[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 31, Number 10 (Monday, March 13, 1995)]
[Page 372]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Message to the Congress Transmitting the Report on Floodplain Management

March 6, 1995

To the Congress of the United States:

    It is with great pleasure that I transmit A Unified National Program 
for Floodplain Management to the Congress. The Unified National Program 
responds to section 1302(c) of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 
(Public Law 90-448), which calls upon the President to report to the 
Congress on a Unified National Program. The report sets forth a 
conceptual framework for managing the Nation's floodplains to achieve 
the dual goals of reducing the loss of life and property caused by 
floods and protecting and restoring the natural resources of 
floodplains. This document was prepared by the Federal Interagency 
Floodplain Management Task Force, which is chaired by FEMA.
    This report differs from the 1986 and 1979 versions in that it 
recommends four national goals with supporting objectives for improving 
the implementation of floodplain management at all levels of government. 
It also urges the formulation of a more comprehensive, coordinated 
approach to protecting and managing human and natural systems to ensure 
sustainable development relative to long-term economic and ecological 
health. This report was prepared independent of Sharing the Challenge: 
Floodplain Management Into the 21st Century developed by the Floodplain 
Management Review Committee, which was established following the Great 
Midwest Flood of 1993. However, these two reports complement and 
reinforce each other by the commonality of their findings and 
recommendations. For example, both reports recognize the importance of 
continuing to improve our efforts to reduce the loss of life and 
property caused by floods and to preserve and restore the natural 
resources and functions of floodplains in an economically and 
environmentally sound manner. This is significant in that the natural 
resources and functions of our riverine and coastal floodplains help to 
maintain the viability of natural systems and provide multiple benefits 
for people.
    Effective implementation of the Unified National Program for 
Floodplain Management will mitigate the tragic loss of life and 
property, and disruption of families and communities, that are caused by 
floods every year in the United States. It will also mitigate the 
unacceptable losses of natural resources and result in a reduction in 
the financial burdens placed upon governments to compensate for flood 
damages caused by unwise land use decisions made by individuals, as well 
as governments.
                                            William J. Clinton
The White House,
March 6, 1995.