Evers signs executive order to support retaining state eligibility under the National Flood Insurance Program

Gov. Tony Evers on Jan. 3 signed Executive Order No. 250, in coordination with the Wisconsin Departments of Natural Resources, Administration, and Transportation, to comply with National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) guidelines for floodplain management regulations on state-owned properties.

As no state statute, administrative code, or prior executive order explicitly refers to minimum NFIP requirements for state projects, Executive Order No. 250 aims to incorporate NFIP requirements, ensuring that Wisconsin maintains its status as a community under the NFIP and remains eligible for direct or indirect federal funding in the form of grants, loans, or loan guarantees and incentive funding for other state projects.

All 50 states have been or are currently going through a federal state assessment process with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for how states conduct floodplain management programs for all state-owned properties and state development projects that are in Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA) to determine compliance with the minimum requirements of the NFIP.

Executive Order No. 250 provides clear land use authority requiring state projects to meet all requirements of the NFIP and NR 116, whichever is most restrictive. The Order articulates that the state is self-regulating and conducts floodplain management on all state-owned properties and for all state development projects that are in SFHAs.

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