Gloucester County staff and elected officials have taken steps that will allow each policyholder with the Federal Emergency Management Association’s National Flood Insurance Program to be eligible for a 15 percent discount on annual premiums.

This is because the county significantly enhanced its participation in the Community Rating System (CRS), a rating achieved by only three other Virginia communities, according to Paul Koll, Gloucester’s Building Official/CRS Coordinator.

The 15 percent discount, he said, will result in an average savings of $72 on each policyholder’s annual premium. Overall, he said the county’s CRS accomplishment results in a total annual savings of $119,675 for NFIP policyholders in Gloucester.

According to Koll, several steps were taken to achieve the rating. First, he said in order to attain a CRS Class 7 or better classification, a community must have and maintain a building inspections department building code effectiveness gr...