[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 16, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57921-57923]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-15592]


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

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency

[Docket ID: FEMA-2024-0008; OMB No. 1660-0023]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB 
Review, Comment Request; Community Assistance Contact (CAC) Reports, 
Community Assistance Visit (CAV) Reports, and National Flood Insurance 
Program (NFIP) Compliance Audit Reports

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland 
Security.

ACTION: 30-Day notice of revision and request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (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. FEMA invites the general public to 
take this opportunity to comment on a revision of a currently approved 
information collection. In accordance with the requirements of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice seeks comments concerning 
the effectiveness of a community's implementation of the National Flood 
Insurance Program's (NFIP's) Community Assistance Contact (CAC) and 
Community Assistance Visits (CAV) Reports. FEMA is moving away from CAV 
and CAC reports to the newly designed process of NFIP Compliance Audits 
in response to a report issued on May 5, 2020, by the Government 
Accounting Office (GAO) entitled ``National Flood Insurance Program: 
FEMA Can Improve Community Oversight and Data Sharing.'' This report 
gave several recommendations including the following: assess different 
approaches for ensuring compliance with NFIP requirements and ensure 
data on community visits are up-to-date and complete. While the new 
NFIP Compliance Audit process aligns with the old CAV and CAC 
processes, it is more organized, more consistent, more transparent, 
allows for better

[[Page 57922]]

documentation, and more efficiently focuses resources to where they are 
needed most.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 15, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection should be made to Director, 
Information Management Division, 500 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20472, 
email address [email protected] or 
Sarah Owen, Program Specialist, Floodplain Management Division, 
Mitigation Directorate, Federal Insurance and Mitigation 
Administration, FEMA at [email protected] or (510) 409-4818.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) 
codified at 42 U.S.C. 4001, et seq. is authorized by Public Law 90-448 
(1968) and expanded by Public Law 93-234 (1973). The Department of 
Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 
administers the NFIP. The NFIP's major objective is to assure that 
participating communities are achieving the flood loss reduction 
objectives through adoption and enforcement of adequate land use and 
control measures. Sections 1315 and 1361 provide the basis for FEMA's 
process to evaluate how well communities are implementing their 
floodplain management programs. Title 44 CFR 59.22 directs the 
respondent to submit evidence of the corrective and preventive measures 
taken to meet the flood loss reduction objectives.
    The two key methods FEMA uses in determining community assistance 
needs are through the Community Assistance Contact (CAC) and Community 
Assistance Visit (CAV), which serve to provide a systematic means of 
monitoring community NFIP compliance. Through the CAC and CAV, FEMA can 
also determine to what extent communities are achieving the flood loss 
reduction objectives of the NFIP. By providing assistance to 
communities, the CAC and CAV also serve to enhance FEMA's goals of 
reducing future flood losses, thereby achieving the NFIP's cost-
containment objective. The burden hours and costs associated with this 
collection were re-evaluated which led to the main revision in this 
extension request.
    FEMA is moving away from CAV and CAC reports to the newly designed 
process of NFIP Compliance Audits in response to a report issued on May 
5, 2020, by the Government Accounting Office (GAO) entitled ``National 
Flood Insurance Program: FEMA Can Improve Community Oversight and Data 
Sharing.'' This report gave several recommendations including the 
following: assess different approaches for ensuring compliance with 
NFIP requirements and ensure data on community visits are up-to-date 
and complete. While the new NFIP Compliance Audit process aligns with 
the old CAV and CAC processes, it is more organized, more consistent, 
more transparent, and allows for better documentation. The main 
efficiency gained in the new process is that it is a progressive audit 
which allows for varying depths of investigation based on the 
community's needs. Another efficiency is a compliance score. These two 
improvements will allow FEMA to better utilize limited resources to 
increase community compliance.
    FEMA is also adding the collection of information from NFIP-
participating communities in order to comply with the Endangered 
Species Act. The information may include the impact of the proposed 
development on the natural floodplain functions, the amount of fill, 
compensatory storage information, the amount of impervious surface, the 
area in which clearing/grading may occur, the number of trees removed, 
and other information related to hydraulic connections.
    This proposed information collection previously published in the 
Federal Register on March 28, 2024, at 89 FR 21534 with a 60-day public 
comment period. FEMA received no public comments. 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: Community Assistance Contact (CAC) Reports, Community 
Assistance Visit (CAV) Reports, and National Flood Insurance Program 
(NFIP) Compliance Audit Reports.
    Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently approved 
information collection.
    OMB Number: 1660-0023.
    FEMA Forms: FEMA Form FF-206-FY-21-141 (formerly 086-0-28(E)), 
Community Assistance Visit (CAV) Report; FEMA Form FF-206-FY-21-142 
(formerly 086-0-29(E)), Community Assistance Contact (CAC) Report; and 
FEMA Form FF-206-FY-24-100, NFIP Compliance Audit Report.
    Abstract: FEMA previously used the Community Assistance Contact 
(CAC) and the Community Assistance Visit (CAV) to make a comprehensive 
assessment of a community's floodplain management program. Through this 
assessment, FEMA assisted the community to understand the NFIP's 
requirements and implement effective flood loss reductions measures. 
Communities can achieve cost savings through flood mitigation actions 
by way of insurance premium discounts and reduced property damage. The 
CAV and CAC processes have been updated recently to the NFIP Compliance 
Audit process which aims to do a more efficient, consistent and 
transparent job of assessing the community's floodplain management 
program, providing them with the needed technical assistance to improve 
it, and documenting the results for data analysis.
    Affected Public: State, Local or Tribal Governments.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 102.
    Estimated Number of Responses: 4,002.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 48,002.
    Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost: $2,361,698.
    Estimated Respondents' Operation and Maintenance Costs: $0.
    Estimated Respondents' Capital and Start-Up Costs: $0.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to the Federal Government: $2,216,556.

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 the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology,

[[Page 57923]]

e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Millicent Brown Wilson,
Records Management Branch Chief, Office of the Chief Administrative 
Officer, Mission Support, Federal Emergency Management Agency, 
Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. 2024-15592 Filed 7-15-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-47-P