Ukiah adopts FEMA model floodplain ordinance in urgency action to preserve NFIP eligibility

The Ukiah City Council adopted an urgency ordinance on Sept. 3 to readopt a floodplain management ordinance aligning local rules with FEMA’s model language and to adopt updated flood insurance study materials and maps.

Darcy Vaughn, assistant city attorney, told the council the city received notice in August from FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program Division that Ukiah did not have a compliant floodplain management ordinance in effect and that the city risked losing NFIP eligibility if it did not adopt compliant regulations by Sept. 19. Vaughn said the city had previously repealed its local ordinance in 2011 and that FEMA and state guidance require an explicit local ordinance in addition to building‑code appendices.

The ordinance adopts FEMA’s model floodplain management provisions, adopts the flood insurance study and the flood insurance rate maps for Ukiah, and designates a floodplain administrator with authority to enforce the ordinance. Vaughn told the council the city had worked with public works staff and updated the ordinance to reflect the approved study and maps; two minor non‑substantive edits requested by FEMA were incorporated.

Council members asked whether the state code and Appendix G of the building code provided overlapping protections; Vaughn said those state standards overlap but do not replace the local ordinance’s designation of a floodplain administrator and other locally enforceable elements. Tim Ericsson, city engineer, answered technical questions about impact areas.

Action: The council introduced and adopted the urgency ordinance by the required unanimous vote; staff said the revised ordinance approved by FEMA was uploaded to the city’s codified record and effective immediately to preserve the city’s standing in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Why it matters: Without a compliant ordinance in place by FEMA’s deadline, property owners in designated special flood hazard areas risk losing access to federally backed flood insurance and related financing. The action preserves eligibility while the city continues to engage with FEMA and review mapping questions raised earlier.