Fort Lauderdale targets 25% flood-insurance discount in FEMA CRS push

Fort Lauderdale targets 25% flood-insurance discount in FEMA CRS pushFort Lauderdale has prepared floodplain-management plans intended to improve its Community Rating System score ahead of a scheduled FEMA visit on October 8. The city is currently a Class 7 CRS community, providing policyholders with a 15% flood-insurance discount.

FEMA is scheduled to inspect Fort Lauderdale's CRS programme on October 8; staff said the plans would be submitted for review if adopted.

The city is seeking to raise its flood-insurance discount to 25% from 15%, which is currently available to all residents with flood policies.

Fort Lauderdale reported 23,579 flood-insurance policies and $6.28 billion of coverage as of May; since 1978, more than 5,000 claims totalling over $172 million have been paid.

A FEMA-required review found 416 repetitive-loss properties, while 3,798 structures were inspected as part of post-April 2023 flood reporting.

The city has integrated the Forerunner floodplain-management platform with its Accela permitting system and expects further integrations with Fix-It FTL and Survey123 by the end of December.

Fort Lauderdale is aiming to lift the flood-insurance discount available to policyholders from 15% to 25% through a set of floodplain-management plans scheduled for FEMA review following an October 8 inspection. The city is currently rated Class 7 under FEMA's Community Rating System (CRS), entitling residents with flood policies to a 15% discount. Mark Haggerty, the city's floodplain manager, told the Commission that a higher CRS score is being pursued through plans designed both to mitigate flooding and maximise CRS credit. The package includes a programme for public information, a substantial-damage management plan, a floodplain species assessment and a repetitive-loss area analysis. The public-information programme was developed by an ad hoc group including representatives of the insurance, banking and development sectors, alongside city departments. Staff said outreach materials are being finalised for public distribution if the plans are adopted. The substantial-damage plan is intended to set out the steps required for reporting after future flood events, in accordance with FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program, the Florida Department of Emergency Management and local ordinance. Haggerty said the process is intended to prevent reporting delays regardless of changes in personnel. The repetitive-loss analysis is required because Fort Lauderdale has 50 or more unmitigated repetitive-loss properties. FEMA data cited by staff identified 416 such properties in the city. The analysis will be updated annually and returned to the Commission if there are changes. The CRS effort follows a lengthy compliance process after the April 12, 2023 flooding. The city filed its initial damage report with FEMA that month, but follow-up reporting was delayed. FEMA also revised compliance documentation requirements in August 2023 and issued new flood maps in January 2024. Fort Lauderdale ultimately inspected 3,798 structures and submitted reports to FEMA on December 23, 2024. FEMA recertified the city for its Class 7 status and 15% discount on May 19, confirming the city had closed the compliance file. The city also reported 23,579 flood-insurance policies carrying $6.28 billion in coverage as of May. Since 1978, more than 5,000 claims valued at over $172 million have been paid. To strengthen administration of the floodplain programme, Fort Lauderdale approved the Forerunner integrated floodplain-management platform in February 2025. Its Accela permitting-system integration was completed in April, while integrations with the Fix-It FTL reporting system and Survey123 damage-assessment software are projected for completion by the end of December.