[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 152 (Wednesday, November 16, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H10336-H10339]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM FURTHER ENHANCED BORROWING AUTHORITY 
                              ACT OF 2005

  Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 4133) to temporarily increase the borrowing authority of the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency for carrying out the national flood 
insurance program.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4133

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``National Flood Insurance 
     Program Further Enhanced Borrowing Authority Act of 2005''.

[[Page H10337]]

     SEC. 2. INCREASE IN BORROWING AUTHORITY.

       The first sentence of subsection (a) of section 1309 of the 
     National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4016(a)), as 
     amended by the National Flood Insurance Program Enhanced 
     Borrowing Authority Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-65; 119 Stat. 
     1998), is amended by striking ``$3,500,000,000'' and 
     inserting ``$8,500,000,000''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Ney) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ney).
  Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to offer my support today to Congressman 
Fitzpatrick's efforts to increase the borrowing authority for the 
National Flood Insurance Program through H.R. 4133, the additional 
borrowing authority for the National Flood Insurance Program.
  Last month in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, I 
introduced H.R. 3669, the National Flood Insurance Program Enhanced 
Borrowing Authority Act of 2005. That piece of legislation increased 
FEMA's borrowing authority for flood insurance by $2 billion, which 
went a long way in helping the Department's flood insurance response at 
that time.
  The Fitzpatrick bill would provide an additional $5 billion in 
borrowing authority to help ensure that the NFIP has sufficient funding 
on a cash basis in the short term. This bill would allow FEMA to 
continue payment of the initial claims resulting from Hurricanes 
Katrina, Rita and Wilma, while the administration further evaluates the 
extent of the damage and the most potential means to cover all 
potential claims.
  Last month, the Housing Subcommittee received testimony from the 
director of National Flood Insurance Program, who estimated that 
Katrina and Rita flood insurance claims could exceed $22 billion. These 
claims from those whose homes or businesses have been damaged or 
destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, Rita, and now Wilma, are not a new 
obligation. I would like to stress that it is not a new obligation. 
They are the result of a legal promise that we, the United States 
Government, have made to these homeowners and business owners when 
Congress passed the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 and subsequent 
revisions.
  Homeowners and business owners agreed to pay premiums, communities 
agreed to adopt building codes to mitigate flood dangers, and the 
Federal Government agreed to provide insurance coverage to 
policyholders after a disaster.
  Every single one of these claims represents someone who has taken the 
responsible course of action by purchasing flood insurance and paying 
premiums to the United States Government. We not only have a legal 
obligation, Mr. Speaker, to honor our commitments but we have a moral 
obligation to provide the coverage we have promised to provide to these 
citizens who have been through so much in their lives.
  The Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity already held 
four hearings this year on this important program, including an August 
field hearing in rural Ohio.
  As the damage assessments and insurance claims begin to come in from 
the gulf coast region, we will continue our oversight of course of the 
NFIP. The National Flood Insurance Program is a valuable tool in 
addressing the losses incurred throughout this country due to floods. 
It ensures that businesses and families have access to affordable flood 
insurance that would not be available on the open market.
  It is a pleasure to be here today with my friend from Georgia (Mr. 
Scott). I would like to commend the Members who have supported this 
bill and give due diligence and a real thank you to the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick), who has stepped up to the plate to 
carry this bill and do the right thing to help people that are in very 
severe trauma right now in their lives.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, it is indeed a pleasure to be here and to be here with 
my good friend from Ohio (Mr. Ney) on this very, very important and 
timely subject.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, H.R. 4133, which is the 
National Flood Insurance Program Further Enhanced Borrowing Authority 
Act of 2005, which would temporarily increase the borrowing authority 
of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for carrying out the 
National Flood Insurance Program.
  This bill increases the borrowing authority by $5 billion to $8.5 
billion. While this is a dramatic and unprecedented increase, it still 
will not be enough. Estimates are that the flood insurance program will 
need upwards of $30 billion to pay the claims from the unprecedented 
hurricane season led by Hurricane Katrina, and paying the claims is the 
contractual obligation of the Federal Government to those people who 
paid for and maintained policies under this important government 
program.
  It goes without saying that the flood insurance program needs to be 
reformed so that it can meet the needs that arise from unprecedented 
disasters. Additionally, additional funding should come with an 
assurance that we are not going to put people right back in harm's way. 
We need to prevent this same situation from occurring in the future.
  Today, this morning, the Financial Services Committee is debating a 
bill that will be a good start at that reform. I was present this 
morning and participated in that debate where many of my colleagues on 
the committee spoke passionately and set forth ideas and plans to 
respond to the Katrina tragedy and to help homeowners get back on their 
feet.
  It is clear that my colleagues care, and I am pleased to reported 
that reform legislation that will benefit people living in harm's way 
is on its way to this floor.
  Mr. Speaker, it is so fitting because there is just one week before 
Thanksgiving and; as we go home this weekend and next weekend, it will 
be comforting to know that while we are in the comfort of celebrating 
Thanksgiving, that we are also putting forward this measure today which 
gives a measure of thankfulness and giving.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a necessary bill which fulfills our obligation 
to people who have legitimate and legal claims under the flood 
insurance program and who need that money now to begin rebuilding their 
shattered lives.
  I urge swift passage.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick), the sponsor of the bill.
  Mr. FITZPATRICK of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman 
for his leadership and the leadership of the gentleman from Georgia 
(Mr. Scott) with regard to the National Flood Insurance Program and the 
willingness of assistance to flood victims throughout the United 
States.

                              {time}  1415

  Mr. Speaker, no one could have anticipated the sheer amount of 
devastation that was brought upon this Nation in the wake of Hurricanes 
Rita and Katrina. Cities, towns, entire communities along the gulf 
coast were practically wiped out and off the map due to high flooding, 
pounding wind and constant driving rain.
  Although Congress took immediate action to pass a supplemental relief 
package to assist the impacted communities along the gulf, one 
important program in particular remains in need of our attention and of 
our support, the National Flood Insurance Program.
  I am pleased to bring to the floor today H.R. 4133, the National 
Flood Insurance Program Further Enhanced Borrowing Act of 2005. This 
important piece of legislation will empower residents of the gulf coast 
by increasing the National Flood Insurance Program's ability to borrow 
funds from the U.S. Treasury to cover claims resulting from these 
recent and devastating hurricanes.
  Congress authorized the National Flood Insurance Program in 1968 
following a series of historic hurricanes in the mid-1950s and 1960s. 
At that time, Mr. Speaker, affordable flood insurance was not generally 
available from the private insurance industry. The concept that gave 
birth to this program

[[Page H10338]]

was the idea that the Federal Government would make flood insurance 
available to the people if their local governments agreed to adopt and 
enforce measures to make future construction safer from flooding.
  The National Flood Insurance Program provides insurance at actuarial, 
risk-based rates, including consideration for catastrophic losses. 
Currently, more than 20,000 communities in all 50 States and U.S. 
territories voluntarily participate in the National Flood Insurance 
Program, and the program insures in excess of $800 billion in assets, 
which breaks down to more than 4.7 million policies for homes, for 
businesses and other non-residential properties.
  Since 1986, the National Flood Insurance Program has been financially 
self-supporting for the average historic loss year, but during periods 
of high losses, the NFIP has borrowed from the United States Treasury. 
Each time the NFIP has had to borrow from the Treasury, the loans have 
been repaid with interest from policyholder premiums and related fees, 
and at no cost to this Nation's taxpayers.
  However, the impact of Katrina and Rita will place a historic strain 
on the National Flood Insurance Program. Simply put, the National Flood 
Insurance Program was not designed to handle a series of events such as 
those we have experienced throughout the current hurricane season.
  For example, Mr. Speaker, and this statistic is staggering, since the 
program's inception, the National Flood Insurance Program has paid out 
a total of $15 billion in claims to cover more than 1.3 million 
reported losses. For this hurricane season, FEMA estimates that more 
than 225,000 Katrina and Rita NFIP claims are likely to be filed, 
exceeding $22 billion, a number far surpassing the total amount of 
claims paid throughout the entire history of the National Flood 
Insurance Program.
  Although the President signed into law H.R. 3669, which increased the 
borrowing authority by $2 billion, current flood insurance claims 
projection for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita indicate additional 
borrowing authority will be necessary. My legislation will temporarily 
increase FEMA's borrowing authority for flood insurance by $5 billion.
  Mr. Speaker, FEMA is quickly running out of money. We need to act now 
to enable this stopgap measure to cover claims from the gulf coast. We 
should not think of this as a new obligation. It is not. Instead, it is 
a necessary step to keep a legal promise that Congress made to 
homeowners and business owners when Congress passed the National Flood 
Insurance Act of 1968. We have a moral obligation to honor our 
commitments and to provide the coverage we have promised to provide and 
help flood victims who need to rebuild their homes and their lives.
  I ask my colleagues for their support and seek passage of this 
important legislation.
  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the 
distinguished gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague from Georgia's 
courtesy in permitting me to speak on this bill, and I rise in support 
of it. It is a very important initial step that we need to make.
  I take modest exception with my friend, the primary sponsor of this 
legislation, because I do think the range of disasters actually were, 
in fact, foreseeable and foreseen. I have been talking about this 
precise situation on the floor of the House for several years. It is 
one of the reasons why I worked in the previous Congress to deal with 
the reform of the Flood Insurance Act that was signed by President Bush 
last summer.
  As I mentioned the last time we had an extension on the floor to 
extend the borrowing authority, this is absolutely critical. We must do 
it, we should do it, but it is only part of an overall solution.
  I deeply appreciate the leadership that has been displayed by 
Chairman Oxley, Ranking Member Frank and Mr. Ney and Ms. Waters in the 
hearing that was held today in Financial Services, looking at the long-
term consequences of the flood insurance program and where it needs to 
go.
  The simple fact is that what we saw in the gulf region from East 
Texas to the Florida Panhandle is not something that is unforeseen or 
something that is not going to occur again. In fact, science tells us 
that we are seeing coastal erosion. We have seen increases in storm 
events. Over 70 percent of the American population lives in areas where 
they are in harm's way to one or more natural disasters, of which 
flooding is the most frequent and the most damaging. We need to not 
just extend the borrowing authority. We need to look at the 
fundamentals of the program as Financial Services did today.
  It is time to stop the fiction that somehow a levee protects people 
and they should not have flood insurance. People behind the levee in 
the 100-year flood plain absolutely should be mandated to have flood 
insurance, since we are at the point where the ``flood of the century'' 
is happening two times a decade. We need to change that definition, and 
in fact, the proposal to study or even extend flood insurance 
requirements for people in the 500-year flood plain is probably in 
order.
  We need to be looking consistently at the big picture. We cannot 
afford to throw more and more taxpayer dollars at people who are going 
to repeatedly be in harm's way. Our hearts go out to the victims of 
Katrina and Rita, and I absolutely approve this legislation and 
extending the borrowing authority and not burying it in the flood 
insurance rates. That is not fair to everybody else.
  However, we do need to make fundamental changes in that program, 
build on the reforms of last session. We need to make sure that people 
in repetitive flood loss situations are either moved out of harm's way 
or they flood proof their property. FEMA must get on the stick in 
implementing the reforms that we passed last session, and we need to 
expand the scope of the program itself.
  This will make sure that people change their behaviors. It will put 
more money into the program by people who should be investing in it, 
and we will be able to have a more coordinated approach to make sure 
that we are not only fiscally responsible but we are helping people 
stay out of harm's way in the first place.
  Last but by no means least, Mr. Speaker, our attention needs to go 
beyond the flood insurance program. We have people who are in danger 
for wind storms, mud slides, wildfires, forest fires. I have already 
mentioned coastal erosion. This is all part of a big picture, to sort 
out the limits of where the Federal Government provides relief as a 
last resort for an unforeseen natural disaster and where the private 
sector steps in to extend the principle of insurance.
  Along the way, we make some changes so that State and local 
governments are responsible for what happens in their communities. I 
must say, as I began working on issues related to Katrina recovery, I 
was stunned to find that there were three Louisiana parishes and seven 
Mississippi counties that do not even have building codes. I am not 
talking about comprehensive plans and zoning. I am talking about 
building codes. It is time that we coordinate what we do on the Federal 
Government to provide resources, carrots and sticks, to make sure that 
we have a balanced partnership to save people's lives, limit damage 
and, of course, be responsible with the taxpayers' money.
  Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
Pennsylvania (Ms. Hart).
  (Ms. HART asked and was given permission to revise and extend her 
remarks.)
  Ms. HART. Mr. Speaker, I especially thank Chairman Ney, the gentleman 
from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick), and the gentleman from Georgia 
(Mr. Scott) for moving this legislation today and Chairman Oxley as 
well of the Financial Services Committee.
  There has been a significant amount of attention paid to the National 
Flood Insurance Program, especially in recent years, as we have seen an 
increased number of hurricanes and events causing serious flooding 
across the Nation.
  I rise in support of the gentleman from Pennsylvania's legislation. 
He clearly has identified an issue that is part of the problem with 
getting relief for people who actually have purchased and paid premiums 
over a number of years for flood insurance, that we need to have enough 
there to help them recover.

[[Page H10339]]

  I also want to highlight a need that we have regarding review of the 
flood insurance program, to make improvements to that program, and I 
want to thank Chairman Ney for also holding hearings on that issue and 
allowing many of our constituents to participate. I want to compliment 
his Housing Subcommittee for examining this program at a hearing, 
especially on the 14th of April and a series of follow-ups.
  Fourteen months ago, there was a significant flooding event that 
affected most of my district with quite severe flooding. Many homes and 
businesses suffered extensive damage. My staff and I worked hard to 
assist constituents with as many of their NFIP claims as we could. 
Unfortunately, still this many months later, many of my constituents 
have not had their claims settled. Their property is still 
uninhabitable, and they are still living with families or friends or in 
hotels.
  This is not an isolated incident. It is not just Western 
Pennsylvania. It includes many of our colleagues who have testified and 
have brought their constituents to the hearing I mentioned from 
Virginia, Maryland, Florida and other States.
  The problems fall into three main categories: One, improper coverage. 
They were ill-informed and purchased policies that were not 
appropriate. Two, they just had inaccurate information about the 
adjustments and low estimates, therefore, not recovering enough money. 
Three, they had difficulty contesting or challenging estimates that 
were incorrect.
  I hope that additional assistance will be provided that is offered in 
the gentleman's bill to make sure claims can be settled and we can 
continue helping people, but I also hope that the committee will 
continue to address many of the problems that my constituents and many 
other victims around the country have faced, continue the review and 
revamping of this program, on which so many people depend and often at 
a very tragic time so that it will help them recover, not hinder them.
  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for 
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. NEY. Mr. Speaker, let me again thank the gentleman from Georgia 
(Mr. Scott) and the staff of the minority and the majority for their 
fine work on this and, of course, gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Fitzpatrick) who has shown great interest in these issues, again 
helping people in his area and across the United States.
  Mr. BOUSTANY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a proud cosponsor of H.R. 
4133, the National Flood Insurance Program Further Enhanced Borrowing 
Authority Act of 2005. This bill recognizes the need for increased 
borrowing authority under the National Flood Insurance Plan.
  Last year, the 2004 hurricane season resulted in over 75,000 claims 
totaling close to $2 billion dollars paid out in NFIP coverage. Today, 
FEMA estimates that more than 225,000 Katrina and Rita-related NFIP 
claims are likely to be filed, exceeding $22 billion, and far 
surpassing claims paid in the entire history of this program.
  Many of my constituents in Southwest Louisiana have been devastated 
by the loss of home and property since Hurricane Rita struck. They are 
anxious to rebuild, but local communities need Federal resources so 
they can begin to recover and rebuild their infrastructure and 
neighborhoods.
  Now, FEMA is quickly running out of money. This legislation would 
allow for a temporary increase in FEMA's borrowing authority from $3.5 
billion to $8.5 billion, through 2008.
  These claims are not a new obligation, but rather the result of a 
legal promise our government made to these homeowners and business 
owners when Congress passed the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968.
  Mr. Speaker, the flood victims in Southwest Louisiana, and throughout 
the Gulf region, need to rebuild their homes and their lives. Congress 
not only has a legal obligation, but a moral obligation to assist them 
in this effort. I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this 
bill.
  Mr. Ney. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boozman). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ney) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4133.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________