[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 129 (Tuesday, July 31, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5505-S5506]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM

  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I wish to speak on recent legislation 
extending the National Flood Insurance Program on a short-term basis.
  The National Flood Insurance Program, NFIP, was created in 1968 in 
response to the lack of flood insurance available at the time. The 
program's intent was to encourage folks to protect their homes and 
communities to adopt sound floodplain management standards.
  I would like to reiterate the findings of the 1966 Presidential Task 
Force on Federal Flood Control Policy: ``A flood insurance program is a 
tool that should be used expertly or not at all. Correctly applied it 
could promote wise use of flood plains. Incorrectly applied, it could 
exacerbate the whole problem of flood losses. For the Federal 
Government to subsidize low premium disaster insurance or provide 
insurance in which premiums are not proportionate to risk would be to 
invite economic waste of great magnitude''
  In less than a year, we have extended the program seven times, most 
attached to must-pass bills, without any needed reforms. The program is 
over $20 billion in debt, even though we forgave $16 billion of that 
debt just last year. With our Federal debt now above $21 trillion, we 
need to address the solvency of the NFIP as soon as possible.
  We can begin doing that by bringing some meaningful reform to the 
program, including moving towards more risk-based premiums. More 
importantly, interest from the private flood insurance market is 
growing. Their involvement means more flexible flood policies, 
integrated coverage with other insurance policies, and lower-cost 
coverage for some customers. Increasing private insurance's 
participation in flood insurance markets would reduce the financial 
risk obligations of this program for the Federal Government. I hope 
Congress will further clarify private insurers' role in the flood 
insurance market. As it stands, the NFIP cannot stand on its own feet, 
and it requires significant reforms to put it on sound financial 
footing. I urge my colleagues to find bipartisan, sustainable reforms 
to this program. We must stop kicking the can down the road on the 
necessary reforms needed to make this an effective program.
  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I agree with my colleague that homeowners 
affected by flood disasters would benefit from greater certainty 
through a longer-term reauthorization. I would agree that meaningful 
reform is necessary to sustain the National Flood Insurance Program, 
NFIP. As chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, it is my goal to 
bring bipartisan reform to the program. Our Nation has seen some 
devastating disasters involving floods and related natural disasters, 
especially in the last two decades. With those disasters, the NFIP has 
amassed significant debt to the US Treasury. The underlying program is 
not structurally sound and too few people are protected from flood 
risk. Comprehensive reforms to the program are important to improve the 
program's fiscal condition, ensure more homeowners are covered against 
the risk of loss from flooding, and enable the program to better serve 
current policyholders.
  I agree with Senator Enzi. There is still work to be done to make the 
NFIP

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more sustainable. Any long-term reauthorization must include important 
bipartisan reforms. While short-term extensions are not ideal, short-
term extensions afford Congress needed time to address numerous 
concerns.
  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleague and his 
committee for their efforts to address these concerns. I am hopeful 
reform is just around the corner, and I encourage my colleagues to 
continue to support reform of the National Flood Insurance Program.

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