Levee Decertification

After last year's disastrous hurricanes, Congress asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and FEMA to compile a national levee inventory. They provided $30 million, and the two agencies began a cooperative effort to construct a modern electronic database. FEMA is making every effort to coordinate this with its ongoing Map Modernization Program. This program is updating existing floodplain maps and putting that information into an electronic format that is compatible with the existing geographic information systems used by Federal, State and local governments for decision making on land use.

In order to provide information as quickly as possible, the first priority has been given to levee systems with Federal involvement. The reason is straightforward - the data is available right now. These systems include all Federally constructed levees, whether they are Federally or locally owned, and those levee systems which have been locally constructed, but accepted into the Corps' Rehabilitation and Inspection Program. Once this first round of information gathering has been completed, the Corps will begin to act on the data. Owners of many levee systems will receive letters informing them that their levee systems are inadequate, and the NFIP will follow up with letters imposing a requirement for flood insurance. Over 600 miles of levees may be decertified. The consequences for many communities will be wrenching. As map modernization proceeds, additional non-Federal levee systems will be required to provide certification by outside professional engineers, or face the same prospect. Thousands of miles of existing levees may not pass such an engineering review. Communities may be unable to afford the detailed investigations that will be required.

Dawson & Associates is well placed to assist state and local governments, and private sector clients, with managing the disruption these Federal actions will cause. Our Senior Advisors have extensive experience working not only with, but also for, both these agencies. These individuals have experience in Washington, and across the country, and are familiar with regional land use issues. Our Hill experience includes much successful work with the various authorization and appropriations committees. We can swing into action with former members and staff who previously occupied leadership positions in Congress.

Finally, potential clients should be aware of our reputation as stalwart proponents of the highest ethical standards for advocacy. We will not look for shortcuts that leave homeowners, businesses and developers in perilous situations, but will work to achieve safe, cost effective solutions that represent sound public policy and good engineering practice. Members of our team are proud of the work they accomplished while employed by the Federal Government, and are willing to build on those accomplishments, in their quest to meet a client's needs.