Monmouth County’s appeal of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) revised flood zone maps was denied on the grounds that what was filed was a protest, not an appeal.
According to Assistant Monmouth County Counsel Gil Messina, there is a disagreement over whether what the county filed with the federal agency was actually a formal appeal.
“They have determined that we have not properly appealed the revised maps but instead it was considered a protest,” Messina said. “The protest was filed with the rest of the protests and we are working on an appeal to the decision.”
He said that all protests will be filed in final form in March with FEMA, but an appeal has greater weight than a filed protest.
“We are not necessarily in agreement with their decision,” Messina said. “We will now continue on in an appeal of the revised maps.”
Assemblywoman Amy Handlin (R-13th District) said that she would like to see the county continue to pursue relief.
“The way it stands right now with FEMA is that they ruled against the county,” Handlin said. “The next step is that we are going to appeal.”
The county filed what was considered an appeal with FEMA’s Region II office in New York by the Sept. 8 deadline, Messina said Monday.
That appeal sought to have the agency’s revised flood zone maps rescinded and asked for a delay in their implementation, pending the outcome of the appeal, according to Messina.
The county’s position on the appeal was that FEMA did not follow the procedures required by law, which include consulting with community officials in advance of issuing their flood insurance study report or the maps; and calling for an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement, according to Messina. The county also asserted that FEMA improperly disregarded the protection that is afforded by the levee in the Bayshore and, finally, that the maps are not accurate in setting out the flood zone delineations.
Monmouth County directed counsel to investigate the history and accuracy of the FEMA mapping process in June as well as to conduct an assessment of the engineering standards and assumptions used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers when they constructed the existing flood control structures.
Handlin has been very proactive along with the county in trying to delay the implementation of the revised flood maps.
Handlin last year held petition drives to gather signatures of residents opposed to the revised maps in Middletown, Hazlet, Union Beach and Keansburg, collecting more than 1,200 signatures.
Some 1,820 properties in Middletown, 640 in Hazlet, and 100 in Union Beach were added to FEMA’s new flood zone maps.
Federal law requires property owners to purchase flood insurance for any building that is located in a high flood-risk zone.
In some cases, properties that have not required flood insurance, or have been considered to be in low- or moderate-risk zones, are considered to be in high-risk areas on the revised maps, and residents could be facing premiums costing up to $5,000 per year.
Monmouth County towns have been preparing their residents for the new maps and helping residents understand the impacts of being in the flood zones.
Middletown Mayor Pamela Brightbill said at the Township Committee’s Feb. 2 meeting that the township would be getting information to the public about efforts to appeal FEMA’s revised flood zone maps and the committee will discuss the issues at the Feb. 17 voting meeting.
“We have to get the information out there to the public so they can know if they can get a cheaper [flood insurance] rate,” Brightbill said.
Hazlet will have members of the Environmental Commission present at Town Hall every Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to help residents determine if their properties are in the new flood zones.
Contact Jamie Romm at