Article for Community Rating System
for the Town of Grifton

In a letter dated October 5^th, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) congratulated the Town of Grifton for receiving a Class 5 rating in their Community Rating System (CRS).  The Community Rating System is a program under FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that rates communities in their efforts to reduce the effects of floods.  The CRS is based on a scale of 10 to 1, with a Class 10 receiving no discount in flood insurance and each grade lower receiving a five percent discount.  The reward for receiving a Class 5 rating is a twenty-five percent discount for NFIP policies issued or renewed in the Special Flood Hazard Areas (commonly referred to as the 100-year floodplain) on or after October 1, 2004.  If the property is located outside of the 100-year floodplain, then those policies will receive a ten percent discount.  All of these discounts will automatically renew for a period of five years and it is the responsibility of the Town of Grifton to make sure the Class 5 rating is maintained.  In review of the CRS program website (updated October 1, 2004), there are currently 1,006 communities in the United States participating in the program.  There are only 29 communities that have received a Class 5 rating or better.  The Town of Grifton is one of only two communities in North Carolina that has received a Class 5 rating or better.  The Town of Grifton Board and staff have steadily worked on this project for three years with the assistance of the Pitt County Planning Department and two East Carolina University planning interns.  The Town was able to secure a Class 5 rating by illustrating the Town’s willingness to protect and maintain Special Flood Hazard Areas.  The Town received 1,928 out of 2,926 for the acquisition and relocation of structures and properties in the Special Flood Hazard Areas.  Currently, the Town of Grifton does not have an exact total of savings but the Town does know that the Town itself will receive approximately a $500 savings on flood insurance policies for the Civic Center and Police Department complexes.       

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