Establishing a Federal Flood Risk Management Standard and a Process for Further Soliciting and Considering Stakeholder Input

Executive Order 13690 of January 30, 2015

Establishing a Federal Flood Risk Management
Standard and a Process for Further Soliciting and
Considering Stakeholder Input

By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, and in order to improve the Nation's
resilience to current and future flood risk, I hereby
direct the following:

Section 1. Policy. It is the policy of the United
States to improve the resilience of communities and
Federal assets against the impacts of flooding. These
impacts are anticipated to increase over time due to
the effects of climate change and other threats. Losses
caused by flooding affect the environment, our economic
prosperity, and public health and safety, each of which
affects our national security.

The Federal Government must take action, informed by
the best-available and actionable science, to improve
the Nation's preparedness and resilience against
flooding. Executive Order 11988 of May 24, 1977
(Floodplain Management), requires executive departments
and agencies (agencies) to avoid, to the extent
possible, the long- and short-term adverse impacts
associated with the occupancy and modification of
floodplains and to avoid direct or indirect support of
floodplain development wherever there is a practicable
alternative. The Federal Government has developed
processes for evaluating the impacts of Federal actions
in or affecting floodplains to implement Executive
Order 11988.

As part of a national policy on resilience and risk
reduction consistent with my Climate Action Plan, the
National Security Council staff coordinated an
interagency effort to create a new flood risk reduction
standard for federally funded projects. The views of
Governors, mayors, and other stakeholders were
solicited and considered as efforts were made to
establish a new flood risk reduction standard for
federally funded projects. The result of these efforts
is the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard
(Standard), a flexible framework to increase resilience
against flooding and help preserve the natural values
of floodplains. Incorporating this Standard will ensure
that agencies expand management from the current base
flood level to a higher vertical elevation and
corresponding horizontal floodplain to address current
and future flood risk and ensure that projects funded
with taxpayer dollars last as long as intended.

This order establishes the Standard and sets forth a
process for further solicitation and consideration of
public input, including from Governors, mayors, and
other stakeholders, prior to implementation of the
Standard.

Sec. 2. Amendments to Executive Order 11988. Executive
Order 11988 is amended as follows:

    (a) Section 2 is amended by inserting “, to the
extent permitted by law” after “as follows”.
    (b) Section 2(a)(1) is amended by striking “This
Determination shall be made according to a Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) floodplain map
or a more detailed map of an area, if available. If
such maps are not available, the agency shall make a
determination of the location of the floodplain based
on the best-available information. The Water Resources
Council shall issue guidance on this information not
later than October 1, 1977” and inserting in lieu
thereof “To determine whether the

action is located in a floodplain, the agency shall use
one of the approaches in Section 6(c) of this Order
based on the best-available information and the Federal
Emergency Management Agency's effective Flood Insurance
Rate Map”.
    (c) Section 2(a)(2) is amended by inserting the
following sentence after the first sentence:
    “Where possible, an agency shall use natural
systems, ecosystem processes, and nature-based
approaches when developing alternatives for
consideration.”.
    (d) Section 2(d) is amended by striking
“Director” and inserting “Administrator” in lieu
thereof.
    (e) Section 3(a) is amended by inserting the
following sentence after the first sentence:
    “The regulations and procedures must also be
consistent with the Federal Flood Risk Management
Standard (FFRMS).”.
    (f) Section 3(a) is further amended by inserting
“and FFRMS” after “Flood Insurance Program”.
    (g) Section 3(b) is amended by striking “base
flood level” and inserting “elevation of the
floodplain as defined in Section 6(c) of this Order”
in lieu thereof.
    (h) Section 4 is revised to read as follows:
    “In addition to any responsibilities under this
Order and Sections 102, 202, and 205 of the Flood
Disaster Protection Act of 1973, as amended (42 U.S.C.
4012a, 4106, and 4128), agencies which guarantee,
approve, regulate, or insure any financial transaction
which is related to an area located in an area subject
to the base flood shall, prior to completing action on
such transaction, inform any private parties
participating in the transaction of the hazards of
locating structures in the area subject to the base
flood.”.

(i) Section 6(c) is amended by striking “, including at a minimum, that
area subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given
year” and inserting in lieu thereof:

    “. The floodplain shall be established using one
of the following approaches:
    “(1) Unless an exception is made under paragraph
(2), the floodplain shall be:

“(i) the elevation and flood hazard area that result from using a climate-
informed science approach that uses the best-available, actionable
hydrologic and hydraulic data and methods that integrate current and future
changes in flooding based on climate science. This approach will also
include an emphasis on whether the action is a critical action as one of
the factors to be considered when conducting the analysis;

“(ii) the elevation and flood hazard area that result from using the
freeboard value, reached by adding an additional 2 feet to the base flood
elevation for non-critical actions and by adding an additional 3 feet to
the base flood elevation for critical actions;

“(iii) the area subject to flooding by the 0.2 percent annual chance
flood; or

“(iv) the elevation and flood hazard area that result from using any other
method identified in an update to the FFRMS.

    “(2) The head of an agency may except an agency
action from paragraph (1) where it is in the interest
of national security, where the agency action is an
emergency action, where application to a Federal
facility or structure is demonstrably inappropriate, or
where the agency action is a mission-critical
requirement related to a national security interest or
an emergency action. When an agency action is excepted
from paragraph (1) because it is in the interest of
national security, it is an emergency action, or

it is a mission-critical requirement related to a
national security interest or an emergency action, the
agency head shall rely on the area of land subject to
the base flood”.
    (j) Section 6 is further amended by adding the
following new subsection (d) at the end:
    “(d) The term 'critical action' shall mean any
activity for which even a slight chance of flooding
would be too great.”.
    (k) Section 8 is revised to read as follows:
    “Nothing in this Order shall apply to assistance
provided for emergency work essential to save lives and
protect property and public health and safety,
performed pursuant to Sections 403 and 502 of the
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 5170b and 5192).”.

Sec. 3. Agency Action. (a) Prior to any action to
implement the Standard, additional input from
stakeholders shall be solicited and considered. To
carry out this process:

(i) the Federal Emergency Management Agency, on behalf of the Mitigation
Framework Leadership Group, shall publish for public comment draft amended
Floodplain Management Guidelines for Implementing Executive Order 11988
(Guidelines) to provide guidance to agencies on the implementation of
Executive Order 11988, as amended, consistent with the Standard;

(ii) during the comment period, the Mitigation Framework Leadership Group
shall host public meetings with stakeholders to solicit input; and

(iii) after the comment period closes, and based on the comments received
on the draft Guidelines during the comment period, in accordance with
subsections (a)(i) and (ii) of this section, the Mitigation Framework
Leadership Group shall provide recommendations to the Water Resources
Council.

    (b) After additional input from stakeholders has
been solicited and considered as set forth in
subsections (a)(i) and (ii) of this section and after
consideration of the recommendations made by the
Mitigation Framework Leadership Group pursuant to
subsection (a)(iii) of this section, the Water
Resources Council shall issue amended Guidelines to
provide guidance to agencies on the implementation of
Executive Order 11988, as amended, consistent with the
Standard.
    (c) To the extent permitted by law, each agency
shall, in consultation with the Water Resources
Council, Federal Interagency Floodplain Management Task
Force, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Council
on Environmental Quality, issue or amend existing
regulations and procedures to comply with this order,
and update those regulations and procedures as
warranted. Within 30 days of the closing of the public
comment period for the draft amendments to the
Guidelines as described in subsection (a) of this
section, each agency shall submit an implementation
plan to the National Security Council staff that
contains milestones and a timeline for implementation
of this order and the Standard, by the agency as it
applies to the agency's processes and mission. Agencies
shall not issue or amend existing regulations and
procedures pursuant to this subsection until after the
Water Resources Council has issued amended Guidelines
pursuant to subsection (b) of this order.

Sec. 4. Reassessment. (a) The Water Resources Council
shall issue any further amendments to the Guidelines as
warranted.

    (b) The Mitigation Framework Leadership Group in
consultation with the Federal Interagency Floodplain
Management Task Force shall reassess the Standard
annually, after seeking stakeholder input, and provide
recommendations to the Water Resources Council to
update the Standard if warranted based on accurate and
actionable science that takes into account changes to
climate and other changes in flood risk. The Water
Resources Council shall issue an update to the Standard
at least every 5 years.

Sec. 5. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or the
head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

    (b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.
    (c) This order is not intended to, and does not,
create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
the United States, its departments, agencies, or
entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
other person.
    (d) The Water Resources Council shall carry out its
responsibilities under this order in consultation with
the Mitigation Framework Leadership Group.

    (Presidential Sig.)

THE WHITE HOUSE,

    January 30, 2015.