Spring CFM Exam scheduled for 4/23 in Montpelier

We wanted to announce that a spring Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM) exam has been scheduled and confirmed for Wednesday, April 23rd from 9am-12pm located in Montpelier.    

What is the CFM program all about you may ask?  Here is a small excerpt from the ASFPM website about the Program:

The Association of State Floodplain Managers has established a national program for professional certification of floodplain managers. The program recognizes continuing education and professional development that enhance the knowledge and performance of local, state, federal, and private-sector floodplain managers.

The primary goal of the ASFPM Certified Floodplain Manager Program (CFM Program) is to help reduce the nation's flood losses and protect and enhance the natural resources and functions of its floodplains by improving the knowledge and abilities of floodplain managers in the United States.  A second goal of the CFM Program is to increase the prominence of floodplain management in decision-making by local officials and the public.

Additional information regarding ASFPM and the CFM program can be found at ASFPM’s website or the CFM Program page: www.floods.org,  CFM page

General Exam Information:

The exam will be held at the central Agency of Natural Resource office located at 1 National Life Drive in Montpelier.  If you are interested, you are now able to register for this exam with the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) office.  All registration forms and ASFPM membership applications should be sent to the ASFPM office in Madison, WI. 

If you are not a member of ASFPM, then the cost to register for the exam is $395.  However, if you join ASFPM as a member for $120, the exam registration fee will only be $100 for a total fee of $220.  If you are planning to become an ASFPM member and register for the exam at the same time, you should send the ASFPM membership form, the exam registration form and payment for both together for the ease of processing.

Please note that all exam registrations must be received by ASFPM no later than 2 weeks before the exam date.  This means that all registration forms need to be received by the ASFPM office no later than Wednesday, April 9th.  Otherwise, if your registration has not been received by 4/9/14, you will not be able to sit for the exam.  The CFM exam registration form and the ASFPM membership form can be found here.

Review Session:

We will also be offering an all-day review session before the exam with the date still to be determined.   The review session will be held in the ANR offices at the National Life Building located in Montpelier. Please contact Rebecca Pfeiffer in advance if you intend to be at the review session so that we can be sure that there will be enough room and so we can determined which date works best for those interested in the review.

If you are interested in taking the exam but would not be ready to do so for the 4/23 date, please contact Rebecca  so that your name will remain on our list of people to contact when we are planning another CFM exam in 2014. 

Please also note that there will be a CFM exam held (somewhat) nearby in Poughkeepsie, NY on March 26.  More information about the exam can be found at the ASFPM website.

Please pass along the word to whomever else you think may be interested in sitting for the exam!

CFM exam to be held on 4/15/13 in Montpelier, VT

We wanted to announce that a spring Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM) exam has been scheduled and confirmed for Monday, April 15^th from 9am-12pm located in Montpelier.   

What is the CFM program all about you may ask?  Here is a small excerpt from the ASFPM website about the Program:

The Association of State Floodplain Managers has established a national program for professional certification of floodplain managers. The program recognizes continuing education and professional development that enhance the knowledge and performance of local, state, federal, and private-sector floodplain managers.

The primary goal of the ASFPM Certified Floodplain Manager Program (CFM Program) is to help reduce the nation's flood losses and protect and enhance the natural resources and functions of its floodplains by improving the knowledge and abilities of floodplain managers in the United States.  A second goal of the CFM Program is to increase the prominence of floodplain management in decision-making by local officials and the public.

Additional information regarding ASFPM and the CFM program can be found at ASFPM’s website or the CFM Program page: www.floods.org,  CFM page

General Exam Information:

The exam will be held at the central Agency of Natural Resource office located in the National Life Building in Montpelier.  If you are interested, you are now able to register for this exam with the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) office.  All registration forms and ASFPM membership applications should be sent to the ASFPM office in Madison, WI. 

If you are not a member of ASFPM, then the cost to register for the exam is $375.  However, if you join ASFPM as a member for $110, the exam registration fee will only be $100 for a total fee of $210.  If you are planning to become an ASFPM member and register for the exam at the same time, you should send the ASFPM membership form, the exam registration form and payment for both together for the ease of processing.

Please note that all exam registrations must be received by ASFPM no later than 2 weeks before the exam date.  This means that all registration forms need to be received by the ASFPM office no later than Monday, April 1, otherwise you will not be able to sit for the exam.  The CFM exam registration form and the ASFPM membership form can be found here.

Review Session:

We will also be offering an all-day review session for the exam on Thursday, April 11.   The review session will be held from 9am-5pm in the ANR offices located in Montpelier at the National Life Building. Please contact Rebecca Pfeiffer (rebecca.pfeiffer@state.vt.us) in advance if you intend to be at the review session so that we can be sure that there will be enough room.

 

We apologize for the short notification and turnaround time for the exam.  However, if you are interested in taking the exam but would not be ready to do so for the 4/15 date, please contact Rebecca so that your name will remain on our list of people to contact  later in the year for another CFM exam this fall or winter. 

There will also be another opportunity to take the CFM exam at the annual ASFPM conference which will be held in Hartford, CT this June. The exam will be offered on June 10^th & 14^th.  You can contact Rebecca or the ASFPM office for more information about the CFM exams offered at the annual conference. 

Again, please let Rebecca know if you have any questions and pass along the word to whomever else you think may be interested in sitting for the exam. 

Public Meetings Will Explain New Flood Insurance Options Available to Washington County Property Owners

Washington County flood insurance questions will be addressed at five public meetings in Waterbury, Barre City, Northfield, Marshfield, and Montpelier.  The meetings will focus on newly revised flood hazard maps and the insurance options available for structures that may be affected by the updated designations.  Structures that have been identified for the first time as being at a high risk of damage by flooding may benefit by getting flood insurance now before the official map changes go into effect. 

The Washington County Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM) will take effect on March 19, 2013.  In some places the boundaries of the flood hazard area have changed.  Where the flood hazard area is more extensive, flood insurance is available for residential structures as a low cost “Preferred Risk Policy” (PRP).  After the map change the PRP can be renewed twice before the insurance increases step-wise to the full cost.

The Washington County DFIRM data can be viewed online at the VT ANR Natural Resource Atlas: tinyurl.com/vt-atlas If your home is in the flood hazard area (Zone A or AE) for the first time then you may want to consider taking advantage of the Preferred Risk Policy (PRP) option before the March 19 2013 deadline.  More information is available at other posts on this blog: vtfpm.blogspot.com

Meetings to discuss insurance options are now scheduled for:

Tuesday January 8, 7 pm at Thatcher Brook Primary School, Waterbury

Thursday January 17, 7 pm Alumni Hall, Barre City

Tuesday January 22, 7 pm, Brown Public Library, Northfield

Thursday January 31, 7 pm, Old Schoolhouse Common, Marshfield

Tuesday February 5, 6 pm Memorial Room, City Hall, Montpelier

In Vermont in a high risk flood hazard area an average flood insurance policy currently costs around $1,400 per year for $170,000 in coverage.  Under the new DFIRM it is estimated that around 200 structures will be identified for the first time as being in the high risk zone.  Approximately 500 structures will no longer fall into a high risk area.  Flood insurance is available to any structure in a community that participates in the National Flood Insurance Program.  For more information on flood insurance contact the agent that manages your homeowner’s insurance or visit www.floodsmart.gov