§ 751. Purpose
The purpose of this chapter is to minimize and prevent the loss of life and property,
the disruption of commerce, the impairment of the tax base, and the extraordinary
public expenditures and demands on public service that result from flooding; to ensure
that the development of the flood hazard areas of this State is accomplished in a
manner consistent with the health, safety and welfare of the public; to coordinate
federal, State, and local management activities for flood hazard areas; to encourage
local government units to manage flood hazard areas and other flood-prone lands; to
provide State assistance to local government units in management of flood-prone lands;
to comply with National Flood Insurance Program requirements for the regulation of
development; to authorize adoption of State rules for management of uses exempt from
municipal regulation in a flood hazard area; to maintain the agricultural use of flood-prone
lands consistent with the National Flood Insurance Program; to carry out a comprehensive
statewide flood hazard area management program for the State in order to ensure eligibility
for flood insurance under the requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program. (Added 1973, No. 263 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. 30 days from April 16, 1974; amended 2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 14, 2012.)
§ 752. Definitions
As used in this chapter:
(1) “Agency” means the Agency of Natural Resources.
(2) “Development,” for the purposes of flood hazard area management and regulation, has
the same meaning as “development” under 44 C.F.R. § 59.1.
(3) “Flood hazard area” has the same meaning as “area of special flood hazard” under 44 C.F.R. § 59.1.
(4) “Flood proofing” shall have the same meaning as “flood proofing” under 44 C.F.R. § 59.1.
(5) “Floodway” shall have the same meaning as “regulatory floodway” under 44 C.F.R. § 59.1.
(6) “Legislative body” means the selectboard, trustees, mayor, city council, and alderboard
of a municipality.
(7) “Municipality” means any town, city, or incorporated village.
(8) “Development exempt from municipal regulation” means development that is exempt from
municipal land use regulation under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117.
(9) “National Flood Insurance Program” means the National Flood Insurance Program under
42 U.S.C. chapter 50 and implementing federal regulations in 44 C.F.R. parts 59 and 60.
(10) “Regional planning commission” means the regional planning commission of which a municipality
is a member or would be a member based upon its location.
(11) “River corridor” means the land area adjacent to a river that is required to accommodate
the dimensions, slope, planform, and buffer of the naturally stable channel and that
is necessary for the natural maintenance or natural restoration of a dynamic equilibrium
condition, as that term is defined in section 1422 of this title, and for minimization of fluvial erosion hazards, as delineated by the Agency of
Natural Resources in accordance with river corridor protection procedures.
(12) “Secretary” means the Secretary of Natural Resources or the Secretary’s duly authorized
representative.
(13) “Existing settlement” has the same meaning as in section 6001 of this title.
(14) “Mapped river corridor” means a river corridor drawn and adopted by the Secretary
of Natural Resources as part of the statewide River Corridor Base Map Layer in accordance
with the Flood Hazard Area and River Corridor Protection Procedure for rivers and
streams with a watershed area greater than two square miles. (Added 1973, No. 263 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. May 16, 1974; amended 1987, No. 76, § 18; 2003, No. 115 (Adj. Sess.), § 15; 2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 14, 2012; 2023, No. 121 (Adj. Sess.), § 4, eff. July 1, 2024.)
§ 753. Flood hazard areas; cooperation; mapping
(a) Cooperation to secure flood insurance. The Secretary and all municipalities, regional planning commissions, and departments
and agencies of State government shall mutually cooperate to achieve the purposes
of this chapter and to secure flood insurance for municipalities and the State of
Vermont. All correspondence sent to a municipality pursuant to this chapter shall
be sent to the municipal clerk, the municipal manager, if one exists, the legislative
body, the planning commission, and the conservation commission, if one exists. Copies
of this correspondence shall be sent to the regional planning commission and the Agency
of Commerce and Community Development.
(b) Notice of designation of flood hazard areas; maps. The Secretary shall, as the information becomes available, provide each municipality
with a designation of flood hazard areas. The designation shall include a map or maps.
(c) Procedure to authorize review of municipal permit applications. The Secretary shall establish a procedure for authorizing a representative of a municipality
or a regional planning commission to conduct the review required under 24 V.S.A. § 4424(a)(2)(D), including eligibility requirements for authorization to conduct permit application
review and an approved process or list of approved certifications that the Secretary
shall accept as proof of expertise in the field of floodplain management. (Added 1973, No. 263 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. May 16, 1974; amended 1977, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1-3, 5, eff. April 5, 1978; 1981, No. 222 (Adj. Sess.), § 42; 1983, No. 249 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; 1995, No. 190 (Adj. Sess.), § 1(a); 2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 14, 2012.)
§ 754. Mapped River Corridor Rules
(a) Rulemaking authority.
(1) On or before July 1, 2027, the Secretary shall adopt rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 that establish requirements for issuing and enforcing permits for:
(A) all development within a mapped river corridor in the State; and
(B) for development exempt from municipal regulation in flood hazard areas.
(2) The Secretary shall not adopt rules under this subsection that regulate agricultural
activities without the consent of the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets,
provided that the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets shall not withhold consent
under this subdivision when lack of such consent would result in the State’s noncompliance
with the National Flood Insurance Program.
(3) The Secretary shall seek the guidance of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in
developing and drafting the rules required by this section in order to ensure that
the rules are sufficient to meet eligibility requirements for the National Flood Insurance
Program.
(b) Required rulemaking content. The rules shall:
(1) set forth the requirements necessary to ensure that development exempt from municipal
regulation in flood hazard areas is regulated by the State in order to comply with
the regulatory obligations set forth under the National Flood Insurance Program;
(2) be designed to ensure that the State and municipalities meet community eligibility
requirements for the National Flood Insurance Program;
(3) establish requirements for the permitting of development within the mapped river corridors
of the State;
(4) provide certain regulatory exemptions for minor development activities in a mapped
river corridor when the development activities have no adverse environmental effects;
(5) establish the requirements and process for a municipality to be delegated the State’s
permitting authority for development in a mapped river corridor when the development
is not exempt from municipal regulation and when the municipality has adopted an ordinance
or bylaw under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117 that has been approved by the Secretary and that meets or exceeds the requirements
established under State rule;
(6) set forth a process for amending the statewide River Corridor Base Map; and
(7) establish requirements that exceed the requirements of the National Flood Insurance
Program for development exempt from municipal regulation in flood hazard areas, including
requirements for the maintenance of existing native riparian vegetation, provided
that any rules adopted under this subsection that exceed the minimum requirements
of the National Flood Insurance Program shall be designed to prevent or limit a risk
of harm to life, property, or infrastructure from flooding.
(c) General permit. The rules authorized by this section may establish requirements for a general permit
to implement the requirements of this section, including authorization under the general
permit to conduct a specified use exempt from municipal regulation without notifying
or reporting to the Secretary or an agency delegated under subsection (f) of this
section. A general permit implementing the requirements of this section shall not
be required to be issued by rule.
(d) Consultation with interested parties. Prior to submitting the rules required by this section to the Secretary of State under
3 V.S.A. § 838, the Secretary shall solicit the recommendations of and consult with affected and
interested persons and entities such as: the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development;
the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets; the Secretary of Transportation; the
Commissioner of Financial Regulation; representatives of river protection interests;
representatives of fishing and recreational interests; representatives of the banking
industry; representatives of the agricultural community; representatives of the forest
products industry; the regional planning commissions; municipal interests; and representatives
of municipal associations.
(e) Permit requirement. Beginning on January 1, 2028, a person shall not commence or conduct development exempt
from municipal regulation in a flood hazard area or commence or conduct any development
in a mapped river corridor without a permit issued under the rules required under
subsection (a) of this section by the Secretary or by a State agency delegated permitting
authority under subsection (f) of this section. When an application is filed under
this section, the Secretary or delegated State agency shall proceed in accordance
with chapter 170 of this title.
(f) Delegation.
(1) The Secretary may delegate to another State agency the authority to implement the
rules adopted under this section, to issue a permit under subsection (e) of this section,
and to enforce the rules and a permit.
(2) A memorandum of understanding shall be entered into between the Secretary and a delegated
State agency for the purpose of specifying implementation of requirements of this
section and the rules adopted under this section, issuance of a permit or coverage
under a general permit under this section, and enforcement of the rules and permit
required by this section.
(3) Prior to entering a memorandum of understanding, the Secretary shall post the proposed
memorandum of understanding on its website for 30 days for notice and comment. When
the memorandum of understanding is posted, it shall include a summary of the proposed
memorandum; the name, telephone number, and address of a person able to answer questions
and receive comments on the proposal; and the deadline for receiving comments. A final
copy of a memorandum of understanding entered into under this section shall be sent
to the chairs of the House Committee on Environment, the Senate Committee on Natural
Resources and Energy, and any other committee that has jurisdiction over an agency
that is a party to the memorandum of understanding.
(g) Municipal authority. This section and the rules adopted under it shall not prevent a municipality from
adopting substantive requirements for development in a flood hazard area bylaw or
ordinance under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117 that are more stringent than the rules required by this section, provided that the
bylaw or ordinance shall not apply to uses exempt from municipal regulation. (Added 2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 14, 2012; amended 2013, No. 107 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. April 18, 2014; 2015, No. 150 (Adj. Sess.), § 8, eff. Jan. 1, 2018; 2017, No. 113 (Adj. Sess.), § 44a; 2023, No. 121 (Adj. Sess.), § 5, eff. July 1, 2024.)
§ 755. State flood hazard area standards; municipal education; model flood hazard area bylaw
or ordinance
(a) State flood hazard area standards.
(1) On or before January 1, 2026, the Secretary shall adopt rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 that establish a set of flood hazard area standards for enrollment in the National
Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
(2) The rules shall contain flood hazard area standards that meet or exceed the minimum
standards of the NFIP by reducing flood risk to new development and ensuring new development
does not create adverse impacts to adjacent preexisting development.
(3) Any municipality with a municipal flood hazard area bylaw or ordinance shall update
their bylaw or ordinance to incorporate the State Flood Hazard Area Standards. Nothing
in this section shall prohibit a municipality from adopting a more protective flood
hazard standard with language and standards approved by the Agency.
(4) On or after January 1, 2028, the State Flood Hazard Areas adopted under subdivision
(1) of this subsection shall be the State minimum flood hazard areas standards.
(b) Education and assistance. The Secretary, in consultation with regional 2024 planning commissions, shall provide
ongoing education, technical assistance, and guidance to municipalities regarding
the requirements under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117 necessary for compliance with the NFIP, including implementation of the State Flood
Hazard Area Standards adopted under subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Model flood hazard area bylaw or ordinance. The Secretary shall create and make available to municipalities a model flood hazard
area bylaw or ordinance for potential adoption by municipalities pursuant to 24 V.S.A. chapter 117 or 24 V.S.A. § 2291. The model bylaw or ordinance shall set forth the minimum provisions necessary to
meet the requirements of the NFIP, including implementation of the State Flood Hazard
Area Standards adopted under subsection (a) of this section. The model bylaw may include
alternatives that exceed the minimum requirements for compliance with the NFIP and
State Flood Hazard Area Standards in order to allow a municipality to elect whether
it wants to adopt the minimum requirement or an alternate requirement that further
minimizes the risk of harm to life, property, and infrastructure from flooding.
(d) Assistance to municipalities with no flood hazard area bylaw or ordinance. The Secretary, in consultation with municipalities, municipal organizations, and regional
planning commissions, shall provide education and technical assistance to municipalities
that lack a flood hazard area bylaw or 2024 ordinance in order to encourage adoption
of a flood hazard area bylaw or ordinance that qualifies the municipality for the
NFIP. (Added 2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 14, 2012; amended 2023, No. 121 (Adj. Sess.), § 6, eff. July 1, 2024.)