Community Rating System

This page is intended for municipal officials, floodplain managers, and local government decision-makers.

The Community Rating System (CRS) is a voluntary incentive program that recognizes communities for going above and beyond the minimum requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Over 1,500 communities across the country currently participate.

Communities enrolled in CRS receive discounted flood insurance premiums to reflect their efforts in reducing flood risk. These efforts support the program’s three core goals:

• Reduce and prevent flood damage to insurable properties
• Enhance and strengthen the insurance aspects of the NFIP
• Promote comprehensive floodplain management across communities

CRS helps protect residents and lower costs while encouraging smarter, safer development.

MSD Project Clear, in partnership with FEMA, is working to help make flood insurance more affordable for local communities. This information explains how municipalities and local governments can participate in FEMA’s Community Rating System (CRS) to earn flood insurance premium savings for their residents. It is not general public guidance on individual flood insurance or personal flood risk.

Through FEMA’s Community Rating System (CRS), floodplain managers can help their communities save 5% or more on flood insurance premiums by leveraging existing flood mitigation efforts.

While MSD Project Clear is not a floodplain manager, through our Know Your Zone initiative, we are teaming up with FEMA, SEMA, and the East-West Gateway Council of Governments to educate municipal leaders on how they can lower flood insurance costs for residents.

Participation in the CRS Program is limited to floodplain managers and municipal governments. Residents should contact their local floodplain official for more information.

MSD Project Clear is here to help floodplain managers navigate the CRS application process with ease.

Many municipalities in the St. Louis region may already qualify for 5–10% or more in flood insurance savings—just by leveraging the flood mitigation practices they already have in place!

In the workshop recording below, we guide floodplain managers through:

• How to complete the CRS application
• How to earn credits for ongoing flood mitigation efforts by MSD Project Clear and other local partners
• How to receive credit for flood reduction work a municipality is already doing. Let us help municipalities unlock savings for their communities.
  Let us help you unlock savings for your community.