Using Multi-Objective Management to Reduce Flood Losses in Your

In big cities and counties, you may need to circulate the plan for approval from
various department heads before it goes to the governing board. A plan that needs
Federal Emergency Management Agency funding should have a letter of support
from the state emergency management agency and/or the State NFIP Coordinator.
Implement and Follow Through
Adoption by the various governments is not the last step in the M-O-M approach.
You will probably have to do some monitoring and follow up to ensure that it is
implemented.
Implementation
The key to success is that all the people responsible for the various
recommendations understand what is expected of them and are willing to work
toward their implementation. Thus, it is helpful to have people likely to be
involved in implementation−such as representatives of local departments and other
agencies−participate in the planning process. It would help greatly if the plan (or
the governing board’s resolution of adoption) clearly identified a person
responsible for each recommendation.
It also helps to associate the recommendations with the plans and activities
of the implementing agency or organization. For example, people responsible for
specific recommendations could have the duties included in their job descriptions
or annual performance plans.
It is a good idea for the plan to identify some highly visible but
inexpensive projects that can be done quickly. This helps reassure the public and
the planning committee participants that something is being done. Examples are
locally funded projects (because they usually get done the quickest), such as a
stream cleanup or distribution of public information materials.
Monitoring
No plan is perfect. As implementation proceeds, flaws will be discovered and
changes will be needed. Your plan should have a formal process to measure
progress, assess how things are proceeding, and recommend needed changes.
Those responsible for implementing the various recommendations probably
have many other jobs to do. A monitoring system helps ensure that they don’t
forget their assignments or fall behind in working on them. It can be as simple as
a checklist kept by the person designated as responsible for the plan, or a more
formal reporting system to a higher authority, such as the governing board or an
oversight committee.
The Community Rating System
The Community Rating System (CRS) can help monitor local flood loss reduction
programs and encourage communities to keep implementing them over the years.
It is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the
National Flood Insurance Program. The flood insurance premium rates are
reduced for properties in a CRS community based on the floodplain management
activities the community implements.
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