County residents still eligible for 25% discount on federal flood insurance policies as result of county program

Commissioner Smith encourages colleagues to review county flood map provided in related staff report

This October 2024 photo shows flooding in Gulf Gate, east of U.S. 41 and Siesta Key, as a result of Hurricane Milton’s strike on the county. The photo was shown on the Gulf Gate Community Association’s website.

Although the Sarasota County commissioners on Jan. 15 unanimously approved two items related to flooding on their Consent Agenda of regular business matters, Commissioner Mark Smith took the opportunity to encourage his colleagues to read the associated reports, noting their importance for constituents.

The focus of Smith’s Jan. 15 remarks were county efforts to reduce the expense of flood insurance and to ensure that property owners have “clear, coordinated messages delivered cost-effectively and consistently,” so they are aware of flood hazards and motivated to reduce the risk of flood damage, as noted in the relevant staff memos.

(Generally, the board members approve their Consent Agendas without comments or discussion, unless one of them has a specific concern about one or more of the items.)

The first item that Smith referenced regarded board approval of the 2024 Community Rating System (CRS) Annual Report. The staff memo included in the packet for that item explained, “This annual report aims to update the community and elected officials on the progress and activities pertaining to the goals and objectives of the voluntary Community Rating System (CRS) Program, which is part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). This successful program has helped to mitigate flood losses and educate elected officials, who have taken great pride in the collective efforts supported throughout Sarasota County.”

The memo further noted that more than 1,500 communities “participate in the CRS program nationwide,” and few of them have a class designation higher than Sarasota County’s. “Twenty-seven communities are Class 4 or better, 23 are Class 3 or better, 11 are Class 2 or better, and only two are Class 1,” the memo pointed out.

“On July 30, 1971,” the memo continued, “Sarasota County voluntarily joined the NFIP …” Since then, it added, the county has maintained compliance with the necessary federal regulations.

In 1992, the memo said, the county was accepted as a CRS program participant.

“On May 1, 2007,” the memo noted, “Sarasota County was awarded a CRS Class Rating of 5. The county CRS program was re-certified on June 20, 2023, and it retains its CRS Class Rating 5,” the memo said. That “translates to a 25% reduction in flood insurance premiums for property owners with NFIP flood insurance policies,” the memo pointed out. “The County is scheduled for a three-year cycle Verification visit in February 2025, with the results of the visit anticipated in late 2025,” the memo added.

Smith told his colleagues that he would like for the County Commission to “figure out how we can bring our [CRS rating] down,” which would increase the discount that property owners receive on their NFIP policies.

The Sarasota News Leader noted late last year what the 2024 annual CRS report points out: “In 2022, the latest [CRS] Program Audit revealed that the County achieved 4,112 points, which is enough to warrant a Class 2 designation, but the County lacks the pre-requisites to obtain a Class 4 or better designation.” However, the report adds, county staff “is working on obtaining the necessary pre-requisites to achieve the Class 4 designation, which would allow the County to achieve a Class 2 rating after the 2026 CRS Program Audit.”

This chart in the county’s 2024 CRS report shows the credit points needed per CRS class. Image courtesy Sarasota County

The report notes that the county “was accepted into the CRS Program in 1992 as a Repetitive Loss Category ‘C’ Community. A Category C Community is defined as having 50 or more Repetitive Loss Properties. [A] CRS Category C Community must perform a Repetitive Loss Area Analysis Plan updated every five years. Each year, a review of the Repetitive Loss Properties and [a] report [are] required.”

The report explains, “A Repetitive Loss Property is defined as any insurable building for which the NFIP paid two or more claims of more than $1,000 within any rolling 10-year period since 1978. Two of the claims paid must be more than 10 days apart but within 10 years of each other.”

The county “has 12 defined areas with a history of flood losses, which exceeds a total of 50 properties,” the report adds. In those areas, it says, “240 Repetitive Loss Properties and 48 Severe Loss Properties” have been identified. Further, 4,405 “flood insurance claims have been paid in the amount of $65,033,413 to date.”

The memo also explains, “A Severe Repetitive Loss Property (SRL) is defined by the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2004. SRLs are … residences with four or more claims of more than $5,000 or at least two claims [that] cumulatively exceed the property’s value. The Act creates new funding mechanisms to help mitigate flood damage for these properties.”

The report does acknowledge that the County Commission “has indicated to staff a desire to improve the County’s CRS Classification, which would increase discounts to Community Flood Insurance Policyholder premiums.”

This is a chart in the 2024 CRS report. Image courtesy Sarasota County

The report lists the following “individual activities that can be used to obtain those additional points”:

Image courtesy Sarasota County

Potential flooding sites

The second Consent Agenda item that Commissioner Smith referenced during the Jan. 15 meeting was the formal approval of what is called the Unified Program for Public Information (PPI) 2024 Annual Evaluation Report.

This is the cover of the Unified Program for Public Information report for 2024. Image courtesy Sarasota County

The related county staff memo explained, “The Unified PPI coordinates community messaging to improve resource efficiency and message recognition, with goals of increasing flood hazard awareness, motivating actions by residents to reduce the risk of flood damage, encouraging flood insurance coverage, and protecting the natural functions of floodplains. The result is a well-informed public, a safer living environment, and lower costs associated with flood loss. Flood-prone property owners with better access to flood information, such as their vulnerability to flood risk and impacts, have a higher likelihood of taking action to reduce their risk,” the memo added.

“The Unified PPI Committee was formed to ensure coordination of local municipalities within Sarasota County with an ongoing public information effort to design and transmit the messages that the

communities determine are most important to flood safety and protection of floodplain natural functions,” the memo also pointed out.

“The committee is made up of members from the participating municipalities within Sarasota County, staff from various County departments, and additional stakeholders representing Sarasota Bay Estuary Program, Mote Marine, and insurance and realty businesses. This committee meets on a quarterly basis.”

Moreover, the memo noted, “Participating in a PPI and conducting annual PPI evaluations enables the county to achieve and maintain additional [Community Rating System] activity points.”

Smith also referred to County Commission discussions about the voluntary raising of homes to prevent future flood damage, as part of the board’s 2025 Strategic Plan. He alluded to the fact that more discussion on that topic is expected later this year.

In regard to those planned discussions, he said, “I was struck by [a] graphic” in the 2024 Unified PPI Evaluation Report. He encouraged his colleagues to take a look at that graphic, which shows the number of sites in the county where flooding could occur, “not just on the coast, but everywhere,” he pointed out.

This is the graphic that Commissioner Smith urged his colleagues to review, plus the narrative provided under the graphic in the report. Image courtesy Sarasota County

Leave a Comment