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Federal Interagency Floodplain Management Task Force

The Federal Interagency Floodplain Management (FIFM) Task Force was authorized and established by Congress in 1975. The purpose of the Task Force is to carry out the responsibility of the President to prepare for the Congress proposals necessary for a Unified National Program for Floodplain Management.

For more than 40 years, some form of an interagency group has worked to better understand the interactions between human actions and natural systems in the floodplain environment and to make recommendations to reduce the loss of life and property caused by floods. In 1994, the Task Force submitted to the President A Unified National Program for Floodplain Management, which called for the formulation of a more “comprehensive, coordinated approach to protecting and managing human and natural systems” in a sustainable development context. Before being reconvened in 2009, the Task Force last met in 1997 after publishing the document Protecting Floodplain Resources: A Guidebook for Communities.

Purpose of the Work Plan

This Work Plan seeks to identify and develop opportunities for the federal government to be more effective in promoting and encouraging floodplain management decisions that will 1) reduce the loss of life and property caused by floods, and 2) protect and restore natural resources and functions of floodplains.

This Work Plan is a living document that reflects the evolution of knowledge about effective floodplain management and a variety of stakeholder perspectives and input. Through this Work Plan, the Task Force will provide federal leadership by supporting and promoting effective floodplain management, but with care not to preempt or direct local decion-making. The Task Force will identify ways to improve interagency coordination, disseminate critical information, and formulate effective policies and guidance to help achieve the goals of floodplain management. The Task Force will also actively seek stakeholder involvement and collaboration with public and private interests to reduce flood losses and the environmental degradation of floodplains for current and future generations.

Task Force Members

Federal Interagency Floodplain Management (FIFM) Task Force Member Agencies

  • Department of the Army (Corps of Engineers)
  • Department of Homeland Security - Federal Emergency Management Agency
  • Department of Agriculture
  • Department of Commerce
  • Department of Defense
  • Department of Energy
  • Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • Department of the Interior
  • Department of Transportation
  • Environmental Protection Agency
  • General Services Administration
  • Tennessee Valley Authority
  • Council on Environmental Quality (Advisor)
  • Office of Management and Budget (Advisor)