How is an Elevation Certificate used?
A community’s permit file must have an official record that shows new buildings and substantial improvements in all identified Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs) are properly elevated. This elevation information is needed to show compliance with the community’s floodplain management ordinance. FEMA encourages communities to use the FEMA Elevation Certificate to fulfill this requirement because it also can be used by the property owner to obtain flood insurance. Communities participating in the Community Rating System are required to use the Elevation Certificate. Buildings constructed on or before December 31, 1974 or before the effective date of the initial Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for a community, whichever is later, are considered Pre-FIRM and an elevation certification is not required for flood insurance. The reasoning behind this is that a dwelling should not be held to an elevation standard that had not yet been established when it was constructed. However, if the Pre-FIRM
