FEMA'S Flood Map Service Center Goes Online 

Processing Time For Flood Map Orders Cut From Days To Minutes

Release Date: February 12, 2001
Release Number: HQ-01-006

Washington, DC -- Mortgage lenders, realtors, settlement companies and other business users of Flood Insurance Rate Maps can now order maps online through the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) new, electronic Map Service Center, according to agency officials. The new Web site, which can be found at http://msc.fema.gov/MSC/, was unveiled today.

"FEMA's new online Map Service Center makes it easy for customers to identify and place orders immediately for the flood map panels they want, a process used to take days," said Margaret Lawless, acting executive director for mitigation. Business customers also will be able to go online to check the status of their flood map orders, Lawless added. The service soon will be available for other groups of flood map users, including individual homeowners and government agencies.

Flood maps are used every time a home is sold to determine whether or not the structure is in an area at high risk of flooding and if flood insurance is going to be required by the mortgage lender. Flood map panels cost a little over a dollar each, plus shipping.

The site's security architecture is based on best practices in the industry, uses the latest available technologies, techniques and processes and was approved by FEMA's Information Technology division.

The new electronic Map Service Center is part of FEMA's map modernization effort, an important component of the agency's overall effort to build a state-of-the-art digital distribution center for flood maps and related products, said Lawless. The next step is to scan and digitize the maps so customers can see them and download directly from the Internet, or order them on CD. Lawless said this should be completed by this time next year. The map modernization process is taking longer than anticipated because of funding issues.

In the more than 19,000 communities nationwide that participate in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), local officials use the maps to regulate new construction in special flood hazard areas. Flood insurance premiums charged to policyholders vary according to where the property is located on a Flood Insurance Rate Map. Currently, there are more than 4.2 million NFIP policies in force nationwide, representing $550 billion worth of coverage. The NFIP is operated by FEMA.

Last Modified: Friday, 17-Oct-2003 10:33:04