This is our last call to Name That Newsletter.
NeFSMA is looking for a name for our quarterly publication. If you have an idea, leave a comment on the blog (or you can email Lori Laster). On Friday March 18, we will put the name suggestions to a vote of our membership. Whoever submits the winning name will win a $25 Visa gift card.
About Our Association
- Nebraska Floodplain and Stormwater Managers Association
- The Nebraska Floodplain and Stormwater Managers Association (NeFSMA) is an active organization of over 100 members representing over 50 organizations. NeFSMA pursues multiple purposes including: 1.)promote public awareness of floodplain and stormwater management; 2.) promote the professional status of floodplain and stormwater management and secure all benefits resulting there from; 3.) promote cooperation and information exchange between individuals and entities concerned with floodplain and stormwater management; 4.) keep individuals concerned with floodplain and stormwater management well informed through educational and professional seminars and to provide a method for dissemination of information, both general and technical; 5.) inform and educate concerned individuals of pending floodplain or stormwater legislation, funding and other related management matters. Please browse our website to learn more about NeFSMA at www.nefsma.net. If you are interested in joining, either contact one of the board members or complete the membership form.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
FPF 3/11/11 - National Flood Safety Awareness Week
National Flood Safety Awareness Week
March 14 - 18, 2011
Flood Safety Awareness Week, sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and supported by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), was created to highlight the causes and consequences of flooding and educate communities on how to prepare for and protect their homes and businesses from the devastating effects of flooding.
Please join us in promoting Flood Safety Awareness Week to your customers, community members, colleagues and partners by using the tools and resources listed below from NOAA, FloodSmart, and FEMA:
• Ready.gov/floodawareness: Visit Ready’s Flood Safety Awareness Week landing page to download Flood Safety Awareness Week fact sheets and other important preparedness tips you can share and post to your website.
• FEMA.gov/widgets: A new Flood Safety Awareness Week embeddable widget is now available. We encourage you to include this on your website to promote the week. The FloodSmart seasonal widget is also available to post and share.
• FloodSmart.gov: Visit FloodSmart.gov’s homepage to find important spring preparedness and flood insurance information and outreach tools.
• Blog posts and social media promotion. FEMA will be blogging and spreading the word through their social media tools (Facebook and Twitter) next week. We encourage you to join them in using social media content. Draft posts and tweets are available upon request.
March 14 - 18, 2011
Flood Safety Awareness Week, sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and supported by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), was created to highlight the causes and consequences of flooding and educate communities on how to prepare for and protect their homes and businesses from the devastating effects of flooding.
Please join us in promoting Flood Safety Awareness Week to your customers, community members, colleagues and partners by using the tools and resources listed below from NOAA, FloodSmart, and FEMA:
• Ready.gov/floodawareness: Visit Ready’s Flood Safety Awareness Week landing page to download Flood Safety Awareness Week fact sheets and other important preparedness tips you can share and post to your website.
• FEMA.gov/widgets: A new Flood Safety Awareness Week embeddable widget is now available. We encourage you to include this on your website to promote the week. The FloodSmart seasonal widget is also available to post and share.
• FloodSmart.gov: Visit FloodSmart.gov’s homepage to find important spring preparedness and flood insurance information and outreach tools.
• Blog posts and social media promotion. FEMA will be blogging and spreading the word through their social media tools (Facebook and Twitter) next week. We encourage you to join them in using social media content. Draft posts and tweets are available upon request.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
LB 683 Amendment 738
The Natural Resources Committee of the Legislature was presented with Amendment 738 to LB 683 prior to today's session.
Previous Bill - Create the Storm Water Management Commission
Revised Bill - Create the Metropolitan Storm Water Management Commission
In doing so, the following proposed commission members were removed
*Representative appointed by Director of NDEQ
*Representative appointed by Director of NDNR
The following proposed commission members were added
*Representative of the Revenue Committee
*Representative of NRD Board Member in the Metropolian Class City
The final report date for the commission is now proposed as December 1, 2011
Senator Heath Mello described the situation causing the need for this bill as "an economic crisis" in Omaha and for Nebraska. The focus fo the revised bill has been squarely placed on the rate structure of the $1.7 Billion dollar, 15-year sewer separation Long Term Control Plan costs. As an Omaha World Herald article previously laid out, the current rate plan is going to put 5% of the total cost of the Plan on the backs of 29 "major industrial users" through flow charges and customer charges avereging $3 Million apiece over 15 years. They are asking for any solutions that shift the cost more equitably.
Senators continually asked the Proponents of the Bill (7) what they were asking of the Legislature, if this was a funding issue for the City of Omaha, and if they were asking for money from the State. Everyone knows, the State doesn't have open purse strings right now, so "what would be the outcome of such a study." Or as Senator Christensen put it, "what are you asking the Legislature to tell the City of Omaha to do? They have to have leadership in this matter. What are you asking us to provide?" Senator Langemeier (Chairman) made it abundantly clear that there better be a good reason to commit his time to this Commission and there better be some definate outcomes. Industries in attendance, including lobbiest Julia Plucker, agreed that approving the Commission would provide good assurance that everyone was working together to find the best solutions.
It took two-hours for the discussion to come around to the fact that this study might include considering the stormwater user fee, stormwater tax, stormwater utility (whatever you want to call it) which some Senators remembered from previous years. In case they didn't, the City of Omaha provided the last version that went to the Urban Affaris Committee in 2007. One outcome of the study, could be a revisitation of why the State Legislature may or may not be inclined to enable legislation for municipalities to charge stormwater user fees.
There were no Opponents to the Bill. Three individuals provided Neutral testimony. These included the Car Lot contingent who could smell "the tired stormwater bill" from a mile away and wanted to remind the Committee that "this is a sewer separation bill, not a stormwater bill." NeFSMA was represented to state simply that, "the implications of this study could have impacts beyond the City of Omaha." As Marty Grate and Steve Oltmans had alluded during thier response to testimony questions, Omaha would be open to looking at the stormwater utility enabling legislation once again that would allow billing property a fee based on impervious surface area contributing to the storm drain system. This would impact the many MS4s in Nebraska and I felt that point needed to be made known. Finally, the Nebraska Cattleman Lobby testified that the increased cost of meat packing in Omaha would put their "Beef Epicenter of the World" mantra in difficult straights. The Senators were ready for a break and asked no questions of the Neutral testifiers.
Just to make it clear, NeFSMA does not testify for or against legislation and we did not do so today. Today, we were in the room and our presence and interest in the purpose and outcome of the proposed study was made known. Legislative Aid - Trevor Fitzgerald - will be keeping NeFSMA aprised of new developments. The Committee is getting ready to debate priority bills, so the future of this one is unclear. As Senator Mello put it today, "there are many ways to get this Emergency Bill through the legislative process." So with that, we'll keep you updated on the latest news for LP 683 AM 738 as it unfolds.
The AM 738 Text
Previous Bill - Create the Storm Water Management Commission
Revised Bill - Create the Metropolitan Storm Water Management Commission
In doing so, the following proposed commission members were removed
*Representative appointed by Director of NDEQ
*Representative appointed by Director of NDNR
The following proposed commission members were added
*Representative of the Revenue Committee
*Representative of NRD Board Member in the Metropolian Class City
The final report date for the commission is now proposed as December 1, 2011
Senator Heath Mello described the situation causing the need for this bill as "an economic crisis" in Omaha and for Nebraska. The focus fo the revised bill has been squarely placed on the rate structure of the $1.7 Billion dollar, 15-year sewer separation Long Term Control Plan costs. As an Omaha World Herald article previously laid out, the current rate plan is going to put 5% of the total cost of the Plan on the backs of 29 "major industrial users" through flow charges and customer charges avereging $3 Million apiece over 15 years. They are asking for any solutions that shift the cost more equitably.
Senators continually asked the Proponents of the Bill (7) what they were asking of the Legislature, if this was a funding issue for the City of Omaha, and if they were asking for money from the State. Everyone knows, the State doesn't have open purse strings right now, so "what would be the outcome of such a study." Or as Senator Christensen put it, "what are you asking the Legislature to tell the City of Omaha to do? They have to have leadership in this matter. What are you asking us to provide?" Senator Langemeier (Chairman) made it abundantly clear that there better be a good reason to commit his time to this Commission and there better be some definate outcomes. Industries in attendance, including lobbiest Julia Plucker, agreed that approving the Commission would provide good assurance that everyone was working together to find the best solutions.
It took two-hours for the discussion to come around to the fact that this study might include considering the stormwater user fee, stormwater tax, stormwater utility (whatever you want to call it) which some Senators remembered from previous years. In case they didn't, the City of Omaha provided the last version that went to the Urban Affaris Committee in 2007. One outcome of the study, could be a revisitation of why the State Legislature may or may not be inclined to enable legislation for municipalities to charge stormwater user fees.
There were no Opponents to the Bill. Three individuals provided Neutral testimony. These included the Car Lot contingent who could smell "the tired stormwater bill" from a mile away and wanted to remind the Committee that "this is a sewer separation bill, not a stormwater bill." NeFSMA was represented to state simply that, "the implications of this study could have impacts beyond the City of Omaha." As Marty Grate and Steve Oltmans had alluded during thier response to testimony questions, Omaha would be open to looking at the stormwater utility enabling legislation once again that would allow billing property a fee based on impervious surface area contributing to the storm drain system. This would impact the many MS4s in Nebraska and I felt that point needed to be made known. Finally, the Nebraska Cattleman Lobby testified that the increased cost of meat packing in Omaha would put their "Beef Epicenter of the World" mantra in difficult straights. The Senators were ready for a break and asked no questions of the Neutral testifiers.
Just to make it clear, NeFSMA does not testify for or against legislation and we did not do so today. Today, we were in the room and our presence and interest in the purpose and outcome of the proposed study was made known. Legislative Aid - Trevor Fitzgerald - will be keeping NeFSMA aprised of new developments. The Committee is getting ready to debate priority bills, so the future of this one is unclear. As Senator Mello put it today, "there are many ways to get this Emergency Bill through the legislative process." So with that, we'll keep you updated on the latest news for LP 683 AM 738 as it unfolds.
The AM 738 Text
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
NeFSMA/NDNR 3rd Annual Conference - Topics
What Conference Themes are you most interested in learning at the 3rd Annual NeFSMA Conference on June 23, 2011. Polls close March 11th to submit your vote on our Blog! If there is something specific you are thinking would be a great idea, leave a comment in on this post!
You can vote in our informal poll for the Conference Themes that you have the most interest in. Just navigate to nefsma.blogspot.com and look on the left side of the screen under the Feedburner. You can make multiple selections depending on your interest. When you submit your vote you can see what others have already selected.
We are currently soliciting abstracts from possible speakers. The information in this poll will help us make the decision about filling our agenda.
Also, don't forget that you can submit a name for our quarterly newsletter here or by emailing Lori Laster. We will be done taking ideas soon.
You can vote in our informal poll for the Conference Themes that you have the most interest in. Just navigate to nefsma.blogspot.com and look on the left side of the screen under the Feedburner. You can make multiple selections depending on your interest. When you submit your vote you can see what others have already selected.
We are currently soliciting abstracts from possible speakers. The information in this poll will help us make the decision about filling our agenda.
Also, don't forget that you can submit a name for our quarterly newsletter here or by emailing Lori Laster. We will be done taking ideas soon.
NeFSMA/NDNR 3rd Annual Conference - Call for Abstracts
The embeded images below provide the information you will need to submit an abstract for the June 23rd Conference. The event has consistently drawn attendance around 100 each year and we expect a similar turn out again. The abstract submittal process is simple and straight forward. Please get your information to us by the end of March.
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