 
incurs no financial obligation under the reimbursement procedures of 
this part when another party sends the application to FEMA.
    (f) Requesters shall submit payments by check or money order or by 
credit card. Checks or money orders, in U.S. funds, shall be made 
payable to the National Flood Insurance Program.

[[Page 5738]]

    (g) For CLOMA, CLOMR-F, LOMA, and LOMR-F requests, FEMA shall:
    (1) Notify the requester and community within 30 days as to the 
adequacy of the submittal, and
    (2) Provide to the requester and the community, within 60 days of 
receipt of adequate information and fee, a determination letter or 
other written comment in response to the request.
    (h) For CLOMR, LOMR, and PMR requests, FEMA shall:
    (1) Notify the requester and community within 60 days as to the 
adequacy of the submittal; and
    (2) Provide to the requester and the community, within 90 days of 
receipt of adequate information and fee, a CLOMR, a LOMR, other written 
comment in response to the request, or preliminary copies of the 
revised FIRM panels, FBFM panels, and/or affected portions of the FIS 
report for review and comment.
    14. Section 72.5 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.5  Exemptions.

    (a) Requests for map changes based on mapping or study analysis 
errors or the effects of natural changes within SFHAs shall be exempt 
from fees.
    (b) Requests for LOMAs shall be exempt from fees.
    (c) Map change requests based on the following shall be exempt from 
fees:
    (1) Federally sponsored flood-control projects where 50 percent or 
more of the project's costs are federally funded; and
    (2) Detailed hydrologic and hydraulic studies conducted by Federal, 
State, or local agencies to replace approximate studies conducted by 
FEMA and shown on the effective FIRM.
    15. Section 72.6 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.6  Unfavorable response.

    (a) Requests for CLOMAs, CLOMRs, or CLOMR-Fs may be denied or the 
determinations may contain specific comments, concerns, or conditions 
regarding proposed projects or designs and their impacts on flood 
hazards in a community. Requesters are not entitled to any refund of 
fees paid if the determinations contain such comments, concerns, or 
conditions, or if the requests are denied. Requesters are not entitled 
to any refund of fees paid if the requesters are unable to provide the 
appropriate scientific or technical documentation or to obtain required 
authorizations, permits, financing, etc., for which requesters seek the 
CLOMAs, CLOMRs, or CLOMR-Fs.
    (b) Requests for LOMRs, LOMR-Fs, or PMRs may be denied or the 
revisions to the FIRM, FBFM, or both, may not be in the manner or to 
the extent desired by the requesters. Requesters are not entitled to 
any refund of fees paid if the revision requests are denied or if the 
LOMRs, LOMR-Fs, or PMRs do not revise the map specifically as 
requested.
    16. Section 72.7 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 72.7  Resubmittals.

    (a) Resubmittals of CLOMA, CLOMR, CLOMR-F, LOMR, LOMR-F, or PMR 
requests more than 90 days after FEMA notification that the requests 
were denied or after FEMA ended its review because the requester 
provided insufficient information will be treated as original 
submissions and subject to all submittal/payment procedures described 
in Sec. 72.4. The procedure in Sec. 72.4 also applies to a resubmitted 
request (regardless of when submitted) if the project on which the 
request is based has been altered significantly in design or scope 
other than as necessary to respond to comments, concerns, or other 
findings made by FEMA regarding the original submission.
    (b) When LOMR, LOMR-F, or PMR requests are made after FEMA issues 
CLOMRs or CLOMR-Fs, the procedures in Sec. 72.4 and the appropriate fee 
apply, as referenced in Sec. 72.3(c). When the as-built conditions 
differ from the proposed conditions on which FEMA issued the CLOMRs or 
CLOMR-Fs, the reduced fee for as-built requests will not apply.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No. 83-100, Flood Insurance)

    Dated: January 28, 1997.
Richard W. Krimm,
Executive Associate Director, Mitigation Directorate.
[FR Doc. 97-2963 Filed 2-5-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6718-04-P