The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is a Federal program that allows property owners in partcipating communities to purchase insurance protection against losses due to flooding. The justification for this program is the escalating costs of repairing damage through disaster assistance after flooding occurs.
The National Flood Insurance Program is managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and consists of three components:
1) Flood Insurance - NFIP flood insurance is sold through private insurance companies and agents, and is
backed by the federal government. Landowners in Pennsylvania have purchased over 68,000 flood insurance policies.2) Floodplain Management - Floodplain management is the operation of a community program of corrective and preventative measures for reducing flood damage. These measures take a variety of forms and generally include requirements for zoning, subdivision or building, and special-purpose floodplain ordinances.
A community's agreement to adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinances, particularly with respect to new construction, is an important element in making flood insurance available to home and business owners. Currently over 20,100 communities nationwide, almost 2,400 in PA, voluntarily adopt and enforce local floodplain management ordinances that provide flood loss reduction building standards for new and existing development.
The Governor's Center for Local Government is the State Coordinating Agency for the NFIP in PA , providing technical assistance to PA municipalities enrolled in the program. County Conservation Districts may also assist the Center in providing assistance to municipalities.
3) Flood Hazard Mapping - Maintaining and updating NFIP maps is the responsibility of FEMA's Mitigation Directorate. Currently, flood maps are being modernized in a transition from paper to digital maps.
Floodplain Program Information for Municipalities - CLICK HERE
New digital maps for Bedford County are available at the municipal offices and at the offices of both the Bedford County Planning Commission and the Bedford County Conservation District. A link to the index map at the FEMA website is available below. Individual map panels are available as links on the index map and will open in an Adobe Acrobat window. Within Adobe Acrobat, the maps can be enlarged and printed as "Current View" for easier intrepretation of flood zones and properties.
Map Index of Preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) for Bedford County