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Fact check: Did Trump cut flood-proofing regulations?
Houston, Texas during Hurricane Harvey
November 7, 2017
By Amée LaTour
Following Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, a video by media company ATTN: claimed that the United States "can learn a lot from how the Netherlands prevents floods." According to text in the video, "Regulations for flood-proof buildings [in the U.S.] have actually been cut."[1]
Is that accurate? Have regulations for flood-proof buildings in the U.S. been cut?
No. President Donald Trump in August revoked proposed guidelines and standards for construction of federal projects near floodplains.[2][3] Neither the guidelines nor the standards were issued as regulations by any government agency.[4][5]
Background
ATTN: produces issue-oriented video content for social media.[6] Its video, "Flood Prevention in America vs. Flood Prevention in the Netherlands," first features various methods used by the Dutch to prevent flooding, such as floating houses and floodgates. The video then states that, in America, "We've got out-of-control flooding," and, “Regulations for flood-proof buildings have actually been cut.” The video has received more than 14 million views on Facebook.[1]
Between the middle of August and the end of September, hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria made landfall in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has not completed its damage assessments, but various estimates peg insured losses at tens of billions of dollars.[7][8]
According to a report by the Government Accountability Office, the federal government obligated at least $277.6 billion in disaster assistance (both emergency relief and mitigation) from 2005 through 2014 across 17 departments and agencies.[9]
Obama's executive order
The federal government and states administer a variety of flood-related regulations in an effort to mitigate damages from natural disasters.[10][11]
President Jimmy Carter in 1977 issued Executive Order 11988, which required federal agencies to evaluate flood hazards related to federal projects and avoid to the extent possible any actions that would adversely affect floodplains, such as development.[12]
If there is no alternative to impacting a floodplain, the project had to be constructed above base flood level, defined as the anticipated level of a flood with a one percent or greater chance of occurring in a year.[12]
President Barack Obama amended Carter’s order in 2015 by issuing Executive Order 13690.[3]
Executive Order 13690 established a new Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. The new standard expanded the area considered a floodplain and raised the elevation level for federal projects in floodplains. It also allowed agencies to choose among several methods for delineating the floodplain area.[13] The proposed standard would have applied to projects funded or permitted by the federal government, not those funded privately or by states.[3]
The Obama order also directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to propose for public comment a set of guidelines for agencies to follow in implementing the new standard. The comment period expired in May 2017, but the draft guidelines were never finalized by the Water Resources Council (as directed by President Obama’s executive order).[14] Consequently, no agency implemented the new standard.[4]
Trump's executive order
President Trump on August 15, 2017, revoked his predecessor’s proposed guidelines and floodplain standard, leaving the pre-existing standard in effect.[2]
Trump's order states that "[i]nefficiencies in current infrastructure project decisions, including management of environmental reviews and permit decisions or authorizations, have delayed infrastructure investments, increased project costs, and blocked the American people from enjoying improved infrastructure that would benefit our economy, society, and environment."[2]
Conclusion
A video by media company ATTN: asserts that the United States "can learn a lot from how the Netherlands prevents floods." Text in the video claims that, in America, "Regulations for flood-proof buildings have actually been cut."[1]
The claim is false, because the standard was never finalized as a regulation.[2][3]
See also
- Federal policy on infrastructure, 2017-2020
- Fact check/Did President Trump's executive order include "a clause making it a crime to help an undocumented immigrant"?
- Fact check/Did federal debt fall over President Trump's first month in office?
Sources and Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Facebook, "ATTN: Video," September 17, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 The White House, "Presidential Executive Order on Establishing Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and Permitting Process for Infrastructure," August 15, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 The White House, President Barack Obama, "Executive Order – Establishing a Federal Flood Risk Management Standard and a Process for Further Soliciting and Considering Stakeholder Input," January 30, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, "Federal Flood Risk Management Standard," accessed October 19, 2017
- ↑ The video referenced the following Vox article as its source. Vox, "Trump rolled back federal standards to flood-proof infrastructure projects a few weeks before Harvey hit," August 29, 2017
- ↑ ATTN:, "About," accessed October 18, 2017
- ↑ Insurance Information Institute, "Facts + Statistics: Hurricanes," accessed November 2, 2017
- ↑ National Centers for Environmental Information, "Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters: Table of Events," accessed October 23, 2017
- ↑ 'U.S. Government Accountability Office, "Federal Disaster Assistance: Federal Departments and Agencies Obligated at Least $277.6 Billion during Fiscal Years 2005 through 2014," September 22, 2016
- ↑ FEMA, "FEMA Laws and Regulations and the NFIP," accessed November 3, 2017
- ↑ Cornell Law School, Legal Information Institute, "44 CFR Chapter 1, Subchapter B - Insurance and Hazard Mitigation," accessed November 3, 2017
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 National Archives, "Executive Order 11988--Floodplain management," accessed October 19, 2017
- ↑ FEMA, "Federal Flood Risk Management Standard," February 5, 2015
- ↑ The Water Resources Council was established to maintain continuing studies of the adequacy of water supplies to meet the nation's needs and of administrative and statutory means for coordinating water-related policies and programs administered by several federal agencies. Cornell Law School, Legal Information Institute, "42 U.S. Code § 1962a–1 - Powers and duties," accessed November 2, 2017
Launched in October 2015 and active through October 2018, Fact Check by Ballotpedia examined claims made by elected officials, political appointees, and political candidates at the federal, state, and local levels. We evaluated claims made by politicians of all backgrounds and affiliations, subjecting them to the same objective and neutral examination process. As of 2025, Ballotpedia staff periodically review these articles to revaluate and reaffirm our conclusions. Please email us with questions, comments, or concerns about these articles. To learn more about fact-checking, click here.
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