While we’re revamping government under a new administration, it might be time to finally to look at US Flood insurance, we’re not far away from rainy season – PB/TK
Group Calls For U.S. Flood Insurance Revamp As Program Deadline Nears -By Suzanne Barlyn February 1, 2017
(Reuters) – A U.S. flood insurance program that is drowning in billions of dollars in debt can be modernized to bolster its finances while curbing the public’s exposure to flood risks, a national coalition said in a reform proposal unveiled on Wednesday.
The plan by Washington-based SmarterSafer.org calls for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), to use cutting-edge technology that would more precisely determine flood-prone areas, and to price flood insurance premiums in accordance with those specific risks.
Other measures would include greater involvement by private insurers in the flood insurance market and offering incentives for communities to enhance and restore natural buffers against floods, such as wetlands and forests.
The proposal is among the first in a year that could usher in sweeping changes to the flood insurance program, whose authorization is set to expire in September. The program, operated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), is $24.6 billion in debt to the U.S. Treasury Department, a FEMA spokeswoman said. Most of the debt covered claims from Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and Superstorm Sandy in 2012.
Continue to oann.com article: http://www.oann.com/group-calls-for-u-s-flood-insurance-revamp-as-program-deadline-nears-2/
