What was that law suit in Texas about Flood Elevations?

Not sure if this is the one you are wanting.

Link

Miller vs State is the one that is currently in the courts claiming the government did not adequately perform its duty in regulating the profession. I have never read a summary of the case to verify the claim, but I was told that was what it is about.

I really do not think a board of registration would have
jurisdiction. FEMA made the maps; surveyors report the
elevation of a foundation or bench mark.

Don't you just love sloppy reporting by people who don't understand or care about what they are writing.

A Beaumont couple has filed suit against the surveyor who told them a home they would be purchasing sat above sea level when, in fact, the home flooded shortly after the couple moved in.

I don't think it was that simple. Here is a link to the minutes of the TBPLS meeting when they discussed complaint 09-10 and 09-19.

http://www.txls.state.tx.us/13_board_meeting/pdf_minutes/2009%20February.pdf

> I don't think it was that simple. Here is a link to the minutes of the TBPLS meeting when they discussed complaint 09-10 and 09-19.
>
>> http://www.txls.state.tx.us/13_board_meeting/pdf_minutes/2009%20February.pdfbr >
Yes, you can see how the board went wrong in taking the position that the determination of the elevations of structures was somehow a part of boundary surveying. They almost correctly answered Gilley's question

> Is the establishment of an elevation a boundary?

by stating:

> An elevation is considered to be a boundary when it is used as an elevation contour to denote the horizontal limits of real estate interests or to denote the vertical limits of real estate interests.

The use of "real estate interests" is an odd fudge for "real property", although the term "real estate" is generally used synonymously with "real property".

Obviously, a floodplain isn't real property until it is the subject of a separate conveyance and so the boundaries of flood hazard zones are not real property or "real estate" boundaries.

I agree, we have plenty examples of when a contour line describes a property boundary..a gradient boundary and mean high water line being two. I believe a surveyor must be held accountable for the accuracy of his statements on a FEMA Elevation Certificate but not because it describes a “Real Estate Interest”. To state that the shown elevations on an Elevation Certificates creates a vertical boundary for a "Real Estate Interest" takes a lot of imagination.

> I believe a surveyor must be held accountable for the accuracy of his statements on a FEMA Elevation Certificate but not because it describes a “Real Estate Interest”.

So the question becomes: "By whom is a surveyor to be held accountable for a service that isn't professional surveying?". I think that the answer is that his accountability is ordinary tort liability to the person to whom he rendered the service and that the TBPLS made a serious error to intervene in some matter before the courts that didn't involve professional surveying.

Tort liability or deceptive trade practices sounds good to me. Just because the federal government requires a state registered surveyor to prepare federal paperwork does not automatically mean that practice falls under state agency guidance. The feds can always create a federal surveyor if they want. i don't see anything that would be illegal with a surveyor from one state preparing an elevation certificate in a state he was not registered.

> Tort liability or deceptive trade practices sounds good to me. Just because the federal government requires a state registered surveyor to prepare federal paperwork does not automatically mean that practice falls under state agency guidance. The feds can always create a federal surveyor if they want. i don't see anything that would be illegal with a surveyor from one state preparing an elevation certificate in a state he was not registered.

Robert,

I said the same thing just yesterday. It is my belief that the Federal EC's do not fall under state jurisdiction in Texas nor in many other states.

SJ