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OEQAI�'r\F <br /> Federal Emergency Management Agency <br /> °SF tet` Washington, D.C. 20472 <br /> {AND SEC. <br /> ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING <br /> LETTERS OF MAP AMENDMENT <br /> When making determinations on requests for Letters of Map Amendment (LOMAs), the Department of <br /> Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) bases its determination on the <br /> flood hazard information available at the time of the determination. Requesters should be aware that <br /> flood conditions may change or new information may be generated that would supersede FEMA's <br /> determination. In such cases, the community will be informed by letter. <br /> Requesters also should be aware that removal of a property (parcel of land or structure) from the Special <br /> Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) means FEMA has determined the property is not subject to inundation by the <br /> flood having a I-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (base flood). This does <br /> not mean the property is not subject to other flood hazards. The property could be inundated by a flood <br /> with a magnitude greater than the base flood or by localized flooding not shown on the effective National <br /> Flood Insurance Program(NFIP)map. <br /> The effect of a LOMA is it removes the Federal requirement for the lender to require flood insurance <br /> coverage for the property described. The LOMA is not a waiver of the condition that the property owner <br /> maintain flood insurance coverage for the property. Only the lender can waive the flood insurance <br /> purchase requirement because the lender imposed the requirement. The property owner must request and <br /> receive a written waiver from the lender before canceling the policy. The lender may determine, on its own <br /> as a business decision, that it wishes to continue the flood insurance requirement to protect its financial <br /> risk on the loan. <br /> The LOMA provides FEMA's comment on the mandatory flood insurance requirements of the NFIP as <br /> they apply to a particular property. A LOMA is not a building permit, nor should it be construed as such. <br /> Any development, new construction, or substantial improvement of a property impacted by a LOMA must <br /> comply with all applicable State and local criteria and other Federal criteria. <br /> If a lender releases a property owner from the flood insurance requirement, and the property owner decides <br /> to cancel the policy and seek a refund, the NFIP will refund the premium paid for the current policy year, <br /> provided that no claim is pending or has been paid on the policy during the current policy year. The <br /> property owner must provide a written waiver of the insurance requirement from the lender to the property <br /> insurance agent or company servicing his or her policy. The agent or company will then process the <br /> refund request. <br /> Even though structures are not located in an SFHA, as mentioned above, they could be flooded by a <br /> flooding event with a greater magnitude than the base flood. In fact, more than 25 percent of all claims <br /> paid by the NFIP are for policies for structures located outside the SFHA in Zones B, C, X (shaded), or X <br /> (unshaded). More than one-fourth of all policies purchased under the NFIP protect structures located in <br /> these zones. The risk to structures located outside SFHAs is just not as great as the risk to structures <br /> located in SFHAs. Finally, approximately 90 percent of all federally declared disasters are caused by <br /> flooding, and homeowners insurance does not provide financial protection from this flooding. Therefore, <br /> FEMA encourages the widest possible coverage under the NFIP. <br /> LOMAENC-1 <br />