FEMA Responsibilities and Flood Zones

The Federal Emergency Management Agency works with the National Flood Insurance Program and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to manage the federal flood insurance program. FEMA serves as the lead federal agency in relation to flood mitigation, including assessing and analyzing flood risk, creating flood zone maps and coordinating with other agencies.

Flood Risk Assessment

• FEMA conducts flood risk assessments as the initial step in the mitigation process. These assessments include hazard identification, profiling hazard events, inventorying assets and estimating potential losses with respect to mortality, morbidity, property and the economy. The agency uses the collected data in its flood risk analysis.

Flood Risk Analysis

• FEMA's flood risk analysis of a community determines within which flood zone properties lie. By analyzing the assessment data, the agency assigns properties to one of four flood zones: coastal high-, high-, moderate to low-, or undetermined-risk and calculates the base flood elevation of an area.

Flood Risk Mapping

• FEMA maps the results of the flood risk analysis on flood insurance rate maps, also called FIRMs. The National Flood Insurance Program uses these maps to determine the flood zone in which a property resides. A property's flood zone determines whether flood insurance is mandatory and is a major determining factor in flood insurance premiums.

Interagency Coordination

• FEMA works with the National Flood Insurance Program and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to administer the federal government's flood insurance program. While NFIP provides the insurance coverage and processes claims, the FDIC enforces its purchase by those in areas requiring coverage via mortgage lenders.