Author Description

Flood Insurance Rate Maps are FEMA's most widely distributed flood hazard identification product. Flood hazard data presented on FIRMs are based on historic, meteorological, hydrologic, and hydraulic data, as well as open-space and land cover conditions, flood control works, and development. Due to the changing nature of the landscape from the influences of physical, engineering, and climatological processes, timely updates to Special Flood Hazard Area information on FIRMs become necessary to maintain accuracy and relevance. For successful maintenance of flood hazard information across the Nation, one must effectively identify and manage flood hazard mapping requirements expressed by individuals at the local, state, regional, and national levels. FEMA's Coordinated Needs Management Strategy is a collection of procedures for the identification and management of flood hazard mapping requirements utilizing a standard database model. In addition to recording and validating studies, CNMS defines an approach for the identification and management of flood hazard mapping needs and requirements that will provide support to data-driven planning and the flood hazard information production planning process. By utilizing and maintaining Geographic Information System and relational database technologies, CNMS has been designed to track the study attributes of the current state of FEMA's study inventory and the lifecycle of studies from origination of a CNMS Study Record as an identified need or a CNMS Request Record to its resolution as a new, valid, or updated study. As such, CNMS allows tracking and management of existing, ongoing, and planned studies. GIS technology adds the capability of spatial analysis allowing communities and FEMA an effective means to visualize, enter, review, and update its study attributes and to visualize how studies relate spatially to other features. The terms and use of CNMS as it relates to other FEMA initiatives will be dictated and directed by FE