1.This Act may be cited as
the Flood Insurance Choice Act of
2007
.
2.Section 102(c) of the
Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4012a(c)) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
(3)
(A)Notwithstanding any
other provision of this Act, or the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, any
individual homeowner who satisfies the requirements under subparagraph (B)
shall not be required to purchase flood insurance on any property, including
any property in an area that has been identified by the Administrator as an
area having special flood hazards.
(B)The
requirements referred to in subparagraph (A) are as follows:
(i)Written
certification to the Administrator and CommunityThe individual
homeowner shall certify, in writing, to the Administrator and the State,
community, or local official responsible for zoning and building codes over the
area in which such property is located that the individual—
(I)elects not to
participate in the flood insurance program under the National Flood Insurance
Act of 1968; and
(II)understands and
willfully accepts any and all adverse consequence that attach to such an
election, including—
- (aa)denial of any
Federal financial assistance under this Act or the National Flood Insurance Act
of 1968;
- (bb)denial of any
Federal financial assistance for acquisition or construction purposes under
this Act or the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968;
- (cc)denial of any
Federal financial assistance under sections 404, 408, and 425 of the Robert T.
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act for damage as a result,
in whole or in part, of a flood; or
- (dd)loss of value to
the property.
(ii)Recording of
certification
(I)The individual homeowner shall file the certification
required under clause (i) with the appropriate State or local agency
responsible for recording deeds, liens, or mortgages of real property in which
the property that is the subject of such certification is located.
(II)The recording of the certification under clause (i)
shall—
- (aa)attach to the
property that is the subject of such certification; and
- (bb)bind the current
owner of the property and all future owners of the property, including
successor in interests, assigns, or heirs, who at any time hold title to all or
any portion of such property.
(III)
- (aa)The current owner and any future owner, the personal
representative of any such owner, the estate of any deceased owner, or any
qualified heir of a deceased owner (as such term is defined in section 2032A(e)
of the Internal Revenue Code) may voluntarily file a document terminating the
effect of the certification required under clause (i) with the appropriate
State or local agency responsible for recording, deeds, liens, or mortgages of
real property in which the affected real property interest is located.
- (bb)The
effect of filing any termination under item (aa) shall be to void the
certification under clause (i).
(C)Base flood
elevation requirementsAn individual homeowner that has elected
not to purchase flood insurance under this paragraph with respect to property
owned by such individual shall not be required to comply with any base flood
elevation requirements under this Act or the National Flood Insurance Act of
1968 for such
property.
.
3.Ensuring that
communities are not adversely affected by individuals who opt-out
(a)Section 1315(a) of
the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4022(a)) is amended—
(1)by redesignating
paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
(2)by inserting
after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph:
(2)No penalty for
areas where individuals opt-outThe prohibition described under
paragraph (1) shall not be construed to apply to any area that has complied
with requirements under that paragraph but for those individuals that have
elected to opt-out of the flood insurance program under section 102(c)(3) of
the Flood Disaster Protection Act of
1973.
.
(b)Section 202 of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of
1973 (42 U.S.C. 4106) is amended—
(1)by redesignating
subsection (b) as subsection (c); and
(2)by inserting
after subsection (a) the following new subsection:
(b)No penalty for
areas where individuals opt-out
(1)The prohibition described under subsection (a) shall not
be construed to apply to any community that has complied with requirements
under that subsection but for those individuals that have elected to opt-out of
the flood insurance program under section 102(c)(3).
(2)Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to
require any Federal agency or officer to provide any financial assistance for
acquisition or construction purposes to any individuals that have elected to
opt-out of the flood insurance program under section
102(c)(3).
.
(c)Section 1366(c) of the National Flood Insurance Act of
1968 (42 U.S.C. 4104c(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following new
sentence: A State or community shall not be considered ineligible to
receive financial assistance under this section for mitigation activities
solely because individuals in that State or community have elected to opt-out
of the flood insurance program under section 102(c)(3) of the Flood Disaster
Protection Act of 1973.
.
4.Denial of relief
under Stafford ActTitle IV of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
5170 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
427.Denial of
assistance for individuals who have opted-out of the flood insurance
program
(a)No individual or household shall receive any assistance
under section 404, 408, or 425, with respect to property owned by that
individual or household, if such assistance is needed as a result, in whole or
in part, of a flood, and such individual or household has elected with respect
to such property to opt-out of the flood insurance program under section
102(c)(3) of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973.
(b)As used in this section, the term flood has
the same meaning as in section 1370 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968
(42 U.S.C. 4121).