Some communities that have downloaded the final, implementation version of the 2013 CRS Coordinator’s Manual have asked about the Office of Management and Budget “Expiration date” shown on the cover and on other selected pages, such as the community certifications. That date is September 30, 2013, giving an apparently short time frame for the effectiveness of this edition.
The explanation is that FEMA received from OMB what is known as an “emergency approval,” which allows a new, revised document to be implemented until the expiration date that would have applied to the original. In the case of the CRS, OMB approval for the 2007 Coordinator’s Manual was due to expire on September 30, 2013. So the new Coordinator’s Manual with emergency approval expires on that date also. The usual three- year cycle of Coordinator’s Manual revisions and OMB approvals was interrupted as a result of the assessments and revisions undertaken pursuant to the Strategic Plan for the Community Rating System 2008–2013.
FEMA has already requested “regular” approval from OMB, which will extend the 2013 Coordinator’s Manual effectiveness for three more years, to September 30, 2016. The forthcoming new expiration date will not affect the implementation of the 2013 Coordinator’s Manual.