The passage in the House of Representatives of the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011, H.R. 1309, would be the 10th such extension in the last three years for the NFIP program. But for the first time during that stretch the program would receive a much needed overhaul.The extension would also set new rates for certain flood areas in order to bring the cost of Flood Insurance back in line with current actuaries.
While the bill is now working its way through the Senate, it currently sits in the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report found that with the changes in premiums and deductibles, there is no net change to the Federal budget with the passage of this bill. The bill passed the House on July 12th and was read in the Senate on July 27th after procedural motions.
If the Senate does not act on the bill the current extension would again lapse after September 30th, 2011.
The National Association of REALTORS continues its Call to Action urging congress to pass the NFIP legislation prior to the end of September, stating that during the June 2010 lapse in Flood Insurance coverage (the last such lapse) there were 47,000 transactions that were either delayed or cancelled
Written and Published by: VanEd
