Hinds County, MS Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)

Section 1901 of the Zoning Ordinance sets three conditions before any building or use is allowed in the Flood Plain District, and two of them are the county's freeboard requirement. Before a permit issues, the applicant must submit evidence to the building permit department that the premises can be protected from inundation, by fill, levee, or other means, without undue interference to the flow of any watercourse or to any necessary impounding basin; that evidence has to be transmitted to, verified, and approved by the Hinds County Engineer.

Once that clears, residential buildings and substantial improvements to them must have the lowest floor, including the basement, elevated by landfill or piers above the base flood elevation. Nonresidential buildings get a second option: elevate the lowest floor the same way, or flood-proof the structure in lieu of elevating it. These conditions apply on top of whatever else the underlying zoning district requires, and on top of the county's separate 1987 Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance, referenced in Section 1900. 01 unless the Board of Supervisors approves greater height through Site Plan Review under Section 2408.

The Director of Permit and Zoning will not issue a building permit in the FP District until the County Engineer's approval of the flood-protection evidence is on file, making the engineer's sign-off a practical prerequisite to construction anywhere in the mapped special flood hazard area.