[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 21 (Tuesday, February 4, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E162]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  FEMA FLOOD INSURANCE RATE INCREASES

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                         HON. JAMES R. LANGEVIN

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 4, 2014

  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Speaker, my Rhode Island communities have been 
battered. They have been battered by the financial crisis and a slowly 
recovering economy, and they have been battered by Mother Nature, from 
the floods of 2010 to Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Now, as we finally 
emerge from the worst economy since the Great Depression, our citizens 
who managed to hold on to their homes through economic hardship and 
uncertainty are facing yet another challenge--sharp rate increases to 
their flood insurance policies.
  We need to pass the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act 
today, and send it on to the President for his signature. Our 
communities cannot wait any longer for relief from steep rate 
increases. Rhode Island families have told me they are facing flood 
insurance rates upwards of $35,000, and they are scared of losing their 
homes. This is simply unconscionable.
  This legislation passed the Senate last Thursday with a strong 
bipartisan vote of 67-32; 182 bipartisan Members in the House are 
cosponsors of the House companion legislation. There is no reason for 
the Republican House Leadership to deny us a vote on this critical 
relief.
  Implementing a delay in rate increases will give FEMA the time it 
needs to complete an affordability study and develop recommendations to 
assist homeowners who cannot afford their premiums. Without it, 
thousands of our middle-class homeowners will continue to suffer from 
the uncertainty of not knowing whether the cost of flood insurance will 
make homeownership unaffordable.
  I urge my colleagues to support consideration of the Homeowner Flood 
Insurance Affordability Act, and provide immediate relief for our 
families and communities.

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