Quarterly Newsletter Archives

Dear VFMA Members, 

As Virginia navigates another season of unpredictable weather, we are grateful for the work our members do every day to support resilient communities across the Commonwealth. We truly appreciate your continued support, engagement, and participation in VFMA.

Thanks to members like you, this year’s conference was our best yet, bringing together floodplain professionals from across Virginia to learn, connect, collaborate, and grow. If you run into Doug Moseley or Kristin Owen, be sure to thank them for their leadership and countless hours behind the scenes that made the event such a success.

We encourage you to stay engaged with VFMA throughout the year by participating in trainings, joining a committee, attending meetings, and sharing your expertise with fellow members. Your involvement helps strengthen both our profession and our communities.

With a rainy Memorial Day weekend ahead, we hope you have a safe and restful holiday. Thank you again for your continued support of VFMA and the important work you do throughout the Commonwealth.

Sincerely,

VFMA Board of Directors

2026 Board of Directors Election Results

Thank you to all members who participated in this year’s election process by voting or submitting nominations! We are pleased to announce the following 2026 Board of Directors election results:

• Brad Winters was re-elected as Treasurer
• Doug Moseley was elected Vice President after serving in the role by appointment last year
• Katie Rogers was re-elected as a Representative
• We are also excited to welcome new Representative Ross Weaver, Floodplain and Dam Safety Manager with Henrico County!

VFMA 2026 Board of Directors

Interested in becoming more involved with VFMA? We encourage members to contribute by joining a committee, whether your interests lean toward policy and legislation or toward education, outreach, conference planning, or member engagement, there’s a committee for you.

Join a Committee

Trainings and Announcements

• DCR Webinar: Flood Insurance Basics (Virtual). Wednesday, May 27 & Friday, May 29, 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. This webinar provides essential flood insurance knowledge for local officials and community staff who regularly answer residents’ questions. Register here.
• Aligning Land Conservation with Source Water Protection (Virtual), Friday, May 29, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Hosted by the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB), this session will highlight tools and datasets that help prioritize lands providing co-benefits for forests, agriculture, habitat, and watershed protection. Register here.
• E0273: Managing Floodplain Development Through the NFIP. August 23–27, Emmitsburg, Maryland. This FEMA course provides in-depth instruction on administering and enforcing local floodplain management regulations through the National Flood Insurance Program. Learn more here.
• Provide comments on the DCR's Coastal Resilience Master Plan Phase II draft, due June 3. View details and submit comments here.
• Applications for FEMA's BRIC program are due to VDEM on May 26, 2026. Learn more here.
• Did you miss the Wetlands Watch lunch and learn last week on becoming a CFM? Watch the recording here and view the CFM exam prep flyer here.

June All-Member Call

Join us for our upcoming All-Member Call on Friday, June 12 where we’ll discuss key organizational updates, upcoming initiatives, and opportunities for member engagement. This is a great opportunity to stay informed, share feedback, and connect with fellow members as we continue advancing our mission.

Register Here

Policy Committee Updates

The Policy Committee held its first coordination call this spring and has begun developing statewide floodplain management policy priorities for consideration by the VFMA Board later this year. The committee is also creating practical “cheat sheet” resources to help local governments better understand opportunities for advancing climate-informed and resilient floodplain management practices. Next meeting will be on Thursday, June 11 at 12pm. Register here.

Member Feedback and Priorities

Help shape VFMA's future. Share your feedback on what opportunities and resources would be most valuable to you as a member.

Poll

Dear VFMA Members, 

Welcome to 2026! Reflecting on the past year, I am incredibly proud of the progress we’ve made together. While 2025 brought "interesting times"—from rapid technological shifts to evolving regulatory landscapes—the VFMA remained a steadfast resource for the Commonwealth. I want to extend a special thank you to our Board of Directors, who worked tirelessly last year to reinvent our organization and modernize our vision. Their dedication is truly inspiring, and it has set the stage for an even more impactful year ahead.

Looking forward, we have several exciting opportunities to connect and grow. Following the tremendous response to our Fall Webinar Series, I invite you to join us on February 12th for our final session with Rob Young. We are also officially calling for Board nominations and committee volunteers to help shape our future. Most importantly, mark your calendars for our Annual Conference on April 23–24, 2026. The draft program is live, and early bird registration is now open. Thank you for being part of this vital community dedicated to advancing floodplain knowledge across Virginia. 

To read the full president's message, please click here. 

2026 Board of Directors Election

VFMA currently has four (4) Board of Director positions open for election. Each of these positions will serve a two-year term beginning in April 2026. To be eligible for the Board of Directors, you must be an active member of VFMA for at least the year prior to the election.

The nomination period for the 2026 election will close on Friday, March 6, 2026 at 11:59 pm, and the voting period for this election will open Friday, March 13 and close at 11:59 pm on Friday, April 10. Only votes cast by current VFMA members will be counted. The results of this election will be announced at the Annual Conference.

Nomination Form

2026 Virginia Floodplain Management Association Conference

Registration for our 2026 conference in Richmond, April 23-24, is now OPEN! Reserve your spot today.

Register Here

The 2026 VFMA Annual Conference will feature two days of practical, forward-looking sessions designed for floodplain managers, emergency managers, planners, engineers, and resilience professionals from across the Commonwealth.

Attendees can expect:

• State and local perspectives on flood resilience programs, tools, and funding resources
• Real-world case studies highlighting successful floodplain management, dam safety, and emergency response initiatives
• Emerging technologies and data applications, including real-time monitoring, modeling, and the use of advanced analytics to support decision-making
• Nature-based and ecosystem approaches to reducing flood risk and enhancing community resilience
• Pre-disaster mitigation strategies, with a focus on proactive planning and voluntary acquisition programs

The program balances technical content with policy and implementation insights, offering actionable takeaways for both new and experienced practitioners. Built-in networking opportunities throughout the conference provide time to connect with peers, speakers, and partners working on flood risk reduction across Virginia and beyond.

View Full Conference Program

We are also excited to be screening the award-winning documentary, "Built to Last: Buyer Beware," which takes a critical look at flood risk disclosure, development pressures, and policy challenges that directly impact floodplain management and resilience planning.

Ward's Floodplain Model Demonstrations

We are reaching out with a request to VFMA members to serve as volunteers and support demonstrations of the Ward’s Floodplain Model at various public events and in schools in Virginia.

DCR has seen ongoing demand for these requests with several events identified for this spring and would highly appreciate additional help from volunteers. Find more details and sign up to support the demonstrations here.

What is Ward's Floodplain Model?

A physical scale model that helps demonstrate how various factors within the watershed can impact stormwater runoff and flooding - watch an example in in this YouTube video.

Take the VFMA Training Needs Survey

VFMA is collecting feedback from floodplain management professionals to inform our 2026 training slate. Survey results will help align future trainings with certification needs and emerging education gaps across the Commonwealth. Your voice matters—please consider participating.

Education Survey

Webinar: Nothing We Are Doing to Reduce Flood Exposure Is Working

Thursday, February 12, 12pm-1pm

This webinar was originally planned for December and has been rescheduled. If you registered previously, please be sure to register again to secure your spot.

About the Webinar:

Dr. Young will present a national-level critique of flood and storm management policies. The presentation will focus on data inadequacies, perverse policy incentives to do the wrong thing, and the difficulty of translating what we do know into flood management at the local level. His focus is largely coastal, but he will discuss inland flooding as well drawing on lessons form hurricane Helene.

Register Here

Become a Webinar Speaker

Have expertise to share? VFMA welcomes professionals interested in presenting educational sessions. Submit your topic proposal to contribute to the advancement of floodplain management in Virginia.

Contact

Get involved- Join a committee!

Looking for a way to get involved with VFMA? Whether your interests lean toward policy and legislation or toward education, outreach, conference planning, or member engagement, there’s a committee for you. Our committees support a wide range of activities and initiatives that advance floodplain management across the Commonwealth.

All committees meet virtually, making it easy to participate, connect with peers, and contribute in a way that fits your interests and availability. If you’ve been thinking about getting more involved, we’d love to have you join us!

Join a Committee

Dear VFMA Members, 

We're excited to invite you to our upcoming All-Member Call on Friday, October 31. This call will also be open to non-members as we share key updates, discuss VFMA’s priorities for the coming year, and engage in a forward-looking conversation about the challenges and opportunities shaping floodplain management in Virginia

As 2025 comes to a close, VFMA continues to unite a diverse network of flood risk and resiliency professionals. Together, we’ll explore the evolving landscape, from new state funding opportunities to the recent lapse in the National Flood Insurance Program, and consider how we can best support our communities during this period of uncertainty.   

Our vision remains clear: to advance proactive floodplain management across the Commonwealth. Through access to timely information, training, and collaboration, VFMA empowers professionals to reduce flood risk, strengthen resilience, and protect Virginians. No matter how federal directives or political conditions shift, our mission remains steadfast: to apply sound science, share best practices, and develop effective, community-driven solutions.  

We're also pleased to share that conference and other important information are now available on our new and improved VFMA website. Be sure to take a look! 

Please use the link below to register, and join us on Friday, October 31, for this important discussion

Warm Regards,

The VFMA Board 

The next all-member call is scheduled for Noon, Friday, October 31. Please RSVP to receive the agenda and the link to the virtual meeting.

RSVP

The 2026 Annual Conference page is live! Registration will open in January 2026. See more details below.  

Annual Conference

VFMA invites professionals to submit presentation proposals on topics related to the National Flood Insurance Program, local floodplain management, Community Rating System, research and practical applications in floodplain management (to include FEMA, state, local, and other programs), hydrology, hydraulics, dam safety, resiliency, stream restoration, and related water resources subjects. Call for abstracts closes on November 24, 2025. 

Submit an Abstract

Does someone you know go above and beyond for their community? Each year, VFMA recognizes individuals and organizations who have made an outstanding contribution to floodplain management. Help us celebrate excellence by nominating a colleague, community leader, or project for one of our annual awards. The award nomination period will close on February 28, 2026.  

Award Nomination

Showcase your organization and boost your visibility with industry leaders. Multiple sponsorship levels are available to suit your visibility goals.

Sponsorship Opportunities

The Dutch Dialogues 10th Anniversary Conference will now be held on Wednesday, November 5-Friday, November 7 at the Waterside Marriott in Norfolk. As a reminder, government agencies and NGO's receive a special conference rate! Click below to see the agenda and register for the conference. 

Dutch Dialogues