[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 128 (Monday, July 30, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5443-S5444]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                    National Flood Insurance Program

  Mr. WICKER. Madam President, I intend to speak for a few moments as 
in morning business concerning the National Flood Insurance Program, 
which is set to expire tomorrow night at midnight, July 31, and which 
certainly this body will not allow to expire. We will undoubtedly 
reauthorize the program and not leave millions of Americans without 
flood protection at the height of the Atlantic hurricane season.
  The House has sent us legislation that provides for a clean 
reauthorization, temporary as it may be. It will keep the program going 
without injecting reforms or changes, and it reassures homeowners and 
property owners across the country who rely on this program that it 
will still be there and that they can count on it.
  We are not bathing ourselves in glory by doing this. I think we would 
all acknowledge that passing this reauthorization right before the 
deadline does not entitle us to pat ourselves on the back. Instead, it 
should motivate Members to work across the aisle to provide meaningful 
reforms. I have a suggestion or two for some meaningful reforms when we 
take this up on a permanent basis.
  We may have assured Americans today and tomorrow that when we act on 
this, they can rely on the National Flood Insurance Program through 
November, but we need to assure them that they can rely on the program 
for the next year, for the next 5 years, or for 10 years. That will be 
a challenge over the next several months.
  We need to make this program financially sustainable for the long 
term, but we also need to assure property owners that they are not 
going to be hit with a huge insurance bill they can't afford. History 
does not provide the public with very much encouragement with regard to 
actually getting some reforms done. We have to keep it going with a 
patchwork.
  Out of the 41 times that the National Flood Insurance Program has 
been reauthorized over the past 20 years, reforms have been included 
only 3 times out of 41. That is not a great record. I hope that before 
the end of this calendar year, we can add a fourth substantive change 
to make some progress.
  One thing I hope we can do is to enact the changes to the COASTAL Act 
in a bill that I have introduced called the COASTAL Implementation Act. 
If you recall, after Hurricane Katrina, we saw how discrepancies 
between wind damage and water damage on the total-loss properties often 
prevented property owners from being made whole. There was a dispute 
between the flood insurance folks and the wind insurance folks, and the 
property owner was caught in the middle.
  The COASTAL Act and the followup COASTAL Implementation Act seeks to 
address these discrepancies with better data collection and more 
accurate poststorm assessments. More specifically, we want NOAA, or the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to be able to assess 
the strength of wind and water at affected sites. With sound data, the 
property owners can receive fair compensation for their losses--some, 
perhaps, from the flood insurance coverage, and some from the wind 
insurance coverage. Reducing cases of ``indeterminate losses'' would 
ultimately reduce costs to the National Flood Insurance Program and 
better serve the public.
  My other reform proposal also seeks to arm us with better data. I 
call this legislation the MEMA Act, which stands for Municipality 
Empowerment Mapping Achievement. Under this act, FEMA would publish the 
NFIP's rate maps. These maps would cover the entire United States, and 
they would be created using the latest technology. Information on an 
area's flood hazard risks should be accessible and comprehensive.
  Accurate maps can also help to draw businesses to our smaller 
communities. Without this information, these businesses might go to a 
nearby urban area to invest. The playing field should be leveled in 
this regard. Other ideas, such as competition from the private sector, 
can help to bring down high flood insurance rates.
  What we don't want to do is to drive folks away from coastal areas. 
Forty

[[Page S5444]]

percent of our population lives in a coastal county. There are 56 
million jobs there, and more than $8 trillion is produced in goods and 
services, according to NOAA.
  Let's also not forget about our rivers and inland waterways. The 
Mississippi River, for example, accounts for a $400 billion annual 
economic impact. When communities near a river, lake, or ocean suffer, 
the effects can ripple across the whole Nation. Try as we might, we 
can't prevent floods. We can mitigate and try to guard against them and 
try to strengthen our protection, but we can't eliminate flooding from 
happening. They are the most frequent natural disaster. We should do 
what we can to mitigate the damage and costs.
  It is also worth reminding my colleagues that the National Flood 
Insurance Program is a program that serves ordinary people--workers and 
families who are just trying to make an honest living and who do not 
want to see everything they have washed away in a flood. These 5 
million Americans pay their flood insurance premiums, and they should 
be able to live without worry that should a disaster strike, they will 
be left high and dry.
  I call on my colleagues in the next day and a half to pass this 
short-term authorization, and, certainly, we will do that on a 
bipartisan basis. Then, let's give the Banking Committee and people who 
are concentrating on this issue some bipartisan support to pass much 
needed reforms.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
order for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.