After nearly a century of flood policies in the U.S., losses have continued to increase. This thesis examined the potential increase in losses related to the 100-yr floodplain, which is the minimum standard for implementing policies. Despite this core role, as much as 1.5 vertical meters of uncertainty exists when delineating the boundray. However, no uncertainty is provided on flood maps, which could result in increased socioeconomic exposure adjacent to the boundary when a larger flood occurs. This thesis quantified the effectiveness of mitigation from 1990 to 2000 for five North Carolina counties by examining changes in exposure inside and adjacent to the 100-yr floodplain. Findings indicated mitigation efforts have been effective inside the 100-yr floodplain; however, there was a significant increase in exposure adjacent to this floodplain. Stream scale analyses indicated mitigation effectiveness was influenced by stream size, distance from the stream, and location in urban versus rural areas
