The Biden administration’s proposed major overhaul to the National Flood Insurance Program, or NFIP, would drastically alter how Americans protect homes and businesses against flooding.
The administration recently announced 17 legislative proposals that would represent the biggest reform to the NFIP since the program’s inception. One change would be a nationwide disclosure law that would ensure that prospective homeowners and renters have a property’s flood history before signing a contract. Today, 21 states have no such law.
Another proposal would prevent NFIP from issuing any new insurance policies for commercial buildings no matter where they’re located or when they were built because FEMA says it wants to promote growth in the private flood insurance market. Americans hoping to build new homes on eroding beaches and other flood-prone areas would also have to look elsewhere for insurance.
Homeowners would have to go to private insurance companies, which typically charge more expensive insurance premiums. People who hold mortgages on properties that flood multiple times and require insurance payouts of at least $10,000 each time, could lose access to government insurance on their properties after the fourth claim.
The proposals must pass Congress to become law, but there is support from both sides of the political aisle with a view that the status quo is becoming financially unsustainable.
Related Stories
Codes and Standards | Jul 29, 2020
Crackdowns grow on construction firms that fail to follow COVID-19 guidelines
States, cities, and OSHA enforce social distancing, hand-washing regulations.
Codes and Standards | Jul 28, 2020
California utility adopts climate emergency declaration
Sacramento-region company commits to working towards carbon neutrality by 2030.
Codes and Standards | Jul 27, 2020
Updated Energy Plus and OpenStudio building energy modeling tools released
Software offers performance enhancements.
Codes and Standards | Jul 23, 2020
North Carolina will stop relying on FEMA flood mapping
State will identify flood zones on its own.
Codes and Standards | Jul 22, 2020
New version of IAPMO’s Water Demand Calculator is available
Enhanced features include selection between single- and multifamily buildings.
Codes and Standards | Jul 22, 2020
Mobile app calculates sound transmission for wood-framed assemblies
American Wood Council tool for floor-ceiling assemblies.
Codes and Standards | Jul 22, 2020
Architecture billings remain in negative territory, begin to stabilize
Fewer architecture firms report declining billings this month.
Codes and Standards | Jul 20, 2020
N.Y. construction firm to pay $1.5 million to settle sexual harassment claim
Managers said to demand sex for pay and OT opportunities.
Codes and Standards | Jul 16, 2020
Tips to make optimal use of salvaged materials
Integrated teams, staging warehouse, and looking early and often, among recommendations.
Codes and Standards | Jul 15, 2020
Georgia gives the go-ahead for tall mass timber construction
Standards review scheduled to be completed by July 2021.
