Kern County, CA Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- Freeboard required
- 1 foot above base flood elevation
- Shallow flooding areas
- 1-2 feet above FIRM depth number
- Detached accessory structures
- Below BFE if ≤600 sq ft, one story
- Certification required from
- Registered engineer, architect, or surveyor
- Enforcing office
- Floodplain administrator
Summary
In unincorporated Kern County, new construction and substantial improvements in a special flood hazard area must have the lowest floor, including any basement, elevated at least one foot above the base flood elevation, with elevation certified by a licensed engineer, architect, or surveyor.
Except for areas of shallow flooding, new construction, substantial improvement and other proposed new development of any structure in a special flood hazard area shall have the lowest floor, including basement, elevated one foot above the base flood elevation. Nonresidential structures may meet the standards in Section 17.48.270(C). Qualifying uninhabitable attached garages or storage rooms and accessory structures (such as a shed or detached garages) may meet the elevation requirements of Section 17.48.270(E). Certification of the lowest floor elevation shall be provided in accordance with the Kern County Residential Code or the Kern County Building Code. Upon completion of the structure, the elevation of the lowest floor, including basement and top of platform of equipment or machinery servicing the building, shall be certified by a registered professional engineer, architect, or licensed land surveyor, or verified by the building official to be properly elevated. Such certification or verification shall be provided to the floodplain administrator.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 59 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
270 sets the county's freeboard standard: outside areas of shallow flooding, the lowest floor of any new structure or substantial improvement in a special flood hazard area must sit at least one foot above the base flood elevation shown on the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map. 270(C), which requires the structure be watertight to one foot above base flood level with walls substantially impermeable to water passage and structural components able to resist hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads. 270(B): the lowest floor must clear the shallow-flooding depth number on the FIRM by at least one foot, or two feet if no depth number is shown.
270(D). Detached garages and accessory storage structures can sit below base flood elevation if they are one story and no larger than 600 square feet. 210. 300.
Violations & Fines
Building without the required elevation certification, or constructing below the one-foot freeboard standard, exposes an owner to code enforcement action under Section 17.48.230 and can jeopardize the structure's National Flood Insurance Program eligibility, since certification must be on file with the floodplain administrator before occupancy. Variances from the freeboard rule are granted only in narrow circumstances defined in Section 17.48.370, such as small infill lots surrounded by existing below-grade structures, historic structure rehabilitation, or specific agricultural buildings meeting wet floodproofing standards, and never within a designated floodway if they would raise flood levels.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much above base flood elevation must a new home's floor sit in unincorporated Kern County?
Can a detached garage be built below the base flood elevation in Kern County?
Who certifies that a structure meets Kern County's freeboard requirement?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kern County
California rules heatmap·Compare Kern County to another location·View the California environmental rules overview
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