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Elevation Certificate Workshop

How to Complete and Review the FEMA Elevation Certificate

A free virtual workshop for the New England area on how to complete and review the FEMA Elevation Certificate. Two workshop dates offered; please apply for only one.  Hosted by Woods Hole Sea Grant and MIT Sea Grant.

About this workshop

Accurate Elevation Certificates are critical for compliance with the building code, National Flood Insurance Program, and Community Rating System. This workshop will help municipal officials know what to look for when conducting reviews of ECs for compliance, and will help professionals who are required to complete ECs understand what reviewers will be looking for.

When

There are two opportunities to participate in this day-long virtual workshop:

Who can participate

The workshops are open to New England-area municipal officials, surveyors, engineers, and others who need to know how to fill out and review the FEMA Elevation Certificate.

* Note: Each workshop is limited to 50 participants. Priority will be given to under-resourced communities per the CDC Vulnerability Index and efforts will be made to distribute participants equally across the New England states.

Cost

There is no cost for this workshop. The workshop is made possible with funds awarded to the Woods Hole and MIT Sea Grant programs by the National Sea Grant College Program.

Instructor

Del Schwalls, PE, CFM
President, Schwalls Consulting, LLC

Credits

» CFM – 6 credits

State credits include:

  • RI PLS – 7 credits
  • CT Association of Zoning Enforcement Officials – 3 credits
  • MA Certified Building Official – 6 credits
  • 6.0 hours of Connecticut Building Official Continuing Education Credit hours through OEDM

Application deadline

Applications must be received by December 9, 2022. Notification of acceptance will be made during the week of December 16.

Jan. 11, 2023 Workshop Application
Jan. 26, 2023 Workshop Application

Applications must be received by Dec. 9. Accepted applicants will be notified during the week of Dec. 16.

Contact

Shannon Hulst
Floodplain Specialist
Woods Hole Sea Grant and
Cape Cod Cooperative Extension

Workshop led by

Hosted by

» Download course syllabus

Course description

•Provide detailed training on completing a FEMA Elevation Certificate (EC) accurately and in its entirety, allowing full compliance with any program that requires submission of an EC.•Review the current EC and provide guidance on implementation and use.•Review draft changes in the next version of the EC.•Review how Risk Rating 2.0 (RR2.0) insurance requirements affect the EC.•Cover EC requirements for surveying, foundation flood openings, and certification.•Review the Community Rating System (CRS) requirements for an EC and those portions that can differ from other programs.•Include common errors and omissions, review of the various EC building diagrams, and real world examples.

Course objectives

•Learn to complete a FEMA EC in order to satisfy the requirements of any program.•Understand the data needs for each individual EC section.•Understand the local official's role in reviewing ECs for accuracy and compliance purposes.•Understand how the EC is used by CRS.•Understand how the EC is used for insurance under RR2.0.•Change attendee's approach to ECs from 'minimum needs' to 'best practice'.•Avoid common mistakes that can invalidate the EC for certain programs.•Learn how to avoid errors that are causing many communities to miss the mandatory CRS EC prerequisites.

Reference materials

Please download the following materials prior to the course at Elevation Certificate Handouts; it will be helpful to review them beforehand.
• FEMA EC Instructions & Form (2019)
• FEMA 467-1 FPM Bulletin: EC (04-2004)
• EC Correction Memorandum Template

*Each workshop is limited to 50 participants. Priority will be given to under-resourced communities per the CDC Vulnerability Index and efforts will be made to distribute participants equally across the New England states.

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