Westminster, MD, Tuesday, September 12, 2023 – Carroll County is pleased to announce an improved ranking in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Community Rating System (CRS), advancing from Class 6 to Class 5, which will result in reduced flood insurance premiums for the county and residents. This is the second improvement in class for 2023, which will become effective on October 1, 2024 (the first change, improving from Class 7 to Class 6, took place in June 2023.)  Credit is provided for community activities such as preserving open space in the floodplain, enforcing stormwater management and floodplain regulations, and providing residents with information on flood insurance.  Flood insurance premium reductions are dependent on the number of points that a community accumulates within the program. 

The CRS is a voluntary program within the NFIP that provides flood insurance premium reductions to eligible policyholders within the community.  Flood insurance premium reductions are dependent on the number of points that a community accumulates within the program.  A 5% discount is accumulated for every 500 points that a community earns.  A CRS class 1 community would receive a 45% premium reduction, while a CRS Class 9 community would receive a 5% premium reduction.  Carroll County joined the CRS as a class 8 in 2006, improved to a class 7 in 2018, with another improvement to a class 6 in 2023.  Based on work completed by staff over the last year, the county will now improve to a class 5, which will take effect on October 1, 2024.  Thus, eligible policy holders within the county will receive a 25% discount on their flood insurance policies.

Carroll County (unincorporated areas), viewed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a community independent of the incorporated cities and towns within the county, has a total of 134 flood insurance policies.  Improving from a class 6 ($177 discount per policy) to a class 5 ($209 discount per policy) equates to an average additional savings of $32 per policy.  The new total premium discount for all flood insurance policies in the county will be $28,049. 

For more information about this topic, please contact Patrick Varga, CFM, Environmental Review Supervisor and Floodplain Management/GIS Specialist at 410-386-2844 or pvarga@carrollcountymd.gov.