Enter your address on this website to check your FEMA flood zone: https://msc.fema.gov/portal/home

You can correct a FEMA map by filing a LOMA, which stands for Letter of Map Amendment. FEMA reviews and issues LOMAs to correct flood hazard area maps when supported with evidence. 

FEMA uses a CLOMR (Conditional Letter of Map Revision) to assess whether a proposed project meets the minimum NFIP standards. CLOMRs focus on differences between pre-project conditions and proposed (post-project) conditions, helping to ensure that potential flood level changes due to a project are adequately discussed. CLOMRs are conditional determinations, meaning the flood map is not revised until FEMA issues a LOMR (Letter of Map Revision). All CLOMRs require a LOMR once a CLOMR has been approved.

A LOMR officially revises a flood map and reflects changes to flood-related aspects, such as floodplains, regulatory floodways, or flood elevations. Communities or individuals can request a LOMR to update the following:

• Flood hazard boundary map
• Flood insurance rate map
• Flood boundary and floodway map
• Flood insurance study report 

We may have copies of such backups. Please contact the Stormwater Department. You can also email ewilliams@sandiego.gov for more information.

Due to a lawsuit from multiple counties within Southern California, FEMA suspended Letters of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-Fs) and Conditional Letters of Map Revision Based on Fill (CLOMR-Fs). Find more information here: FEMA Suspends the Initiation of LOMR-F/ CLOMR-F Cases in Six Southern California Counties | FEMA.gov

Visit the Development Services Department to purchase a copy at a nominal cost, or contact FEMA's Map Assistance Center at 1.877.FEMA MAP (1.877.336.2627). You may also get a small size copy of the map from FEMA's website at https://msc.fema.gov/portal by entering your address in the search box. To request a copy of the map from FEMA, by phone or from their website, you must know the community-panel number and suffix of the map.

The City maintains a library of hydraulic and hydrologic information. Visit the Development Services Department to request help or email ewilliams@sandiego.gov for more information.

Visit the Development Services Department to purchase a copy at a nominal cost, or download it online. Visit https://msc.fema.gov/portal/advanceSearch, enter the Community under Jurisdiction, then select FIS Reports from Effective Products.

Contact your insurance company. Visit floodsmart.gov for more information.

Yes. Talk to your insurance provider for more information and visit FEMA’s website: | 5 Things Preferred Risk Policy (PRP) Customers Should Know About Their Policy Under Risk Rating 2.0: Equity in Action. Even if you are not in a floodplain, you are still eligible for a discount on your flood insurance premium because the City participates in the CRS.

Flood insurance is mandatory (1) if you own a property, (2) the property is in a FEMA-mapped floodplain, and (3) your property is financed with a federally backed loan. Note that flood insurance covers only the structure(s) and the contents thereof. You should check what flood zone your property is in because it will determine the cost of flood insurance.

Assuming you are indeed in a mapped floodplain, the simple answer is by having your property qualify for removal from the floodplain. FEMA is the only agency that has authority to remove a property from a 100-year flood zone designation. Before you invest time and money on this quest, contact the Development Services Department to see if there is a LOMR for your property; if not, ask what is involved in getting a property out of a 100-year flood zone designation. The basic rule is, if you are certain your property is on high ground by means of fill or the natural lay of the land, and if you can prove it to FEMA, you may have a chance of getting the flood designation removed. Please contact ewilliams@sandiego.gov for more information on the matter. 

If you plan to build a structure within a FEMA-mapped floodplain or covered by SDMC 143.0146, it must be protected against a 100-year flood. Additionally, the construction should ensure that stormwater flows freely without obstruction, diversion, or concentration.

Please refer to the Standard Operating Procedures here.

Yes, you need to prepare and submit your plans with a permit application to the Development Services Department. Before doing so, it’s a good idea to refer to the Standard Operating Procedures for more information here.

The Floodplain Management team endeavors to have plans reviewed within 20 business days. 

An Elevation Certificate shows if a building meets the elevation and floodproofing requirements. As a CRS community, the City must require these records be completed and accurate. Elevation Certificates are kept by the City to prove compliance with the CRS program and to be available for future property owners.

Yes, plans submitted for Floodplain Management Review must be prepared and certified by a civil engineer registered in the State of California.