[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 141 (Wednesday, July 23, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43538-43540]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-18652]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency


New Products and Updated Fee Schedule for National Flood 
Insurance Program Map and Insurance Products

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Emergency 
Preparedness and Response Directorate, Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This Notice contains several new products and the updated fee 
schedule for processing requests for the National Flood Insurance 
Program (NFIP) map and insurance products available through the FEMA 
Map Service Center (MSC). The changes in the fee schedule include two 
new products and will allow FEMA to reduce further the expenses to the 
NFIP by recovering more fully the costs associated with producing, 
retrieving, and distributing particular NFIP map and insurance 
products.

DATES: The updated fee schedule is effective for all requests dated, 
August 1, 2003, or later.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kathy L. Miller, Acting Chief, 
Information Exchange and Program Evaluation Branch, Mitigation 
Division, 500 C Street, SW., Washington, DC 20472; by telephone at 
(202) 646-3316 or by facsimile at (202) 646-4596 (not toll-free calls), 
by e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this Notice, we use ``we,'' 
``our,'' and ``us'' to refer to FEMA.
    This Notice contains an updated fee schedule to include two new 
products available through the MSC.
    Effective Date. The updated fee schedule is effective for all 
written requests, on-line internet requests made through the FEMA Flood 
Map Store, and all telephone requests received on or after August 1, 
2003.
    Evaluations Performed. To develop the revised fee schedule for the 
new products, we first evaluated the actual costs incurred at the MSC 
for producing, retrieving, and distributing these products. We then 
analyzed historical sales, cost data, and product unit costs for 
unusual trends or anomalies; analyzed the effect of program changes, 
new products, technology investments, and other factors on future sales 
and product costs. The products covered by this Notice are discussed 
below.
    Periodic Evaluation of Fees. As indicated in the Notice, published 
at 67 FR 13764, March 26, 2002, 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 production, retrieval, 
and distribution costs may vary from year to year, we will evaluate the 
fees periodically and publish a revised fee schedule, when appropriate, 
as a notice in the Federal Register.

Fee Schedule for Requests for Map and Insurance Products

    The MSC distributes a variety of NFIP map and insurance products to 
a broad range of our customers, including Federal, State, and local 
government officials; real estate professionals; insurance providers; 
appraisers; builders; land developers; design engineers; surveyors; 
lenders; homeowners; and other private citizens. Specifically, the MSC 
distributes the following products:
    [sbull] Paper (printed) copies of Flood Hazard Boundary Maps 
(FHBMs);
    [sbull] Paper (printed) copies of Flood Insurance Rate Maps 
(FIRMs);
    [sbull] Paper (printed) copies of Digital Flood Insurance Rate Maps 
(DFIRMs);
    [sbull] Paper (printed) copies of Flood Insurance Study (FIS) 
reports, including the narrative, tables, Flood Profiles, photographs, 
and other graphics;
    [sbull] Paper (printed) copies of Flood Boundary and Floodway Maps 
(FBFMs), when they are included as an exhibit in the FIS;

[[Page 43539]]

    [sbull] Digital Q3 Flood Data files, which FEMA developed by 
scanning the published FIRM and vectorizing a thematic overlay of flood 
risks;
    [sbull] Digital Q3 Flood Data files for Coastal Barrier Resource 
Areas (CBRA Q3 Flood Data files);
    [sbull] Community Status Book, which is a report generated by 
FEMA's Community Information System database that provides pertinent 
map status information for all identified communities;
    [sbull] Flood Map Status Information Service (FMSIS), through which 
FEMA provides status information for effective NFIP maps;
    [sbull] Letter of Map Change (LOMC) Subscription Service, through 
which FEMA makes certain types of LOMCs available biweekly on CD-ROM;
    [sbull] NFIP Insurance Manual (Full Manual), which provides vital 
NFIP information for insurance agents nationwide;
    [sbull] NFIP Insurance Manual (Producer's Edition), which is used 
for reference and training purposes;
    [sbull] Community Map Action List (CMAL), which is a bimonthly list 
of communities and their NFIP status codes;
    [sbull] Maps on the Web--raster images of the FIRMs and Floodways 
in TIFF format;
    [sbull] FIS on the Web--raster images of FIS in PDF format;
    [sbull] Maps on CDs--includes only the raster images of the maps 
and can be purchased by panel or in community, county, or State kits;
    [sbull] F-MIT Light on the Web--a free downloadable flood map image 
view tool, to be used in conjunction with viewing TIFF images, that 
supports panning, zooming, and creating a ``firmette''. A firmette is a 
user-defined ``cut-out'' section of the map at 100% map scale designed 
for printing on a standard office printer;
    [sbull] F-MIT Light on CD--same as F-MIT Light on the Web, designed 
for use with the Flood Map CD without a Database; and
    [sbull] FEMA's Guidelines and Specifications for Flood Hazard 
Mapping Partners on CD: This document combines previous FEMA 
publications, guidance documents, and memorandums regarding Flood 
Hazard Mapping. The Guidelines reflect recent changes to processes and 
products associated with the implementation of the Map Modernization 
Program, including the Cooperating Technical Partners initiative, new 
Project Scoping procedures, and DFIRM specifications.
    The MSC is now adding two new products, which are denoted by an 
asterisk in the table. The following is a description of the MSC's new 
products:
    [sbull] Community or County Databases--a digital version of the 
maps that is designated for use with Geographic Information Systems 
(GIS) software to allow users to access, view, and analyze mapping 
information using specialized data; and
    [sbull] FMIT Pro on CD--a view and address look up tool designed 
for use with the community or county databases.
    For more information on the map and insurance products available 
from the MSC, we invite interested parties to visit our MSC Web site at 
http://www.msc.fema.gov/.
    There are no changes in the processing fees or shipping costs for 
any of the other products that the MSC distributes. Federal, State, and 
local governments continue to be exempt from paying fees for the map 
products. The fee schedules for the current and new products are shown 
in the table below.

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    Description of product of
             service                      Fee           Shipping charge
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Paper Products:
    FHBM, FIRM, DFIRM, or FBFM    $2.00 per map       $0.37 per panel
     (floodway) panels.            panel.              for the first 10
                                                       panels plus $0.03
                                                       for each
                                                       additional panel.
    FIS (not including FBFM       $5.00 per FIS       $4.00 for the
     panels that are included as   volume plus $2.00   first study
     exhibit).                     per floodway map.   volume plus $0.40
                                                       for each
                                                       additional study.
    Hurry Charge-Added to         $33.00............  N/A.
     regular charge.
Internet Products (products
 downloadable from the web):
    FHBM, FIRM, DFIRM, or FBFM    $1.50 per map       None.
     (floodway) panels.            panel.
    FIS.........................  $4.00 per study     None.
                                   plus $1.50 per
                                   floodway map.
    F-MIT Light (view tool for    Free..............  Not Applicable.
     map images) on the web.
    * F-Mit Pro (Viewtool &       $30.00............  Not Applicable.
     address look-up).
    FIRMette (A user defined      Free Viewing and    Not Applicable.
     portion of the FIRM           downloading.
     printable on a desktop
     printer).
CD Products:
    FHBM, FIRM, DFIRM, or FBFM    $1.50 per map       $3.65 for the
     (floodway) panels.            panel.              first 4 CD-ROMs
                                                       plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM.
    * Community or County         $10.00 per          $3.65 for the
     Database.                     database.           first 4 CD-ROMs
                                                       plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM.
    FIS.........................  $4.00 per FIS       $3.65 for the
                                   volume plus $1.50   first 4 CD-ROMs
                                   per floodway map.   plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM.
    * F-MIT Light (view tool for  Free..............  $3.65.
     map images).
    * F-MIT Pro (view tool &      $30.00............  $3.65.
     address look- up).
Other Products:
    Q3 Flood Data Files.........  $50.00 per CD-ROM.  $3.65 for the
                                                       first 4 CD-ROMs,
                                                       plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM in the
                                                       same order.
    CBRA Q3 Flood Data Files....  $50.00 per CD-ROM   $3.65 for the
                                   or $200.00 for      first 4 CD-ROMs,
                                   all 5 Q3 CDs.       plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM in the
                                                       same order.
    Community Status Book         $2.50 per State     $1.00 per State
     (Individual Orders).          $20.50 for entire   $4.26 for entire
                                   U.S.                U.S.
    Community Status Book         $50.00 per State    Not applicable.
     (Annual Subscription).        $250.00 for
                                   entire U.S.

[[Page 43540]]

 
    FMSIS (Individual Orders)...  $13.00 per State     3.65 for the
                                   $38.00 for entire   first 4 CD-ROMs,
                                   U.S.                plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM in the
                                                       same order.
    FMSIS (Annual Subscription).  $148.00 per State   Not applicable.
                                   $419.00 for
                                   entire U.S.
    LOMC Subscription Service     $85.00 per issue..  $3.65 for the
     (Individual Orders).                              first 4 CD-ROMs,
                                                       plus $0.10 for
                                                       each additional
                                                       CD-ROM in the
                                                       same order.
    LOMC Subscription Service     $2,000.00.........  Not applicable.
     (Annual Subscription).
    NFIP Insurance Manual (Full   $25.00 per          Not applicable.
     Manual).                      subscription for
                                   complete manual.
    NFIP Insurance Manual         $15.00 per          Not applicable.
     (Producer's Edition).         subscription.
    FEMA's Guidelines and         $2.60.............  $3.65.
     Specifications for Flood
     Hazard Mapping Partners on
     CD-ROM.
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Payment Submission Requirements

    Fee payments for non-exempt requests must be made to us in advance 
of services being rendered. These payments shall be made in the form of 
a check, a money order, or by a credit card payment. Checks and money 
orders must be made payable, in U.S. funds, to the National Flood 
Insurance Program.
    We will deposit all fees collected to the National Flood Insurance 
Fund, which is the source of funding for providing these services.

Anthony S. Lowe,
Mitigation Division Director, Emergency Preparedness and Response 
Directorate.
[FR Doc. 03-18652 Filed 7-22-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6718-04-P