PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — For some Pinellas County residents, savings on flood insurance are on the way. It's all through a voluntary program, Community Rating System, that offers discounts to communities with good floodplain management programs.
In areas that go above and beyond the national flood insurance program's minimum requirements, the more that is done to prevent flooding, the more policyholders save.
"We're very fortunate to be here," Josh Bohler, an unincorporated Pinellas County resident, shared. "Very fortunate to be in this community in Florida in general. So any help, anything that goes back into our pocket, huge help to us."
Bohler has rented his home for the past nine years. He's one of 20,000 policyholders expected to see savings.
"What can we just pay with that money? Mortgage, electric, water, everything, anything, more groceries in the refrigerator," Bohler said.
Unincorporated Pinellas County has gone from a Class 3 rating to a Class 2. That means savings bumping up from 35% to 40% on premiums. This discount will provide a total saving of about $10 million for unincorporated NFIP policyholders. A Class 2 rating will be the highest CRS rating a Florida community has ever received.
"You take precautionary measures seriously because you know that being prepared can save lives," FEMA Administrator Deaane Criswel said at a press conference Tuesday.
While the improved rating is great for many, it's not extended to the entire county. The portions of the county that are unincorporated will receive savings someone down the road will not.
"However, because the program is community-based, each community does have to implement their own activities and manage their own program," Criswel said.
You may live just a few streets over from an unincorporated portion of the county but have an entirely different rating and discount.
As of April 1, 2023, 22 of the 24 municipalities within Pinellas County participate in the CRS program. If your property is not in unincorporated Pinellas County, contact your municipality or visit the NFIP Community Rating System website to find out what class your community is.