Racine County, WI Environmental Rules: Flood Zones (2026)

Wis. Stat. §87.30(1) compels each county to adopt a reasonable and effective floodplain zoning ordinance for unincorporated land within the 100-year floodplain, and Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 116 (Wisconsin's Floodplain Management Program) sets the minimum standards that the county and each municipality must meet to keep NFIP eligibility. Racine County's floodplain controls are administered by Public Works and Development Services through Chapter 20's Floodplain Zoning provisions and operate as an overlay on FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). Per NR 116.03(28), Wisconsin defines the 'flood protection elevation' as 2 feet above the regional flood elevation, building a 2-foot freeboard into the state code. NR 116.13 prohibits new residential, commercial, and industrial structures in the floodway; in the flood fringe, residential structures must have the lowest floor (including basement) at or above the flood protection elevation, and accessory structures may not be inundated more than 2 feet or subjected to flood velocities greater than 2 feet per second during the regional flood. NR 116.21(4)(b) bars variances that would allow a lower degree of flood protection than the flood protection elevation. Racine County's exposure includes the Root River corridor (flowing east through Caledonia and the City of Racine into Lake Michigan), the Fox River through Burlington and Waterford, the Pike River, and the Lake Michigan coastal shoreline. The Wisconsin DNR maintains effective floodplain mapping; FEMA's Flood Map Service Center publishes the official FIRMs for Racine County. Property owners may use the county's online Floodplain Inquiry Map Application to check whether a parcel is in a Special Flood Hazard Area.