★

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1309 

AN ACT 

To extend the authorization of the national flood insurance 

program, to achieve reforms to improve the financial 

integrity and stability of the program, and to increase 

the role of private markets in the management of flood 

insurance risk, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Extensions. 

Sec. 3. Mandatory purchase. 

Sec. 4. Reforms of coverage terms. 

Sec. 5. Reforms of premium rates. 

Sec. 6. Technical Mapping Advisory Council. 

Sec. 7. FEMA incorporation of new mapping protocols. 

Sec. 8. Treatment of levees. 

Sec. 9. Privatization initiatives. 

Sec. 10. FEMA annual report on insurance program. 

Sec. 11. Mitigation assistance. 

Sec. 12. Notification to homeowners regarding mandatory purchase requirement applicability and rate phase-ins. 

Sec. 13. Notification to members of congress of flood map revisions and updates. 

Sec. 14. Notification and appeal of map changes; notification to communities 

of establishment of flood elevations. 

Sec. 15. Notification to tenants of availability of contents insurance. 

Sec. 16. Notification to policy holders regarding direct management of policy by 

FEMA. 

Sec. 17. Notice of availability of flood insurance and escrow in RESPA good 

faith estimate. 

Sec. 18. Reimbursement for costs incurred by homeowners and communities obtaining letters of map amendment or revision. 

Sec. 19. Enhanced communication with certain communities during map updating process. 

Sec. 20. Notification to residents newly included in flood hazard areas. 

Sec. 21. Treatment of swimming pool enclosures outside of hurricane season. 

Sec. 22. Information regarding multiple perils claims. 

Sec. 23. FEMA authority to reject transfer of policies. 

Sec. 24. Appeals. 

Sec. 25. Reserve fund. 

Sec. 26. CDBG eligibility for flood insurance outreach activities and community 

building code administration grants. 

Sec. 27. Technical corrections. 

Sec. 28. Requiring competition for national flood insurance program policies. 

Sec. 29. Studies of voluntary community-based flood insurance options. 

Sec. 30. Report on inclusion of building codes in floodplain management criteria. 

Sec. 31. Study on graduated risk. 

Sec. 32. Report on flood-in-progress determination. 

Sec. 33. Study on repaying flood insurance debt. 

Sec. 34. No cause of action. 
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Sec. 35. Authority for the corps of engineers to provide specialized or technical 

services. 

1 SEC. 2. EXTENSIONS. 

2 (a) EXTENSION OF PROGRAM.—Section 1319 of the 

3 National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4026) 

4 is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2011’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘September 30, 2016’’. 

6 (b) EXTENSION OF FINANCING.—Section 1309(a) of 

7 such Act (42 U.S.C. 4016(a)) is amended by striking 

8 ‘‘September 30, 2011’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 

9 2016’’. 

10 SEC. 3. MANDATORY PURCHASE. 

11 (a) AUTHORITY TO TEMPORARILY SUSPEND MANDA12 TORY PURCHASE REQUIREMENT.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 102 of the Flood 

14 Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4012a) 

15 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

16 subsection: 

17 ‘‘(i) AUTHORITY TO TEMPORARILY SUSPEND MAN18 DATORY PURCHASE REQUIREMENT.— 

19 ‘‘(1) FINDING BY ADMINISTRATOR THAT AREA

20 IS AN ELIGIBLE AREA.—For any area, upon a re21 quest submitted to the Administrator by a local gov22 ernment authority having jurisdiction over any por23 tion of the area, the Administrator shall make a 

24 finding of whether the area is an eligible area under 
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1 paragraph (3). If the Administrator finds that such 

2 area is an eligible area, the Administrator shall, in 

3 the discretion of the Administrator, designate a pe4 riod during which such finding shall be effective, 

5 which shall not be longer in duration than 12 

6 months. 

7 ‘‘(2) SUSPENSION OF MANDATORY PURCHASE

8 REQUIREMENT.—If the Administrator makes a find9 ing under paragraph (1) that an area is an eligible 

10 area under paragraph (3), during the period speci11 fied in the finding, the designation of such eligible 

12 area as an area having special flood hazards shall 

13 not be effective for purposes of subsections (a), (b), 

14 and (e) of this section, and section 202(a) of this 

15 Act. Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to 

16 prevent any lender, servicer, regulated lending insti17 tution, Federal agency lender, the Federal National 

18 Mortgage Association, or the Federal Home Loan 

19 Mortgage Corporation, at the discretion of such enti20 ty, from requiring the purchase of flood insurance 

21 coverage in connection with the making, increasing, 

22 extending, or renewing of a loan secured by im23 proved real estate or a mobile home located or to be 

24 located in such eligible area during such period or 
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1 a lender or servicer from purchasing coverage on be2 half of a borrower pursuant to subsection (e). 

3 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE AREAS.—An eligible area under 

4 this paragraph is an area that is designated or will, 

5 pursuant to any issuance, revision, updating, or 

6 other change in flood insurance maps that takes ef7 fect on or after the date of the enactment of the 

8 Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011, become des9 ignated as an area having special flood hazards and 

10 that meets any one of the following 3 requirements: 

11 ‘‘(A) AREAS WITH NO HISTORY OF SPE12 CIAL FLOOD HAZARDS.—The area does not in13 clude any area that has ever previously been 

14 designated as an area having special flood haz15 ards. 

16 ‘‘(B) AREAS WITH FLOOD PROTECTION

17 SYSTEMS UNDER IMPROVEMENTS.—The area 

18 was intended to be protected by a flood protec19 tion system— 

20 ‘‘(i) that has been decertified, or is re21 quired to be certified, as providing protec22 tion for the 100-year frequency flood 

23 standard; 

24 ‘‘(ii) that is being improved, con25 structed, or reconstructed; and 
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1 ‘‘(iii) for which the Administrator has 

2 determined measurable progress toward 

3 completion of such improvement, construc4 tion, reconstruction is being made and to5 ward securing financial commitments suffi6 cient to fund such completion. 

7 ‘‘(C) AREAS FOR WHICH APPEAL HAS

8 BEEN FILED.—An area for which a community 

9 has appealed designation of the area as having 

10 special flood hazards in a timely manner under 

11 section 1363. 

12 ‘‘(4) EXTENSION OF DELAY.—Upon a request 

13 submitted by a local government authority having 

14 jurisdiction over any portion of the eligible area, the 

15 Administrator may extend the period during which a 

16 finding under paragraph (1) shall be effective, ex17 cept that— 

18 ‘‘(A) each such extension under this para19 graph shall not be for a period exceeding 12 

20 months; and 

21 ‘‘(B) for any area, the cumulative number 

22 of such extensions may not exceed 2. 

23 ‘‘(5) ADDITIONAL EXTENSION FOR COMMU24 NITIES MAKING MORE THAN ADEQUATE PROGRESS

25 ON FLOOD PROTECTION SYSTEM.— 
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1 ‘‘(A) EXTENSION.— 

2 ‘‘(i) AUTHORITY.—Except as provided 

3 in subparagraph (B), in the case of an eli4 gible area for which the Administrator has, 

5 pursuant to paragraph (4), extended the 

6 period of effectiveness of the finding under 

7 paragraph (1) for the area, upon a request 

8 submitted by a local government authority 

9 having jurisdiction over any portion of the 

10 eligible area, if the Administrator finds 

11 that more than adequate progress has been 

12 made on the construction of a flood protec13 tion system for such area, as determined in 

14 accordance with the last sentence of sec15 tion 1307(e) of the National Flood Insur16 ance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4014(e)), the 

17 Administrator may, in the discretion of the 

18 Administrator, further extend the period 

19 during which the finding under paragraph 

20 (1) shall be effective for such area for an 

21 additional 12 months. 

22 ‘‘(ii) LIMIT.— For any eligible area, 

23 the cumulative number of extensions under 

24 this subparagraph may not exceed 2. 

25 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION FOR NEW MORTGAGES.— 
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1 ‘‘(i) EXCLUSION.—Any extension 

2 under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph 

3 of a finding under paragraph (1) shall not 

4 be effective with respect to any excluded 

5 property after the origination, increase, ex6 tension, or renewal of the loan referred to 

7 in clause (ii)(II) for the property. 

8 ‘‘(ii) EXCLUDED PROPERTIES.—For 

9 purposes of this subparagraph, the term 

10 ‘excluded property’ means any improved 

11 real estate or mobile home— 

12 ‘‘(I) that is located in an eligible 

13 area; and 

14 ‘‘(II) for which, during the period 

15 that any extension under subpara16 graph (A) of this paragraph of a find17 ing under paragraph (1) is otherwise 

18 in effect for the eligible area in which 

19 such property is located— 

20 ‘‘(aa) a loan that is secured 

21 by the property is originated; or 

22 ‘‘(bb) any existing loan that 

23 is secured by the property is in24 creased, extended, or renewed. 
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1 ‘‘(6) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

2 this subsection may be construed to affect the appli3 cability of a designation of any area as an area hav4 ing special flood hazards for purposes of the avail5 ability of flood insurance coverage, criteria for land 

6 management and use, notification of flood hazards, 

7 eligibility for mitigation assistance, or any other pur8 pose or provision not specifically referred to in para9 graph (2). 

10 ‘‘(7) REPORTS.—The Administrator shall, in 

11 each annual report submitted pursuant to section 

12 1320, include information identifying each finding 

13 under paragraph (1) by the Administrator during 

14 the preceding year that an area is an area having 

15 special flood hazards, the basis for each such find16 ing, any extensions pursuant to paragraph (4) of the 

17 periods of effectiveness of such findings, and the 

18 reasons for such extensions.’’. 

19 (2) NO REFUNDS.—Nothing in this subsection 

20 or the amendments made by this subsection may be 

21 construed to authorize or require any payment or re22 fund for flood insurance coverage purchased for any 

23 property that covered any period during which such 

24 coverage is not required for the property pursuant to 
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1 the applicability of the amendment made by para2 graph (1). 

3 (b) TERMINATION OF FORCE-PLACED INSURANCE.— 

4 Section 102(e) of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 

5 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4012a(e)) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘insurance.’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘insurance, including premiums or 

8 fees incurred for coverage beginning on the date on 

9 which flood insurance coverage lapsed or did not 

10 provide a sufficient coverage amount.’’; 

11 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

12 paragraphs (5) and 6), respectively; and 

13 (3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol14 lowing new paragraphs: 

15 ‘‘(3) TERMINATION OF FORCE-PLACED INSUR16 ANCE.—Within 30 days of receipt by the lender or 

17 servicer of a confirmation of a borrower’s existing 

18 flood insurance coverage, the lender or servicer 

19 shall— 

20 ‘‘(A) terminate the force-placed insurance; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(B) refund to the borrower all force23 placed insurance premiums paid by the bor24 rower during any period during which the bor25 rower’s flood insurance coverage and the force- 
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1 placed flood insurance coverage were each in ef2 fect, and any related fees charged to the bor3 rower with respect to the force-placed insurance 

4 during such period. 

5 ‘‘(4) SUFFICIENCY OF DEMONSTRATION.—For 

6 purposes of confirming a borrower’s existing flood 

7 insurance coverage, a lender or servicer for a loan 

8 shall accept from the borrower an insurance policy 

9 declarations page that includes the existing flood in10 surance policy number and the identity of, and con11 tact information for, the insurance company or 

12 agent.’’. 

13 (c) USE OF PRIVATE INSURANCE TO SATISFY MAN14 DATORY PURCHASE REQUIREMENT.—Section 102(b) of 

15 the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 

16 4012a(b)) is amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘lending institutions not to 

19 make’’ and inserting ‘‘lending institutions— 

20 ‘‘(A) not to make’’; 

21 (B) in subparagraph (A), as designated by 

22 subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, by striking 

23 ‘‘less.’’ and inserting ‘‘less; and’’; and 

24 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

25 subparagraph: 
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1 ‘‘(B) to accept private flood insurance as 

2 satisfaction of the flood insurance coverage re3 quirement under subparagraph (A) if the cov4 erage provided by such private flood insurance 

5 meets the requirements for coverage under such 

6 subparagraph.’’; 

7 (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting after ‘‘pro8 vided in paragraph (1).’’ the following new sentence: 

9 ‘‘Each Federal agency lender shall accept private 

10 flood insurance as satisfaction of the flood insurance 

11 coverage requirement under the preceding sentence 

12 if the flood insurance coverage provided by such pri13 vate flood insurance meets the requirements for cov14 erage under such sentence.’’; 

15 (3) in paragraph (3), in the matter following 

16 subparagraph (B), by adding at the end the fol17 lowing new sentence: ‘‘The Federal National Mort18 gage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mort19 gage Corporation shall accept private flood insurance 

20 as satisfaction of the flood insurance coverage re21 quirement under the preceding sentence if the flood 

22 insurance coverage provided by such private flood in23 surance meets the requirements for coverage under 

24 such sentence.’’; and 
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1 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(5) PRIVATE FLOOD INSURANCE DEFINED.— 

4 In this subsection, the term ‘private flood insurance’ 

5 means a contract for flood insurance coverage al6 lowed for sale under the laws of any State.’’. 

7 SEC. 4. REFORMS OF COVERAGE TERMS. 

8 (a) MINIMUM DEDUCTIBLES FOR CLAIMS.—Section 

9 1312 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 

10 U.S.C. 4019) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘The Director is’’ and inserting 

12 the following: ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Adminis13 trator is’’; and 

14 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(b) MINIMUM ANNUAL DEDUCTIBLES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) SUBSIDIZED RATE PROPERTIES.—For any 

17 structure that is covered by flood insurance under 

18 this title, and for which the chargeable rate for such 

19 coverage is less than the applicable estimated risk 

20 premium rate under section 1307(a)(1) for the area 

21 (or subdivision thereof) in which such structure is 

22 located, the minimum annual deductible for damage 

23 to or loss of such structure shall be $2,000. 

24 ‘‘(2) ACTUARIAL RATE PROPERTIES.—For any 

25 structure that is covered by flood insurance under 
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1 this title, for which the chargeable rate for such cov2 erage is not less than the applicable estimated risk 

3 premium rate under section 1307(a)(1) for the area 

4 (or subdivision thereof) in which such structure is 

5 located, the minimum annual deductible for damage 

6 to or loss of such structure shall be $1,000.’’. 

7 (b) CLARIFICATION OF RESIDENTIAL AND COMMER8 CIAL COVERAGE LIMITS.—Section 1306(b) of the Na9 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4013(b)) 

10 is amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘in the case of any residen13 tial property’’ and inserting ‘‘in the case of any 

14 residential building designed for the occupancy 

15 of from one to four families’’; and 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘shall be made available to 

17 every insured upon renewal and every applicant 

18 for insurance so as to enable such insured or 

19 applicant to receive coverage up to a total 

20 amount (including such limits specified in para21 graph (1)(A)(i)) of $250,000’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘shall be made available, with respect to any 

23 single such building, up to an aggregate liability 

24 (including such limits specified in paragraph 

25 (1)(A)(i)) of $250,000’’; and 
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1 (2) in paragraph (4)— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘in the case of any nonresi3 dential property, including churches,’’ and in4 serting ‘‘in the case of any nonresidential build5 ing, including a church,’’; and 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘shall be made available to 

7 every insured upon renewal and every applicant 

8 for insurance, in respect to any single structure, 

9 up to a total amount (including such limit spec10 ified in subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph 

11 (1), as applicable) of $500,000 for each struc12 ture and $500,000 for any contents related to 

13 each structure’’ and inserting ‘‘shall be made 

14 available with respect to any single such build15 ing, up to an aggregate liability (including such 

16 limits specified in subparagraph (B) or (C) of 

17 paragraph (1), as applicable) of $500,000, and 

18 coverage shall be made available up to a total 

19 of $500,000 aggregate liability for contents 

20 owned by the building owner and $500,000 ag21 gregate liability for each unit within the build22 ing for contents owned by the tenant’’. 

23 (c) INDEXING OF MAXIMUM COVERAGE LIMITS.— 

24 Subsection (b) of section 1306 of the National Flood In25 surance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4013(b)) is amended— 
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1 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

2 end; 

3 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

4 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

5 (3) by redesignating paragraph (5) as para6 graph (7); and 

7 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

8 paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(8) each of the dollar amount limitations 

10 under paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (5), and (6) shall be 

11 adjusted effective on the date of the enactment of 

12 the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011, such ad13 justments shall be calculated using the percentage 

14 change, over the period beginning on September 30, 

15 1994, and ending on such date of enactment, in 

16 such inflationary index as the Administrator shall, 

17 by regulation, specify, and the dollar amount of such 

18 adjustment shall be rounded to the next lower dollar; 

19 and the Administrator shall cause to be published in 

20 the Federal Register the adjustments under this 

21 paragraph to such dollar amount limitations; except 

22 that in the case of coverage for a property that is 

23 made available, pursuant to this paragraph, in an 

24 amount that exceeds the limitation otherwise appli25 cable to such coverage as specified in paragraph (2), 
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1 (3), (4), (5), or (6), the total of such coverage shall 

2 be made available only at chargeable rates that are 

3 not less than the estimated premium rates for such 

4 coverage determined in accordance with section 

5 1307(a)(1).’’. 

6 (d) OPTIONAL COVERAGE FOR LOSS OF USE OF PER7 SONAL RESIDENCE AND BUSINESS INTERRUPTION.—Sub8 section (b) of section 1306 of the National Flood Insur9 ance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4013(b)), as amended by 

10 the preceding provisions of this section, is further amend11 ed by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new 

12 paragraphs: 

13 ‘‘(5) the Administrator may provide that, in the 

14 case of any residential property, each renewal or new 

15 contract for flood insurance coverage may provide 

16 not more than $5,000 aggregate liability per dwell17 ing unit for any necessary increases in living ex18 penses incurred by the insured when losses from a 

19 flood make the residence unfit to live in, except 

20 that— 

21 ‘‘(A) purchase of such coverage shall be at 

22 the option of the insured; 

23 ‘‘(B) any such coverage shall be made 

24 available only at chargeable rates that are not 

25 less than the estimated premium rates for such 
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1 coverage determined in accordance with section 

2 1307(a)(1); and 

3 ‘‘(C) the Administrator may make such 

4 coverage available only if the Administrator 

5 makes a determination and causes notice of 

6 such determination to be published in the Fed7 eral Register that— 

8 ‘‘(i) a competitive private insurance 

9 market for such coverage does not exist; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the national flood insurance pro12 gram has the capacity to make such cov13 erage available without borrowing funds 

14 from the Secretary of the Treasury under 

15 section 1309 or otherwise; 

16 ‘‘(6) the Administrator may provide that, in the 

17 case of any commercial property or other residential 

18 property, including multifamily rental property, cov19 erage for losses resulting from any partial or total 

20 interruption of the insured’s business caused by 

21 damage to, or loss of, such property from a flood 

22 may be made available to every insured upon re23 newal and every applicant, up to a total amount of 

24 $20,000 per property, except that— 
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1 ‘‘(A) purchase of such coverage shall be at 

2 the option of the insured; 

3 ‘‘(B) any such coverage shall be made 

4 available only at chargeable rates that are not 

5 less than the estimated premium rates for such 

6 coverage determined in accordance with section 

7 1307(a)(1); and 

8 ‘‘(C) the Administrator may make such 

9 coverage available only if the Administrator 

10 makes a determination and causes notice of 

11 such determination to be published in the Fed12 eral Register that— 

13 ‘‘(i) a competitive private insurance 

14 market for such coverage does not exist; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(ii) the national flood insurance pro17 gram has the capacity to make such cov18 erage available without borrowing funds 

19 from the Secretary of the Treasury under 

20 section 1309 or otherwise;’’. 

21 (e) PAYMENT OF PREMIUMS IN INSTALLMENTS FOR

22 RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES.—Section 1306 of the Na23 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4013) is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following new sub25 section: 
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1 ‘‘(d) PAYMENT OF PREMIUMS IN INSTALLMENTS FOR

2 RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—In addition to any other 

4 terms and conditions under subsection (a), such reg5 ulations shall provide that, in the case of any resi6 dential property, premiums for flood insurance cov7 erage made available under this title for such prop8 erty may be paid in installments. 

9 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.—In implementing the au10 thority under paragraph (1), the Administrator may 

11 establish increased chargeable premium rates and 

12 surcharges, and deny coverage and establish such 

13 other sanctions, as the Administrator considers nec14 essary to ensure that insureds purchase, pay for, 

15 and maintain coverage for the full term of a contract 

16 for flood insurance coverage or to prevent insureds 

17 from purchasing coverage only for periods during a 

18 year when risk of flooding is comparatively higher or 

19 canceling coverage for periods when such risk is 

20 comparatively lower.’’. 

21 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE OF POLICIES COVERING PROP22 ERTIES AFFECTED BY FLOODS IN PROGRESS.—Para23 graph (1) of section 1306(c) of the National Flood Insur24 ance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4013(c)) is amended by add25 ing after the period at the end the following: ‘‘With respect 
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1 to any flood that has commenced or is in progress before 

2 the expiration of such 30-day period, such flood insurance 

3 coverage for a property shall take effect upon the expira4 tion of such 30-day period and shall cover damage to such 

5 property occurring after the expiration of such period that 

6 results from such flood, but only if the property has not 

7 suffered damage or loss as a result of such flood before 

8 the expiration of such 30-day period.’’. 

9 SEC. 5. REFORMS OF PREMIUM RATES. 

10 (a) INCREASE IN ANNUAL LIMITATION ON PREMIUM

11 INCREASES.—Section 1308(e) of the National Flood In12 surance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4015(e)) is amended by 

13 striking ‘‘10 percent’’ and inserting ‘‘20 percent’’. 

14 (b) PHASE-IN OF RATES FOR CERTAIN PROPERTIES

15 IN NEWLY MAPPED AREAS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1308 of the Na17 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

18 4015) is amended— 

19 (A) in subsection (a), in the matter pre20 ceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or notice’’ 

21 after ‘‘prescribe by regulation’’; 

22 (B) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘and 

23 subsection (g)’’ before the first comma; and 

24 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

25 subsection: 
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1 ‘‘(g) 5-YEAR PHASE-IN OF FLOOD INSURANCE

2 RATES FOR CERTAIN PROPERTIES IN NEWLY MAPPED

3 AREAS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) 5-YEAR PHASE-IN PERIOD.—Notwith5 standing subsection (c) or any other provision of law 

6 relating to chargeable risk premium rates for flood 

7 insurance coverage under this title, in the case of 

8 any area that was not previously designated as an 

9 area having special flood hazards and that, pursuant 

10 to any issuance, revision, updating, or other change 

11 in flood insurance maps, becomes designated as such 

12 an area, during the 5-year period that begins, except 

13 as provided in paragraph (2), upon the date that 

14 such maps, as issued, revised, updated, or otherwise 

15 changed, become effective, the chargeable premium 

16 rate for flood insurance under this title with respect 

17 to any covered property that is located within such 

18 area shall be the rate described in paragraph (3). 

19 ‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY TO PREFERRED RISK RATE

20 AREAS.—In the case of any area described in para21 graph (1) that consists of or includes an area that, 

22 as of date of the effectiveness of the flood insurance 

23 maps for such area referred to in paragraph (1) as 

24 so issued, revised, updated, or changed, is eligible 

25 for any reason for preferred risk rate method pre-
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1 miums for flood insurance coverage and was eligible 

2 for such premiums as of the enactment of the Flood 

3 Insurance Reform Act of 2011, the 5-year period re4 ferred to in paragraph (1) for such area eligible for 

5 preferred risk rate method premiums shall begin 

6 upon the expiration of the period during which such 

7 area is eligible for such preferred risk rate method 

8 premiums. 

9 ‘‘(3) PHASE-IN OF FULL ACTUARIAL RATES.— 

10 With respect to any area described in paragraph (1), 

11 the chargeable risk premium rate for flood insurance 

12 under this title for a covered property that is located 

13 in such area shall be— 

14 ‘‘(A) for the first year of the 5-year period 

15 referred to in paragraph (1), the greater of— 

16 ‘‘(i) 20 percent of the chargeable risk 

17 premium rate otherwise applicable under 

18 this title to the property; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) in the case of any property that, 

20 as of the beginning of such first year, is el21 igible for preferred risk rate method pre22 miums for flood insurance coverage, such 

23 preferred risk rate method premium for 

24 the property; 
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1 ‘‘(B) for the second year of such 5-year pe2 riod, 40 percent of the chargeable risk premium 

3 rate otherwise applicable under this title to the 

4 property; 

5 ‘‘(C) for the third year of such 5-year pe6 riod, 60 percent of the chargeable risk premium 

7 rate otherwise applicable under this title to the 

8 property; 

9 ‘‘(D) for the fourth year of such 5-year pe10 riod, 80 percent of the chargeable risk premium 

11 rate otherwise applicable under this title to the 

12 property; and 

13 ‘‘(E) for the fifth year of such 5-year pe14 riod, 100 percent of the chargeable risk pre15 mium rate otherwise applicable under this title 

16 to the property. 

17 ‘‘(4) COVERED PROPERTIES.—For purposes of 

18 the subsection, the term ‘covered property’ means 

19 any residential property occupied by its owner or a 

20 bona fide tenant as a primary residence.’’. 

21 (2) REGULATION OR NOTICE.—The Adminis22 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agen23 cy shall issue an interim final rule or notice to im24 plement this subsection and the amendments made 
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1 by this subsection as soon as practicable after the 

2 date of the enactment of this Act. 

3 (c) PHASE-IN OF ACTUARIAL RATES FOR CERTAIN

4 PROPERTIES.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1308(c) of the Na6 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

7 4015(c)) is amended— 

8 (A) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

9 paragraph (7); and 

10 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the 

11 following new paragraphs: 

12 ‘‘(2) COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES.—Any nonresi13 dential property. 

14 ‘‘(3) SECOND HOMES AND VACATION HOMES.— 

15 Any residential property that is not the primary res16 idence of any individual. 

17 ‘‘(4) HOMES SOLD TO NEW OWNERS.—Any sin18 gle family property that— 

19 ‘‘(A) has been constructed or substantially 

20 improved and for which such construction or 

21 improvement was started, as determined by the 

22 Administrator, before December 31, 1974, or 

23 before the effective date of the initial rate map 

24 published by the Administrator under para25 graph (2) of section 1360(a) for the area in 
26 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 which such property is located, whichever is 

2 later; and 

3 ‘‘(B) is purchased after the effective date 

4 of this paragraph, pursuant to section 

5 5(c)(3)(A) of the Flood Insurance Reform Act 

6 of 2011. 

7 ‘‘(5) HOMES DAMAGED OR IMPROVED.—Any 

8 property that, on or after the date of the enactment 

9 of the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011, has ex10 perienced or sustained— 

11 ‘‘(A) substantial flood damage exceeding 

12 50 percent of the fair market value of such 

13 property; or 

14 ‘‘(B) substantial improvement exceeding 

15 30 percent of the fair market value of such 

16 property. 

17 ‘‘(6) HOMES WITH MULTIPLE CLAIMS.—Any se18 vere repetitive loss property (as such term is defined 

19 in section 1366(j)).’’. 

20 (2) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 1308 

21 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 

22 U.S.C. 4015) is amended— 

23 (A) in subsection (c)— 

24 (i) in the matter preceding paragraph 

25 (1), by striking ‘‘the limitations provided 
27 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 under paragraphs (1) and (2)’’ and insert2 ing ‘‘subsection (e)’’; and 

3 (ii) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘, 

4 except’’ and all that follows through ‘‘sub5 section (e)’’; and 

6 (B) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘para7 graph (2) or (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

8 (7)’’. 

9 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE AND TRANSITION.— 

10 (A) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments 

11 made by paragraphs (1) and (2) shall apply be12 ginning upon the expiration of the 12-month 

13 period that begins on the date of the enactment 

14 of this Act, except as provided in subparagraph 

15 (B) of this paragraph. 

16 (B) TRANSITION FOR PROPERTIES COV17 ERED BY FLOOD INSURANCE UPON EFFECTIVE

18 DATE.— 

19 (i) INCREASE OF RATES OVER TIME.— 

20 In the case of any property described in 

21 paragraph (2), (3), (4), (5), or (6) of sec22 tion 1308(c) of the National Flood Insur23 ance Act of 1968, as amended by para24 graph (1) of this subsection, that, as of the 

25 effective date under subparagraph (A) of 
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•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 this paragraph, is covered under a policy 

2 for flood insurance made available under 

3 the national flood insurance program for 

4 which the chargeable premium rates are 

5 less than the applicable estimated risk pre6 mium rate under section 1307(a)(1) of 

7 such Act for the area in which the prop8 erty is located, the Administrator of the 

9 Federal Emergency Management Agency 

10 shall increase the chargeable premium 

11 rates for such property over time to such 

12 applicable estimated risk premium rate 

13 under section 1307(a)(1). 

14 (ii) AMOUNT OF ANNUAL INCREASE.— 

15 Such increase shall be made by increasing 

16 the chargeable premium rates for the prop17 erty (after application of any increase in 

18 the premium rates otherwise applicable to 

19 such property), once during the 12-month 

20 period that begins upon the effective date 

21 under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph 

22 and once every 12 months thereafter until 

23 such increase is accomplished, by 20 per24 cent (or such lesser amount as may be nec25 essary so that the chargeable rate does not 
29 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 exceed such applicable estimated risk pre2 mium rate or to comply with clause (iii)). 

3 (iii) PROPERTIES SUBJECT TO PHASE4 IN AND ANNUAL INCREASES.—In the case 

5 of any pre-FIRM property (as such term is 

6 defined in section 578(b) of the National 

7 Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1974), the 

8 aggregate increase, during any 12-month 

9 period, in the chargeable premium rate for 

10 the property that is attributable to this 

11 subparagraph or to an increase described 

12 in section 1308(e) of the National Flood 

13 Insurance Act of 1968 may not exceed 20 

14 percent. 

15 (iv) FULL ACTUARIAL RATES.—The 

16 provisions of paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (5), 

17 and (6) of such section 1308(c) shall apply 

18 to such a property upon the accomplish19 ment of the increase under this subpara20 graph and thereafter. 

21 (d) PROHIBITION OF EXTENSION OF SUBSIDIZED

22 RATES TO LAPSED POLICIES.—Section 1308 of the Na23 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4015), as 

24 amended by the preceding provisions of this Act, is further 

25 amended— 
30 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (1) in subsection (e), by inserting ‘‘or sub2 section (h)’’ after ‘‘subsection (c)’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub4 section: 

5 ‘‘(h) PROHIBITION OF EXTENSION OF SUBSIDIZED

6 RATES TO LAPSED POLICIES.—Notwithstanding any 

7 other provision of law relating to chargeable risk premium 

8 rates for flood insurance coverage under this title, the Ad9 ministrator shall not provide flood insurance coverage 

10 under this title for any property for which a policy for 

11 such coverage for the property has previously lapsed in 

12 coverage as a result of the deliberate choice of the holder 

13 of such policy, at a rate less than the applicable estimated 

14 risk premium rates for the area (or subdivision thereof) 

15 in which such property is located.’’. 

16 (e) RECOGNITION OF STATE AND LOCAL FUNDING

17 FOR CONSTRUCTION, RECONSTRUCTION, AND IMPROVE18 MENT OF FLOOD PROTECTION SYSTEMS IN DETERMINA19 TION OF RATES.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1307 of the Na21 tional Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

22 4014) is amended— 

23 (A) in subsection (e)— 

24 (i) in the first sentence, by striking 

25 ‘‘construction of a flood protection system’’ 
31 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 and inserting ‘‘construction, reconstruc2 tion, or improvement of a flood protection 

3 system (without respect to the level of Fed4 eral investment or participation)’’; and 

5 (ii) in the second sentence— 

6 (I) by striking ‘‘construction of a 

7 flood protection system’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘construction, reconstruction, or im9 provement of a flood protection sys10 tem’’; and 

11 (II) by inserting ‘‘based on the 

12 present value of the completed sys13 tem’’ after ‘‘has been expended’’; and 

14 (B) in subsection (f)— 

15 (i) in the first sentence in the matter 

16 preceding paragraph (1), by inserting 

17 ‘‘(without respect to the level of Federal 

18 investment or participation)’’ before the 

19 period at the end; 

20 (ii) in the third sentence in the matter 

21 preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, 

22 whether coastal or riverine,’’ after ‘‘special 

23 flood hazard’’; and 

24 (iii) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘a 

25 Federal agency in consultation with the 
32 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 local project sponsor’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

2 entity or entities that own, operate, main3 tain, or repair such system’’. 

4 (2) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator of the 

5 Federal Emergency Management Agency shall pro6 mulgate regulations to implement this subsection 

7 and the amendments made by this subsection as 

8 soon as practicable, but not more than 18 months 

9 after the date of the enactment of this Act. Para10 graph (3) may not be construed to annul, alter, af11 fect, authorize any waiver of, or establish any excep12 tion to, the requirement under the preceding sen13 tence. 

14 SEC. 6. TECHNICAL MAPPING ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a council 

16 to be known as the Technical Mapping Advisory Council 

17 (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Council’’). 

18 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall consist 

20 of— 

21 (A) the Administrator of the Federal 

22 Emergency Management Agency (in this section 

23 referred to as the ‘‘Administrator’’), or the des24 ignee thereof; 
33 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (B) the Director of the United States Geo2 logical Survey of the Department of the Inte3 rior, or the designee thereof; 

4 (C) the Under Secretary of Commerce for 

5 Oceans and Atmosphere, or the designee there6 of; 

7 (D) the commanding officer of the United 

8 States Army Corps of Engineers, or the des9 ignee thereof; 

10 (E) the chief of the Natural Resources 

11 Conservation Service of the Department of Ag12 riculture, or the designee thereof; 

13 (F) the Director of the United States Fish 

14 and Wildlife Service of the Department of the 

15 Interior, or the designee thereof; 

16 (G) the Assistant Administrator for Fish17 eries of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

18 Administration of the Department of Com19 merce, or the designee thereof; and 

20 (H) 14 additional members to be appointed 

21 by the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 

22 Management Agency, who shall be— 

23 (i) an expert in data management; 

24 (ii) an expert in real estate; 

25 (iii) an expert in insurance; 
34 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (iv) a member of a recognized regional 

2 flood and storm water management organi3 zation; 

4 (v) a representative of a State emer5 gency management agency or association 

6 or organization for such agencies; 

7 (vi) a member of a recognized profes8 sional surveying association or organiza9 tion; 

10 (vii) a member of a recognized profes11 sional mapping association or organization; 

12 (viii) a member of a recognized pro13 fessional engineering association or organi14 zation; 

15 (ix) a member of a recognized profes16 sional association or organization rep17 resenting flood hazard determination firms; 

18 (x) a representative of State national 

19 flood insurance coordination offices; 

20 (xi) representatives of two local gov21 ernments, at least one of whom is a local 

22 levee flood manager or executive, des23 ignated by the Federal Emergency Man24 agement Agency as Cooperating Technical 

25 Partners; and 
35 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (xii) representatives of two State gov2 ernments designated by the Federal Emer3 gency Management Agency as Cooperating 

4 Technical States. 

5 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Members of the Council 

6 shall be appointed based on their demonstrated 

7 knowledge and competence regarding surveying, car8 tography, remote sensing, geographic information 

9 systems, or the technical aspects of preparing and 

10 using flood insurance rate maps. In appointing 

11 members under paragraph (1)(H), the Administrator 

12 shall ensure that the membership of the Council has 

13 a balance of Federal, State, local, and private mem14 bers, and includes an adequate number of represent15 atives from the States with coastline on the Gulf of 

16 Mexico and other States containing areas identified 

17 by the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 

18 Management Agency as at high-risk for flooding or 

19 special flood hazard areas. 

20 (c) DUTIES.— 

21 (1) NEW MAPPING STANDARDS.—Not later than 

22 the expiration of the 12-month period beginning 

23 upon the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

24 Council shall develop and submit to the Adminis25 trator and the Congress proposed new mapping 
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•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 standards for 100-year flood insurance rate maps 

2 used under the national flood insurance program 

3 under the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968. In 

4 developing such proposed standards the Council 

5 shall— 

6 (A) ensure that the flood insurance rate 

7 maps reflect true risk, including graduated risk 

8 that better reflects the financial risk to each 

9 property; such reflection of risk should be at 

10 the smallest geographic level possible (but not 

11 necessarily property-by-property) to ensure that 

12 communities are mapped in a manner that 

13 takes into consideration different risk levels 

14 within the community; 

15 (B) ensure the most efficient generation, 

16 display, and distribution of flood risk data, 

17 models, and maps where practicable through 

18 dynamic digital environments using spatial 

19 database technology and the Internet; 

20 (C) ensure that flood insurance rate maps 

21 reflect current hydrologic and hydraulic data, 

22 current land use, and topography, incorporating 

23 the most current and accurate ground and 

24 bathymetric elevation data; 
37 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (D) determine the best ways to include in 

2 such flood insurance rate maps levees, decerti3 fied levees, and areas located below dams, in4 cluding determining a methodology for ensuring 

5 that decertified levees and other protections are 

6 included in flood insurance rate maps and their 

7 corresponding flood zones reflect the level of 

8 protection conferred; 

9 (E) consider how to incorporate restored 

10 wetlands and other natural buffers into flood 

11 insurance rate maps, which may include wet12 lands, groundwater recharge areas, erosion 

13 zones, meander belts, endangered species habi14 tat, barrier islands and shoreline buffer fea15 tures, riparian forests, and other features; 

16 (F) consider whether to use vertical posi17 tioning (as defined by the Administrator) for 

18 flood insurance rate maps; 

19 (G) ensure that flood insurance rate maps 

20 differentiate between a property that is located 

21 in a flood zone and a structure located on such 

22 property that is not at the same risk level for 

23 flooding as such property due to the elevation 

24 of the structure; 
38 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (H) ensure that flood insurance rate maps 

2 take into consideration the best scientific data 

3 and potential future conditions (including pro4 jections for sea level rise); and 

5 (I) consider how to incorporate the new 

6 standards proposed pursuant to this paragraph 

7 in existing mapping efforts. 

8 (2) ONGOING DUTIES.—The Council shall, on 

9 an ongoing basis, review the mapping protocols de10 veloped pursuant to paragraph (1), and make rec11 ommendations to the Administrator when the Coun12 cil determines that mapping protocols should be al13 tered. 

14 (3) MEETINGS.—In carrying out its duties 

15 under this section, the Council shall consult with 

16 stakeholders through at least 4 public meetings an17 nually, and shall seek input of all stakeholder inter18 ests including State and local representatives, envi19 ronmental and conservation organizations, insurance 

20 industry representatives, advocacy groups, planning 

21 organizations, and mapping organizations. 

22 (d) PROHIBITION ON COMPENSATION.—Members of 

23 the Council shall receive no additional compensation by 

24 reason of their service on the Council. 
39 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (e) CHAIRPERSON.—The Administrator shall serve as 

2 the Chairperson of the Council. 

3 (f) STAFF.— 

4 (1) FEMA.—Upon the request of the Council, 

5 the Administrator may detail, on a nonreimbursable 

6 basis, personnel of the Federal Emergency Manage7 ment Agency to assist the Council in carrying out its 

8 duties. 

9 (2) OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Upon request 

10 of the Council, any other Federal agency that is a 

11 member of the Council may detail, on a non-reim12 bursable basis, personnel to assist the Council in 

13 carrying out its duties. 

14 (g) POWERS.—In carrying out this section, the Coun15 cil may hold hearings, receive evidence and assistance, pro16 vide information, and conduct research, as the Council 

17 considers appropriate. 

18 (h) TERMINATION.—The Council shall terminate 

19 upon the expiration of the 5-year period beginning on the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act. 

21 (i) MORATORIUM ON FLOOD MAP CHANGES.— 

22 (1) MORATORIUM.—Except as provided in para23 graph (2) and notwithstanding any other provision 

24 of this Act, the National Flood Insurance Act of 

25 1968, or the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973, 
40 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 during the period beginning upon the date of the en2 actment of this Act and ending upon the submission 

3 by the Council to the Administrator and the Con4 gress of the proposed new mapping standards re5 quired under subsection (c)(1), the Administrator 

6 may not make effective any new or updated rate 

7 maps for flood insurance coverage under the na8 tional flood insurance program that were not in ef9 fect for such program as of such date of enactment, 

10 or otherwise revise, update, or change the flood in11 surance rate maps in effect for such program as of 

12 such date. 

13 (2) LETTERS OF MAP CHANGE.—During the pe14 riod described in paragraph (1), the Administrator 

15 may revise, update, and change the flood insurance 

16 rate maps in effect for the national flood insurance 

17 program only pursuant to a letter of map change 

18 (including a letter of map amendment, letter of map 

19 revision, and letter of map revision based on fill). 

20 SEC. 7. FEMA INCORPORATION OF NEW MAPPING PROTO21 COLS. 

22 (a) NEW RATE MAPPING STANDARDS.—Not later 

23 than the expiration of the 6-month period beginning upon 

24 submission by the Technical Mapping Advisory Council 

25 under section 6 of the proposed new mapping standards 
41 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 for flood insurance rate maps used under the national 

2 flood insurance program developed by the Council pursu3 ant to section 6(c), the Administrator of the Federal 

4 Emergency Management Agency (in this section referred 

5 to as the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall establish new standards 

6 for such rate maps based on such proposed new standards 

7 and the recommendations of the Council. 

8 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The new standards for flood 

9 insurance rate maps established by the Administrator pur10 suant to subsection (a) shall— 

11 (1) delineate and include in any such rate 

12 maps— 

13 (A) all areas located within the 100-year 

14 flood plain; and 

15 (B) areas subject to graduated and other 

16 risk levels, to the maximum extent possible; 

17 (2) ensure that any such rate maps— 

18 (A) include levees, including decertified lev19 ees, and the level of protection they confer; 

20 (B) reflect current land use and topog21 raphy and incorporate the most current and ac22 curate ground level data; 

23 (C) take into consideration the impacts 

24 and use of fill and the flood risks associated 

25 with altered hydrology; 
42 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (D) differentiate between a property that 

2 is located in a flood zone and a structure lo3 cated on such property that is not at the same 

4 risk level for flooding as such property due to 

5 the elevation of the structure; 

6 (E) identify and incorporate natural fea7 tures and their associated flood protection bene8 fits into mapping and rates; and 

9 (F) identify, analyze, and incorporate the 

10 impact of significant changes to building and 

11 development throughout any river or costal 

12 water system, including all tributaries, which 

13 may impact flooding in areas downstream; and 

14 (3) provide that such rate maps are developed 

15 on a watershed basis. 

16 (c) REPORT.—If, in establishing new standards for 

17 flood insurance rate maps pursuant to subsection (a) of 

18 this section, the Administrator does not implement all of 

19 the recommendations of the Council made under the pro20 posed new mapping standards developed by the Council 

21 pursuant to section 6(c), upon establishment of the new 

22 standards the Administrator shall submit a report to the 

23 Committee on Financial Services of the House of Rep24 resentatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

25 Urban Affairs of the Senate specifying which such rec-
43 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 ommendations were not adopted and explaining the rea2 sons such recommendations were not adopted. 

3 (d) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Administrator shall, not 

4 later than the expiration of the 6-month period beginning 

5 upon establishment of the new standards for flood insur6 ance rate maps pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, 

7 commence use of the new standards and updating of flood 

8 insurance rate maps in accordance with the new stand9 ards. Not later than the expiration of the 10-year period 

10 beginning upon the establishment of such new standards, 

11 the Administrator shall complete updating of all flood in12 surance rate maps in accordance with the new standards, 

13 subject to the availability of sufficient amounts for such 

14 activities provided in appropriation Acts. 

15 (e) TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF MANDATORY PUR16 CHASE REQUIREMENT FOR CERTAIN PROPERTIES.— 

17 (1) SUBMISSION OF ELEVATION CERTIFI18 CATE.—Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of this 

19 subsection, subsections (a), (b), and (e) of section 

20 102 of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 

21 (42 U.S.C. 4012a), and section 202(a) of such Act, 

22 shall not apply to a property located in an area des23 ignated as having a special flood hazard if the owner 

24 of such property submits to the Administrator an 

25 elevation certificate for such property showing that 
44 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 the lowest level of the primary residence on such 

2 property is at an elevation that is at least three feet 

3 higher than the elevation of the 100-year flood plain. 

4 (2) REVIEW OF CERTIFICATE.—The Adminis5 trator shall accept as conclusive each elevation cer6 tificate submitted under paragraph (1) unless the 

7 Administrator conducts a subsequent elevation sur8 vey and determines that the lowest level of the pri9 mary residence on the property in question is not at 

10 an elevation that is at least three feet higher than 

11 the elevation of the 100-year flood plain. The Ad12 ministrator shall provide any such subsequent ele13 vation survey to the owner of such property. 

14 (3) DETERMINATIONS FOR PROPERTIES ON

15 BORDERS OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREAS.— 

16 (A) EXPEDITED DETERMINATION.—In the 

17 case of any survey for a property submitted to 

18 the Administrator pursuant to paragraph (1) 

19 showing that a portion of the property is lo20 cated within an area having special flood haz21 ards and that a structure located on the prop22 erty is not located within such area having spe23 cial flood hazards, the Administrator shall expe24 ditiously process any request made by an owner 

25 of the property for a determination pursuant to 
45 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 paragraph (2) or a determination of whether 

2 the structure is located within the area having 

3 special flood hazards. 

4 (B) PROHIBITION OF FEE.—If the Admin5 istrator determines pursuant to subparagraph 

6 (A) that the structure on the property is not lo7 cated within the area having special flood haz8 ards, the Administrator shall not charge a fee 

9 for reviewing the flood hazard data and shall 

10 not require the owner to provide any additional 

11 elevation data. 

12 (C) SIMPLIFICATION OF REVIEW PROC13 ESS.—The Administrator shall collaborate with 

14 private sector flood insurers to simplify the re15 view process for properties described in sub16 paragraph (A) and to ensure that the review 

17 process provides for accurate determinations. 

18 (4) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—This sub19 section shall cease to apply to a property on the date 

20 on which the Administrator updates the flood insur21 ance rate map that applies to such property in ac22 cordance with the requirements of subsection (d). 
46 

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1 SEC. 8. TREATMENT OF LEVEES. 

2 Section 1360 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

3 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4101) is amended by adding at the end 

4 the following new subsection: 

5 ‘‘(k) TREATMENT OF LEVEES.—The Administrator 

6 may not issue flood insurance maps, or make effective up7 dated flood insurance maps, that omit or disregard the 

8 actual protection afforded by an existing levee, floodwall, 

9 pump or other flood protection feature, regardless of the 

10 accreditation status of such feature.’’. 

11 SEC. 9. PRIVATIZATION INITIATIVES. 

12 (a) FEMA AND GAO REPORTS.—Not later than the 

13 expiration of the 18-month period beginning on the date 

14 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

15 Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Comp16 troller General of the United States shall each conduct a 

17 separate study to assess a broad range of options, meth18 ods, and strategies for privatizing the national flood insur19 ance program and shall each submit a report to the Com20 mittee on Financial Services of the House of Representa21 tives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 

22 Affairs of the Senate with recommendations for the best 

23 manner to accomplish such privatization. 

24 (b) PRIVATE RISK-MANAGEMENT INITIATIVES.— 

25 (1) AUTHORITY.—The Administrator of the 

26 Federal Emergency Management Agency may carry 
47 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 out such private risk-management initiatives under 

2 the national flood insurance program as the Admin3 istrator considers appropriate to determine the ca4 pacity of private insurers, reinsurers, and financial 

5 markets to assist communities, on a voluntary basis 

6 only, in managing the full range of financial risks 

7 associated with flooding. 

8 (2) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than the expira9 tion of the 12-month period beginning on the date 

10 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

11 assess the capacity of the private reinsurance, cap12 ital, and financial markets by seeking proposals to 

13 assume a portion of the program’s insurance risk 

14 and submit to the Congress a report describing the 

15 response to such request for proposals and the re16 sults of such assessment. 

17 (3) PROTOCOL FOR RELEASE OF DATA.—The 

18 Administrator shall develop a protocol to provide for 

19 the release of data sufficient to conduct the assess20 ment required under paragraph (2). 

21 (c) REINSURANCE.—The National Flood Insurance 

22 Act of 1968 is amended— 

23 (1) in section 1331(a)(2) (42 U.S.C. 

24 4051(a)(2)), by inserting ‘‘, including as reinsurance 
48 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 of insurance coverage provided by the flood insur2 ance program’’ before ‘‘, on such terms’’; 

3 (2) in section 1332(c)(2) (42 U.S.C. 

4 4052(c)(2)), by inserting ‘‘or reinsurance’’ after 

5 ‘‘flood insurance coverage’’; 

6 (3) in section 1335(a) (42 U.S.C. 4055(a))— 

7 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(a)’’; and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

9 paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(2) The Administrator is authorized to secure rein11 surance coverage of coverage provided by the flood insur12 ance program from private market insurance, reinsurance, 

13 and capital market sources at rates and on terms deter14 mined by the Administrator to be reasonable and appro15 priate in an amount sufficient to maintain the ability of 

16 the program to pay claims and that minimizes the likeli17 hood that the program will utilize the borrowing authority 

18 provided under section 1309.’’; 

19 (4) in section 1346(a) (12 U.S.C. 4082(a))— 

20 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

21 by inserting ‘‘, or for purposes of securing rein22 surance of insurance coverage provided by the 

23 program,’’ before ‘‘of any or all of’’; 

24 (B) in paragraph (1)— 
49 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (i) by striking ‘‘estimating’’ and in2 serting ‘‘Estimating’’; and 

3 (ii) by striking the semicolon at the 

4 end and inserting a period; 

5 (C) in paragraph (2)— 

6 (i) by striking ‘‘receiving’’ and insert7 ing ‘‘Receiving’’; and 

8 (ii) by striking the semicolon at the 

9 end and inserting a period; 

10 (D) in paragraph (3)— 

11 (i) by striking ‘‘making’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘Making’’; and 

13 (ii) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting 

14 a period; 

15 (E) in paragraph (4)— 

16 (i) by striking ‘‘otherwise’’ and insert17 ing ‘‘Otherwise’’; and 

18 (ii) by redesignating such paragraph 

19 as paragraph (5); and 

20 (F) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

21 following new paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(4) Placing reinsurance coverage on insurance 

23 provided by such program.’’; and 

24 (5) in section 1370(a)(3) (42 U.S.C. 

25 4121(a)(3)), by inserting before the semicolon at the 
50 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 end the following: ‘‘, is subject to the reporting re2 quirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 

3 pursuant to section 13(a) or 15(d) of such Act (15 

4 U.S.C. 78m(a), 78o(d)), or is authorized by the Ad5 ministrator to assume reinsurance on risks insured 

6 by the flood insurance program’’. 

7 (d) ASSESSMENT OF CLAIMS-PAYING ABILITY.— 

8 (1) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than September 

9 30 of each year, the Administrator of the Federal 

10 Emergency Management Agency shall conduct an 

11 assessment of the claims-paying ability of the na12 tional flood insurance program, including the pro13 gram’s utilization of private sector reinsurance and 

14 reinsurance equivalents, with and without reliance 

15 on borrowing authority under section 1309 of the 

16 National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

17 4016). In conducting the assessment, the Adminis18 trator shall take into consideration regional con19 centrations of coverage written by the program, peak 

20 flood zones, and relevant mitigation measures. 

21 (2) REPORT.—The Administrator shall submit 

22 a report to the Congress of the results of each such 

23 assessment, and make such report available to the 

24 public, not later than 30 days after completion of 

25 the assessment. 
51 

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1 SEC. 10. FEMA ANNUAL REPORT ON INSURANCE PROGRAM. 

2 Section 1320 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

3 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4027) is amended— 

4 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘REPORT

5 TO THE PRESIDENT’’ and inserting ‘‘ANNUAL RE6 PORT TO CONGRESS’’; 

7 (2) in subsection (a)— 

8 (A) by striking ‘‘biennially’’; 

9 (B) by striking ‘‘the President for submis10 sion to’’; and 

11 (C) by inserting ‘‘not later than June 30 

12 of each year’’ before the period at the end; 

13 (3) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘biennial’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘annual’’; and 

15 (4) by adding at the end the following new sub16 section: 

17 ‘‘(c) FINANCIAL STATUS OF PROGRAM.—The report 

18 under this section for each year shall include information 

19 regarding the financial status of the national flood insur20 ance program under this title, including a description of 

21 the financial status of the National Flood Insurance Fund 

22 and current and projected levels of claims, premium re23 ceipts, expenses, and borrowing under the program.’’. 
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1 SEC. 11. MITIGATION ASSISTANCE. 

2 (a) MITIGATION ASSISTANCE GRANTS.—Section 

3 1366 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 

4 U.S.C. 4104c) is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a), by striking the last sen6 tence and inserting the following: ‘‘Such financial 

7 assistance shall be made available— 

8 ‘‘(1) to States and communities in the form of 

9 grants under this section for carrying out mitigation 

10 activities; 

11 ‘‘(2) to States and communities in the form of 

12 grants under this section for carrying out mitigation 

13 activities that reduce flood damage to severe repet14 itive loss structures; and 

15 ‘‘(3) to property owners in the form of direct 

16 grants under this section for carrying out mitigation 

17 activities that reduce flood damage to individual 

18 structures for which 2 or more claim payments for 

19 losses have been made under flood insurance cov20 erage under this title if the Administrator, after con21 sultation with the State and community, determines 

22 that neither the State nor community in which such 

23 a structure is located has the capacity to manage 

24 such grants.’’. 

25 (2) by striking subsection (b); 

26 (3) in subsection (c)— 
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1 (A) by striking ‘‘flood risk’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘multi-hazard’’; 

3 (B) by striking ‘‘provides protection 

4 against’’ and inserting ‘‘examines reduction of’’; 

5 and 

6 (C) by redesignating such subsection as 

7 subsection (b); 

8 (4) by striking subsection (d); 

9 (5) in subsection (e)— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking the para11 graph designation and all that follows through 

12 the end of the first sentence and inserting the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT OF CONSISTENCY WITH AP15 PROVED MITIGATION PLAN.—Amounts provided 

16 under this section may be used only for mitigation 

17 activities that are consistent with mitigation plans 

18 that are approved by the Administrator and identi19 fied under subparagraph (4).’’; 

20 (B) by striking paragraphs (2), (3), and 

21 (4) and inserting the following new paragraphs: 

22 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS OF TECHNICAL FEASI23 BILITY, COST EFFECTIVENESS, AND INTEREST OF

24 NFIF.—The Administrator may approve only mitiga25 tion activities that the Administrator determines are 
54 

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1 technically feasible and cost-effective and in the in2 terest of, and represent savings to, the National 

3 Flood Insurance Fund. In making such determina4 tions, the Administrator shall take into consideration 

5 recognized benefits that are difficult to quantify. 

6 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY FOR MITIGATION ASSISTANCE.— 

7 In providing grants under this section for mitigation 

8 activities, the Administrator shall give priority for 

9 funding to activities that the Administrator deter10 mines will result in the greatest savings to the Na11 tional Flood Insurance Fund, including activities 

12 for— 

13 ‘‘(A) severe repetitive loss structures; 

14 ‘‘(B) repetitive loss structures; and 

15 ‘‘(C) other subsets of structures as the Ad16 ministrator may establish.’’; 

17 (C) in paragraph (5)— 

18 (i) by striking all of the matter that 

19 precedes subparagraph (A) and inserting 

20 the following: 

21 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—Eligible ac22 tivities may include—’’; 

23 (ii) by striking subparagraphs (E) and 

24 (H); 
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•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (iii) by redesignating subparagraphs 

2 (D), (F), and (G) as subparagraphs (E), 

3 (G), and (H); 

4 (iv) by inserting after subparagraph 

5 (C) the following new subparagraph: 

6 ‘‘(D) elevation, relocation, and 

7 floodproofing of utilities (including equipment 

8 that serve structures);’’; 

9 (v) by inserting after subparagraph 

10 (E), as so redesignated by clause (iii) of 

11 this subparagraph, the following new sub12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(F) the development or update of State, 

14 local, or Indian tribal mitigation plans which 

15 meet the planning criteria established by the 

16 Administrator, except that the amount from 

17 grants under this section that may be used 

18 under this subparagraph may not exceed 

19 $50,000 for any mitigation plan of a State or 

20 $25,000 for any mitigation plan of a local gov21 ernment or Indian tribe;’’; 

22 (vi) in subparagraph (H); as so redes23 ignated by clause (iii) of this subpara24 graph, by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 
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•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 (vii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing new subparagraphs: 

3 ‘‘(I) other mitigation activities not de4 scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (G) or 

5 the regulations issued under subparagraph (H), 

6 that are described in the mitigation plan of a 

7 State, community, or Indian tribe; and 

8 ‘‘(J) personnel costs for State staff that 

9 provide technical assistance to communities to 

10 identify eligible activities, to develop grant ap11 plications, and to implement grants awarded 

12 under this section, not to exceed $50,000 per 

13 State in any Federal fiscal year, so long as the 

14 State applied for and was awarded at least 

15 $1,000,000 in grants available under this sec16 tion in the prior Federal fiscal year; the re17 quirements of subsections (d)(1) and (d)(2) 

18 shall not apply to the activity under this sub19 paragraph.’’; 

20 (D) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(6) ELIGIBILITY OF DEMOLITION AND RE23 BUILDING OF PROPERTIES.—The Administrator 

24 shall consider as an eligible activity the demolition 

25 and rebuilding of properties to at least base flood 
57 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 elevation or greater, if required by the Administrator 

2 or if required by any State regulation or local ordi3 nance, and in accordance with criteria established by 

4 the Administrator.’’; and 

5 (E) by redesignating such subsection as 

6 subsection (c); 

7 (6) by striking subsections (f), (g), and (h) and 

8 inserting the following new subsection: 

9 ‘‘(d) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—The Administrator 

10 may provide grants for eligible mitigation activities as fol11 lows: 

12 ‘‘(1) SEVERE REPETITIVE LOSS STRUCTURES.— 

13 In the case of mitigation activities to severe repet14 itive loss structures, in an amount up to 100 percent 

15 of all eligible costs. 

16 ‘‘(2) REPETITIVE LOSS STRUCTURES.—In the 

17 case of mitigation activities to repetitive loss struc18 tures, in an amount up to 90 percent of all eligible 

19 costs. 

20 ‘‘(3) OTHER MITIGATION ACTIVITIES.— In the 

21 case of all other mitigation activities, in an amount 

22 up to 75 percent of all eligible costs.’’; 

23 (7) in subsection (i)— 

24 (A) in paragraph (2)— 
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1 (i) by striking ‘‘certified under sub2 section (g)’’ and inserting ‘‘required under 

3 subsection (d)’’; and 

4 (ii) by striking ‘‘3 times the amount’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘the amount’’; and 

6 (B) by redesignating such subsection as 

7 subsection (e); 

8 (8) in subsection (j)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Riegle 

10 Community Development and Regulatory Im11 provement Act of 1994’’ and inserting ‘‘Flood 

12 Insurance Reform Act of 2011’’; 

13 (B) by redesignating such subsection as 

14 subsection (f); and 

15 (9) by striking subsections (k) and (m) and in16 serting the following new subsections: 

17 ‘‘(g) FAILURE TO MAKE GRANT AWARD WITHIN 5 

18 YEARS.—For any application for a grant under this sec19 tion for which the Administrator fails to make a grant 

20 award within 5 years of the date of application, the grant 

21 application shall be considered to be denied and any fund22 ing amounts allocated for such grant applications shall re23 main in the National Flood Mitigation Fund under section 

24 1367 of this title and shall be made available for grants 

25 under this section. 
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1 ‘‘(h) LIMITATION ON FUNDING FOR MITIGATION AC2 TIVITIES FOR SEVERE REPETITIVE LOSS STRUCTURES.— 

3 The amount used pursuant to section 1310(a)(8) in any 

4 fiscal year may not exceed $40,000,000 and shall remain 

5 available until expended. 

6 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 

7 following definitions shall apply: 

8 ‘‘(1) COMMUNITY.—The term ‘community’ 

9 means— 

10 ‘‘(A) a political subdivision that— 

11 ‘‘(i) has zoning and building code ju12 risdiction over a particular area having 

13 special flood hazards, and 

14 ‘‘(ii) is participating in the national 

15 flood insurance program; or 

16 ‘‘(B) a political subdivision of a State, or 

17 other authority, that is designated by political 

18 subdivisions, all of which meet the requirements 

19 of subparagraph (A), to administer grants for 

20 mitigation activities for such political subdivi21 sions. 

22 ‘‘(2) REPETITIVE LOSS STRUCTURE.—The term 

23 ‘repetitive loss structure’ has the meaning given 

24 such term in section 1370. 
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1 ‘‘(3) SEVERE REPETITIVE LOSS STRUCTURE.— 

2 The term ‘severe repetitive loss structure’ means a 

3 structure that— 

4 ‘‘(A) is covered under a contract for flood 

5 insurance made available under this title; and 

6 ‘‘(B) has incurred flood-related damage— 

7 ‘‘(i) for which 4 or more separate 

8 claims payments have been made under 

9 flood insurance coverage under this title, 

10 with the amount of each such claim ex11 ceeding $15,000, and with the cumulative 

12 amount of such claims payments exceeding 

13 $60,000; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) for which at least 2 separate 

15 claims payments have been made under 

16 such coverage, with the cumulative amount 

17 of such claims exceeding the value of the 

18 insured structure.’’. 

19 (b) ELIMINATION OF GRANTS PROGRAM FOR REPET20 ITIVE INSURANCE CLAIMS PROPERTIES.—Chapter I of 

21 the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 is amended by 

22 striking section 1323 (42 U.S.C. 4030). 

23 (c) ELIMINATION OF PILOT PROGRAM FOR MITIGA24 TION OF SEVERE REPETITIVE LOSS PROPERTIES.—Chap-
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•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 ter III of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 is 

2 amended by striking section 1361A (42 U.S.C. 4102a). 

3 (d) NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE FUND.—Section 

4 1310(a) of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 

5 U.S.C. 4017(a)) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘and’’ after 

7 the semicolon; 

8 (2) in paragraph (7), by striking the semicolon 

9 and inserting a period; and 

10 (3) by striking paragraphs (8) and (9). 

11 (e) NATIONAL FLOOD MITIGATION FUND.—Section 

12 1367 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 

13 U.S.C. 4104d) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (b)— 

15 (A) by striking paragraph (1) and insert16 ing the following new paragraph: 

17 ‘‘(1) in each fiscal year, from the National 

18 Flood Insurance Fund in amounts not exceeding 

19 $90,000,000 to remain available until expended, of 

20 which— 

21 ‘‘(A) not more than $40,000,000 shall be 

22 available pursuant to subsection (a) of this sec23 tion only for assistance described in section 

24 1366(a)(1); 
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1 ‘‘(B) not more than $40,000,000 shall be 

2 available pursuant to subsection (a) of this sec3 tion only for assistance described in section 

4 1366(a)(2); and 

5 ‘‘(C) not more than $10,000,000 shall be 

6 available pursuant to subsection (a) of this sec7 tion only for assistance described in section 

8 1366(a)(3).’’. 

9 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘section 

10 1366(i)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 1366(e)’’; 

11 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘sections 1366 

12 and 1323’’ and inserting ‘‘section 1366’’; 

13 (3) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 

14 subsections (f) and (g), respectively; and 

15 (4) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol16 lowing new subsections: 

17 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION ON OFFSETTING COLLECTIONS.— 

18 Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, amounts 

19 made available pursuant to this section shall not be sub20 ject to offsetting collections through premium rates for 

21 flood insurance coverage under this title. 

22 ‘‘(e) CONTINUED AVAILABILITY AND REALLOCA23 TION.—Any amounts made available pursuant to subpara24 graph (A), (B), or (C) of subsection (b)(1) that are not 

25 used in any fiscal year shall continue to be available for 
63 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 the purposes specified in such subparagraph of subsection 

2 (b)(1) pursuant to which such amounts were made avail3 able, unless the Administrator determines that realloca4 tion of such unused amounts to meet demonstrated need 

5 for other mitigation activities under section 1366 is in the 

6 best interest of the National Flood Insurance Fund.’’. 

7 (f) INCREASED COST OF COMPLIANCE COVERAGE.— 

8 Section 1304(b)(4) of the National Flood Insurance Act 

9 of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4011(b)(4)) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking subparagraph (B); and 

11 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (C), (D), 

12 and (E) as subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D), respec13 tively. 

14 SEC. 12. NOTIFICATION TO HOMEOWNERS REGARDING 

15 MANDATORY PURCHASE REQUIREMENT AP16 PLICABILITY AND RATE PHASE-INS. 

17 Section 201 of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 

18 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4105) is amended by adding at the end 

19 the following new subsection: 

20 ‘‘(f) ANNUAL NOTIFICATION.—The Administrator, in 

21 consultation with affected communities, shall establish and 

22 carry out a plan to notify residents of areas having special 

23 flood hazards, on an annual basis— 

24 ‘‘(1) that they reside in such an area; 
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1 ‘‘(2) of the geographical boundaries of such 

2 area; 

3 ‘‘(3) of whether section 1308(g) of the National 

4 Flood Insurance Act of 1968 applies to properties 

5 within such area; 

6 ‘‘(4) of the provisions of section 102 requiring 

7 purchase of flood insurance coverage for properties 

8 located in such an area, including the date on which 

9 such provisions apply with respect to such area, tak10 ing into consideration section 102(i); and 

11 ‘‘(5) of a general estimate of what similar 

12 homeowners in similar areas typically pay for flood 

13 insurance coverage, taking into consideration section 

14 1308(g) of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

15 1968.’’. 

16 SEC. 13. NOTIFICATION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS OF 

17 FLOOD MAP REVISIONS AND UPDATES. 

18 Section 1360 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

19 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4101), as amended by the preceding pro20 visions of this Act, is further amended by adding at the 

21 end the following new subsection: 

22 ‘‘(l) NOTIFICATION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS OF

23 MAP MODERNIZATION.—Upon any revision or update of 

24 any floodplain area or flood-risk zone pursuant to sub25 section (f), any decision pursuant to subsection (f)(1) that 
65 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 such revision or update is necessary, any issuance of pre2 liminary maps for such revision or updating, or any other 

3 significant action relating to any such revision or update, 

4 the Administrator shall notify the Senators for each State 

5 affected, and each Member of the House of Representa6 tives for each congressional district affected, by such revi7 sion or update in writing of the action taken.’’. 

8 SEC. 14. NOTIFICATION AND APPEAL OF MAP CHANGES; 

9 NOTIFICATION TO COMMUNITIES OF ESTAB10 LISHMENT OF FLOOD ELEVATIONS. 

11 Section 1363 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

12 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4104) is amended by striking the section 

13 designation and all that follows through the end of sub14 section (a) and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 1363. (a) In establishing projected flood ele16 vations for land use purposes with respect to any commu17 nity pursuant to section 1361, the Director shall first pro18 pose such determinations— 

19 ‘‘(1) by providing the chief executive officer of 

20 each community affected by the proposed elevations, 

21 by certified mail, with a return receipt requested, 

22 notice of the elevations, including a copy of the maps 

23 for the elevations for such community and a state24 ment explaining the process under this section to ap25 peal for changes in such elevations; 
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•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 ‘‘(2) by causing notice of such elevations to be 

2 published in the Federal Register, which notice shall 

3 include information sufficient to identify the ele4 vation determinations and the communities affected, 

5 information explaining how to obtain copies of the 

6 elevations, and a statement explaining the process 

7 under this section to appeal for changes in the ele8 vations; 

9 ‘‘(3) by publishing in a prominent local news10 paper the elevations, a description of the appeals 

11 process for flood determinations, and the mailing ad12 dress and telephone number of a person the owner 

13 may contact for more information or to initiate an 

14 appeal; and 

15 ‘‘(4) by providing written notification, by first 

16 class mail, to each owner of real property affected by 

17 the proposed elevations of— 

18 ‘‘(A) the status of such property, both 

19 prior to and after the effective date of the pro20 posed determination, with respect to flood zone 

21 and flood insurance requirements under this 

22 Act and the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 

23 1973; 

24 ‘‘(B) the process under this section to ap25 peal a flood elevation determination; and 
67 

•HR 1309 EH1S 

1 ‘‘(C) the mailing address and phone num2 ber of a person the owner may contact for more 

3 information or to initiate an appeal.’’. 

4 SEC. 15. NOTIFICATION TO TENANTS OF AVAILABILITY OF 

5 CONTENTS INSURANCE. 

6 The National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 is amend7 ed by inserting after section 1308 (42 U.S.C. 4015) the 

8 following new section: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 1308A. NOTIFICATION TO TENANTS OF AVAILABILITY 

10 OF CONTENTS INSURANCE. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall, upon 

12 entering into a contract for flood insurance coverage under 

13 this title for any property— 

14 ‘‘(1) provide to the insured sufficient copies of 

15 the notice developed pursuant to subsection (b); and 

16 ‘‘(2) require the insured to provide a copy of 

17 the notice, or otherwise provide notification of the 

18 information under subsection (b) in the manner that 

19 the manager or landlord deems most appropriate, to 

20 each such tenant and to each new tenant upon com21 mencement of such a tenancy. 

22 ‘‘(b) NOTICE.—Notice to a tenant of a property in 

23 accordance with this subsection is written notice that 

24 clearly informs a tenant— 
68 

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1 ‘‘(1) whether the property is located in an area 

2 having special flood hazards; 

3 ‘‘(2) that flood insurance coverage is available 

4 under the national flood insurance program under 

5 this title for contents of the unit or structure leased 

6 by the tenant; 

7 ‘‘(3) of the maximum amount of such coverage 

8 for contents available under this title at that time; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(4) of where to obtain information regarding 

11 how to obtain such coverage, including a telephone 

12 number, mailing address, and Internet site of the 

13 Administrator where such information is available.’’. 

14 SEC. 16. NOTIFICATION TO POLICY HOLDERS REGARDING 

15 DIRECT MANAGEMENT OF POLICY BY FEMA. 

16 Part C of chapter II of the National Flood Insurance 

17 Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4081 et seq.) is amended by add18 ing at the end the following new section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 1349. NOTIFICATION TO POLICY HOLDERS REGARD20 ING DIRECT MANAGEMENT OF POLICY BY 

21 FEMA. 

22 ‘‘(a) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 60 days before 

23 the date on which a transferred flood insurance policy ex24 pires, and annually thereafter until such time as the Fed25 eral Emergency Management Agency is no longer directly 
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1 administering such policy, the Administrator shall notify 

2 the holder of such policy that— 

3 ‘‘(1) the Federal Emergency Management 

4 Agency is directly administering the policy; 

5 ‘‘(2) such holder may purchase flood insurance 

6 that is directly administered by an insurance com7 pany; and 

8 ‘‘(3) purchasing flood insurance offered under 

9 the National Flood Insurance Program that is di10 rectly administered by an insurance company will 

11 not alter the coverage provided or the premiums 

12 charged to such holder that otherwise would be pro13 vided or charged if the policy was directly adminis14 tered by the Federal Emergency Management Agen15 cy. 

16 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘trans17 ferred flood insurance policy’ means a flood insurance pol18 icy that— 

19 ‘‘(1) was directly administered by an insurance 

20 company at the time the policy was originally pur21 chased by the policy holder; and 

22 ‘‘(2) at the time of renewal of the policy, direct 

23 administration of the policy was or will be trans24 ferred to the Federal Emergency Management Agen25 cy.’’. 
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1 SEC. 17. NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF FLOOD INSURANCE 

2 AND ESCROW IN RESPA GOOD FAITH ESTI3 MATE. 

4 Subsection (c) of section 5 of the Real Estate Settle5 ment Procedures Act of 1974 (12 U.S.C. 2604(c)) is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: 

7 ‘‘Each such good faith estimate shall include the following 

8 conspicuous statements and information: (1) that flood in9 surance coverage for residential real estate is generally 

10 available under the national flood insurance program 

11 whether or not the real estate is located in an area having 

12 special flood hazards and that, to obtain such coverage, 

13 a home owner or purchaser should contact the national 

14 flood insurance program; (2) a telephone number and a 

15 location on the Internet by which a home owner or pur16 chaser can contact the national flood insurance program; 

17 and (3) that the escrowing of flood insurance payments 

18 is required for many loans under section 102(d) of the 

19 Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973, and may be a con20 venient and available option with respect to other loans.’’. 

21 SEC. 18. REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS INCURRED BY 

22 HOMEOWNERS AND COMMUNITIES OBTAIN23 ING LETTERS OF MAP AMENDMENT OR REVI24 SION. 

25 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1360 of the National 

26 Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4101), as amend-
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1 ed by the preceding provisions of this Act, is further 

2 amended by adding at the end the following new sub3 section: 

4 ‘‘(m) REIMBURSEMENT.— 

5 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT UPON BONA FIDE

6 ERROR.—If an owner of any property located in an 

7 area described in section 102(i)(3) of the Flood Dis8 aster Protection Act of 1973, or a community in 

9 which such a property is located, obtains a letter of 

10 map amendment, or a letter of map revision, due to 

11 a bona fide error on the part of the Administrator 

12 of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the 

13 Administrator shall reimburse such owner, or such 

14 entity or jurisdiction acting on such owner’s behalf, 

15 or such community, as applicable, for any reasonable 

16 costs incurred in obtaining such letter. 

17 ‘‘(2) REASONABLE COSTS.—The Administrator 

18 shall, by regulation or notice, determine a reasonable 

19 amount of costs to be reimbursed under paragraph 

20 (1), except that such costs shall not include legal or 

21 attorneys fees. In determining the reasonableness of 

22 costs, the Administrator shall only consider the ac23 tual costs to the owner or community, as applicable, 

24 of utilizing the services of an engineer, surveyor, or 

25 similar services.’’. 
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1 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 90 days after the 

2 date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 

3 the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall issue 

4 the regulations or notice required under section 

5 1360(m)(2) of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, 

6 as added by the amendment made by subsection (a) of 

7 this section. 

8 SEC. 19. ENHANCED COMMUNICATION WITH CERTAIN COM9 MUNITIES DURING MAP UPDATING PROCESS. 

10 Section 1360 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

11 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4101), as amended by the preceding pro12 visions of this Act, is further amended by adding at the 

13 end the following new subsection: 

14 ‘‘(n) ENHANCED COMMUNICATION WITH CERTAIN

15 COMMUNITIES DURING MAP UPDATING PROCESS.—In 

16 updating flood insurance maps under this section, the Ad17 ministrator shall communicate with communities located 

18 in areas where flood insurance rate maps have not been 

19 updated in 20 years or more and the appropriate State 

20 emergency agencies to resolve outstanding issues, provide 

21 technical assistance, and disseminate all necessary infor22 mation to reduce the prevalence of outdated maps in flood23 prone areas.’’. 
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1 SEC. 20. NOTIFICATION TO RESIDENTS NEWLY INCLUDED 

2 IN FLOOD HAZARD AREAS. 

3 Section 1360 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

4 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4101), as amended by the preceding pro5 visions of this Act, is further amended by adding at the 

6 end the following new subsection: 

7 ‘‘(o) NOTIFICATION TO RESIDENTS NEWLY IN8 CLUDED IN FLOOD HAZARD AREA.—In revising or updat9 ing any areas having special flood hazards, the Adminis10 trator shall provide to each owner of a property to be 

11 newly included in such a special flood hazard area, at the 

12 time of issuance of such proposed revised or updated flood 

13 insurance maps, a copy of the proposed revised or updated 

14 flood insurance maps together with information regarding 

15 the appeals process under section 1363 of the National 

16 Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4104).’’. 

17 SEC. 21. TREATMENT OF SWIMMING POOL ENCLOSURES 

18 OUTSIDE OF HURRICANE SEASON. 

19 Chapter I of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

20 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.) is amended by adding at 

21 the end the following new section: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 1325. TREATMENT OF SWIMMING POOL ENCLOSURES 

23 OUTSIDE OF HURRICANE SEASON. 

24 ‘‘In the case of any property that is otherwise in com25 pliance with the coverage and building requirements of the 

26 national flood insurance program, the presence of an en-
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1 closed swimming pool located at ground level or in the 

2 space below the lowest floor of a building after November 

3 30 and before June 1 of any year shall have no effect on 

4 the terms of coverage or the ability to receive coverage 

5 for such building under the national flood insurance pro6 gram established pursuant to this title, if the pool is en7 closed with non-supporting breakaway walls.’’. 

8 SEC. 22. INFORMATION REGARDING MULTIPLE PERILS 

9 CLAIMS. 

10 Section 1345 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

11 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4081) is amended by adding at the end 

12 the following new subsection: 

13 ‘‘(d) INFORMATION REGARDING MULTIPLE PERILS

14 CLAIMS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

16 if an insured having flood insurance coverage under 

17 a policy issued under the program under this title by 

18 the Administrator or a company, insurer, or entity 

19 offering flood insurance coverage under such pro20 gram (in this subsection referred to as a ‘partici21 pating company’) has wind or other homeowners 

22 coverage from any company, insurer, or other entity 

23 covering property covered by such flood insurance, in 

24 the case of damage to such property that may have 

25 been caused by flood or by wind, the Administrator 
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1 and the participating company, upon the request of 

2 the insured, shall provide to the insured, within 30 

3 days of such request— 

4 ‘‘(A) a copy of the estimate of structure 

5 damage; 

6 ‘‘(B) proofs of loss; 

7 ‘‘(C) any expert or engineering reports or 

8 documents commissioned by or relied upon by 

9 the Administrator or participating company in 

10 determining whether the damage was caused by 

11 flood or any other peril; and 

12 ‘‘(D) the Administrator’s or the partici13 pating company’s final determination on the 

14 claim. 

15 ‘‘(2) TIMING.—Paragraph (1) shall apply only 

16 with respect to a request described in such para17 graph made by an insured after the Administrator 

18 or the participating company, or both, as applicable, 

19 have issued a final decision on the flood claim in20 volved and resolution of all appeals with respect to 

21 such claim.’’. 
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1 SEC. 23. FEMA AUTHORITY TO REJECT TRANSFER OF POLI2 CIES. 

3 Section 1345 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 

4 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4081) is amended by adding at the end 

5 the following new subsection: 

6 ‘‘(e) FEMA AUTHORITY TO REJECT TRANSFER OF

7 POLICIES.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

8 Act, the Administrator may, at the discretion of the Ad9 ministrator, refuse to accept the transfer of the adminis10 tration of policies for coverage under the flood insurance 

11 program under this title that are written and administered 

12 by any insurance company or other insurer, or any insur13 ance agent or broker.’’. 

14 SEC. 24. APPEALS. 

15 (a) TELEVISION AND RADIO ANNOUNCEMENT.—Sec16 tion 1363 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 

17 (42 U.S.C. 4104) is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting after ‘‘deter19 minations’’ by inserting the following: ‘‘by notifying 

20 a local television and radio station,’’; and 

21 (2) in the first sentence of subsection (b), by in22 serting before the period at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘and shall notify a local television and radio station 

24 at least once during the same 10-day period’’. 
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1 (b) EXTENSION OF APPEALS PERIOD.—Subsection 

2 (b) of section 1363 of the National Flood Insurance Act 

3 of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4104(b)) is amended— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘(b) The Director’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘(b)(1) The Administrator’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

7 paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(2) The Administrator shall grant an extension of 

9 the 90-day period for appeals referred to in paragraph (1) 

10 for 90 additional days if an affected community certifies 

11 to the Administrator, after the expiration of at least 60 

12 days of such period, that the community— 

13 ‘‘(A) believes there are property owners or les14 sees in the community who are unaware of such pe15 riod for appeals; and 

16 ‘‘(B) will utilize the extension under this para17 graph to notify property owners or lessees who are 

18 affected by the proposed flood elevation determina19 tions of the period for appeals and the opportunity 

20 to appeal the determinations proposed by the Ad21 ministrator.’’. 

22 (c) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by sub23 sections (a) and (b) shall apply with respect to any flood 

24 elevation determination for any area in a community that 

25 has not, as of the date of the enactment of this Act, been 
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1 issued a Letter of Final Determination for such deter2 mination under the flood insurance map modernization 

3 process. 

4 SEC. 25. RESERVE FUND. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Chapter I of the National 

6 Flood Insurance Act of 1968 is amended by inserting after 

7 section 1310 (42 U.S.C. 4017) the following new section: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 1310A. RESERVE FUND. 

9 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF RESERVE FUND.—In car10 rying out the flood insurance program authorized by this 

11 title, the Administrator shall establish in the Treasury of 

12 the United States a National Flood Insurance Reserve 

13 Fund (in this section referred to as the ‘Reserve Fund’) 

14 which shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) be an account separate from any other ac16 counts or funds available to the Administrator; and 

17 ‘‘(2) be available for meeting the expected fu18 ture obligations of the flood insurance program. 

19 ‘‘(b) RESERVE RATIO.—Subject to the phase-in re20 quirements under subsection (d), the Reserve Fund shall 

21 maintain a balance equal to— 

22 ‘‘(1) 1 percent of the sum of the total potential 

23 loss exposure of all outstanding flood insurance poli24 cies in force in the prior fiscal year; or 
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1 ‘‘(2) such higher percentage as the Adminis2 trator determines to be appropriate, taking into con3 sideration any circumstance that may raise a signifi4 cant risk of substantial future losses to the Reserve 

5 Fund. 

6 ‘‘(c) MAINTENANCE OF RESERVE RATIO.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 

8 have the authority to establish, increase, or decrease 

9 the amount of aggregate annual insurance premiums 

10 to be collected for any fiscal year necessary— 

11 ‘‘(A) to maintain the reserve ratio required 

12 under subsection (b); and 

13 ‘‘(B) to achieve such reserve ratio, if the 

14 actual balance of such reserve is below the 

15 amount required under subsection (b). 

16 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In exercising the au17 thority under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall 

18 consider— 

19 ‘‘(A) the expected operating expenses of 

20 the Reserve Fund; 

21 ‘‘(B) the insurance loss expenditures under 

22 the flood insurance program; 

23 ‘‘(C) any investment income generated 

24 under the flood insurance program; and 
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1 ‘‘(D) any other factor that the Adminis2 trator determines appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.—In exercising the authority 

4 under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall be 

5 subject to all other provisions of this Act, including 

6 any provisions relating to chargeable premium rates 

7 and annual increases of such rates. 

8 ‘‘(d) PHASE-IN REQUIREMENTS.—The phase-in re9 quirements under this subsection are as follows: 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning in fiscal year 

11 2012 and not ending until the fiscal year in which 

12 the ratio required under subsection (b) is achieved, 

13 in each such fiscal year the Administrator shall 

14 place in the Reserve Fund an amount equal to not 

15 less than 7.5 percent of the reserve ratio required 

16 under subsection (b). 

17 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT SATISFIED.—As soon as the ratio 

18 required under subsection (b) is achieved, and except 

19 as provided in paragraph (3), the Administrator 

20 shall not be required to set aside any amounts for 

21 the Reserve Fund. 

22 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—If at any time after the 

23 ratio required under subsection (b) is achieved, the 

24 Reserve Fund falls below the required ratio under 

25 subsection (b), the Administrator shall place in the 
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1 Reserve Fund for that fiscal year an amount equal 

2 to not less than 7.5 percent of the reserve ratio re3 quired under subsection (b). 

4 ‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON RESERVE RATIO.—In any given 

5 fiscal year, if the Administrator determines that the re6 serve ratio required under subsection (b) cannot be 

7 achieved, the Administrator shall submit a report to the 

8 Congress that— 

9 ‘‘(1) describes and details the specific concerns 

10 of the Administrator regarding such consequences; 

11 ‘‘(2) demonstrates how such consequences 

12 would harm the long-term financial soundness of the 

13 flood insurance program; and 

14 ‘‘(3) indicates the maximum attainable reserve 

15 ratio for that particular fiscal year. 

16 ‘‘(f) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—The reserve ratio 

17 requirements under subsection (b) and the phase-in re18 quirements under subsection (d) shall be subject to the 

19 availability of amounts in the National Flood Insurance 

20 Fund for transfer under section 1310(a)(10), as provided 

21 in section 1310(f).’’. 

22 (b) FUNDING.—Subsection (a) of section 1310 of the 

23 National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

24 4017(a)) is amended— 
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1 (1) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

2 end; 

3 (2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at 

4 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

6 paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(10) for transfers to the National Flood Insur8 ance Reserve Fund under section 1310A, in accord9 ance with such section.’’. 

10 SEC. 26. CDBG ELIGIBILITY FOR FLOOD INSURANCE OUT11 REACH ACTIVITIES AND COMMUNITY BUILD12 ING CODE ADMINISTRATION GRANTS. 

13 Section 105(a) of the Housing and Community De14 velopment Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5305(a)) is amended— 

15 (1) in paragraph (24), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

16 end; 

17 (2) in paragraph (25), by striking the period at 

18 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

20 paragraphs: 

21 ‘‘(26) supplementing existing State or local 

22 funding for administration of building code enforce23 ment by local building code enforcement depart24 ments, including for increasing staffing, providing 

25 staff training, increasing staff competence and pro-
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1 fessional qualifications, and supporting individual 

2 certification or departmental accreditation, and for 

3 capital expenditures specifically dedicated to the ad4 ministration of the building code enforcement de5 partment, except that, to be eligible to use amounts 

6 as provided in this paragraph— 

7 ‘‘(A) a building code enforcement depart8 ment shall provide matching, non-Federal funds 

9 to be used in conjunction with amounts used 

10 under this paragraph in an amount— 

11 ‘‘(i) in the case of a building code en12 forcement department serving an area with 

13 a population of more than 50,000, equal to 

14 not less than 50 percent of the total 

15 amount of any funds made available under 

16 this title that are used under this para17 graph; 

18 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a building code en19 forcement department serving an area with 

20 a population of between 20,001 and 

21 50,000, equal to not less than 25 percent 

22 of the total amount of any funds made 

23 available under this title that are used 

24 under this paragraph; and 
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1 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a building code 

2 enforcement department serving an area 

3 with a population of less than 20,000, 

4 equal to not less than 12.5 percent of the 

5 total amount of any funds made available 

6 under this title that are used under this 

7 paragraph, 

8 except that the Secretary may waive the match9 ing fund requirements under this subparagraph, 

10 in whole or in part, based upon the level of eco11 nomic distress of the jurisdiction in which is lo12 cated the local building code enforcement de13 partment that is using amounts for purposes 

14 under this paragraph, and shall waive such 

15 matching fund requirements in whole for any 

16 recipient jurisdiction that has dedicated all 

17 building code permitting fees to the conduct of 

18 local building code enforcement; and 

19 ‘‘(B) any building code enforcement de20 partment using funds made available under this 

21 title for purposes under this paragraph shall 

22 empanel a code administration and enforcement 

23 team consisting of at least 1 full-time building 

24 code enforcement officer, a city planner, and a 

25 health planner or similar officer; and 
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1 ‘‘(27) provision of assistance to local govern2 mental agencies responsible for floodplain manage3 ment activities (including such agencies of Indians 

4 tribes, as such term is defined in section 4 of the 

5 Native American Housing Assistance and Self-De6 termination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)) in com7 munities that participate in the national flood insur8 ance program under the National Flood Insurance 

9 Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), only for car10 rying out outreach activities to encourage and facili11 tate the purchase of flood insurance protection 

12 under such Act by owners and renters of properties 

13 in such communities and to promote educational ac14 tivities that increase awareness of flood risk reduc15 tion; except that— 

16 ‘‘(A) amounts used as provided under this 

17 paragraph shall be used only for activities de18 signed to— 

19 ‘‘(i) identify owners and renters of 

20 properties in communities that participate 

21 in the national flood insurance program, 

22 including owners of residential and com23 mercial properties; 

24 ‘‘(ii) notify such owners and renters 

25 when their properties become included in, 
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1 or when they are excluded from, an area 

2 having special flood hazards and the effect 

3 of such inclusion or exclusion on the appli4 cability of the mandatory flood insurance 

5 purchase requirement under section 102 of 

6 the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 

7 (42 U.S.C. 4012a) to such properties; 

8 ‘‘(iii) educate such owners and renters 

9 regarding the flood risk and reduction of 

10 this risk in their community, including the 

11 continued flood risks to areas that are no 

12 longer subject to the flood insurance man13 datory purchase requirement; 

14 ‘‘(iv) educate such owners and renters 

15 regarding the benefits and costs of main16 taining or acquiring flood insurance, in17 cluding, where applicable, lower-cost pre18 ferred risk policies under this title for such 

19 properties and the contents of such prop20 erties; 

21 ‘‘(v) encourage such owners and rent22 ers to maintain or acquire such coverage; 

23 ‘‘(vi) notify such owners of where to 

24 obtain information regarding how to obtain 

25 such coverage, including a telephone num-
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1 ber, mailing address, and Internet site of 

2 the Administrator of the Federal Emer3 gency Management Agency (in this para4 graph referred to as the ‘Administrator’) 

5 where such information is available; and 

6 ‘‘(vii) educate local real estate agents 

7 in communities participating in the na8 tional flood insurance program regarding 

9 the program and the availability of cov10 erage under the program for owners and 

11 renters of properties in such communities, 

12 and establish coordination and liaisons 

13 with such real estate agents to facilitate 

14 purchase of coverage under the National 

15 Flood Insurance Act of 1968 and increase 

16 awareness of flood risk reduction; 

17 ‘‘(B) in any fiscal year, a local govern18 mental agency may not use an amount under 

19 this paragraph that exceeds 3 times the amount 

20 that the agency certifies, as the Secretary, in 

21 consultation with the Administrator, shall re22 quire, that the agency will contribute from non23 Federal funds to be used with such amounts 

24 used under this paragraph only for carrying out 

25 activities described in subparagraph (A); and 
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1 for purposes of this subparagraph, the term 

2 ‘non-Federal funds’ includes State or local gov3 ernment agency amounts, in-kind contributions, 

4 any salary paid to staff to carry out the eligible 

5 activities of the local governmental agency in6 volved, the value of the time and services con7 tributed by volunteers to carry out such services 

8 (at a rate determined by the Secretary), and 

9 the value of any donated material or building 

10 and the value of any lease on a building; 

11 ‘‘(C) a local governmental agency that uses 

12 amounts as provided under this paragraph may 

13 coordinate or contract with other agencies and 

14 entities having particular capacities, specialties, 

15 or experience with respect to certain popu16 lations or constituencies, including elderly or 

17 disabled families or persons, to carry out activi18 ties described in subparagraph (A) with respect 

19 to such populations or constituencies; and 

20 ‘‘(D) each local government agency that 

21 uses amounts as provided under this paragraph 

22 shall submit a report to the Secretary and the 

23 Administrator, not later than 12 months after 

24 such amounts are first received, which shall in25 clude such information as the Secretary and the 
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1 Administrator jointly consider appropriate to 

2 describe the activities conducted using such 

3 amounts and the effect of such activities on the 

4 retention or acquisition of flood insurance cov5 erage.’’. 

6 SEC. 27. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

7 (a) FLOOD DISASTER PROTECTION ACT OF 1973.— 

8 The Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 

9 4002 et seq.) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘Director’’ each place such term 

11 appears, except in section 102(f)(3) (42 U.S.C. 

12 4012a(f)(3)), and inserting ‘‘Administrator’’; and 

13 (2) in section 201(b) (42 U.S.C. 4105(b)), by 

14 striking ‘‘Director’s’’ and inserting ‘‘Administra15 tor’s’’. 

16 (b) NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE ACT OF 1968.— 

17 The National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

18 4001 et seq.) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘Director’’ each place such term 

20 appears and inserting ‘‘Administrator’’; and 

21 (2) in section 1363 (42 U.S.C. 4104), by strik22 ing ‘‘Director’s’’ each place such term appears and 

23 inserting ‘‘Administrator’s’’. 

24 (c) FEDERAL FLOOD INSURANCE ACT OF 1956.— 

25 Section 15(e) of the Federal Flood Insurance Act of 1956 
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1 (42 U.S.C. 2414(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘Director’’ 

2 each place such term appears and inserting ‘‘Adminis3 trator’’. 

4 SEC. 28. REQUIRING COMPETITION FOR NATIONAL FLOOD 

5 INSURANCE PROGRAM POLICIES. 

6 (a) REPORT.—Not later than the expiration of the 

7 90-day period beginning upon the date of the enactment 

8 of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 

9 Management Agency, in consultation with insurance com10 panies, insurance agents and other organizations with 

11 which the Administrator has contracted, shall submit to 

12 the Congress a report describing procedures and policies 

13 that the Administrator shall implement to limit the per14 centage of policies for flood insurance coverage under the 

15 national flood insurance program that are directly man16 aged by the Agency to not more than 10 percent of the 

17 aggregate number of flood insurance policies in force 

18 under such program. 

19 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—Upon submission of the re20 port under subsection (a) to the Congress, the Adminis21 trator shall implement the policies and procedures de22 scribed in the report. The Administrator shall, not later 

23 than the expiration of the 12-month period beginning 

24 upon submission of such report, reduce the number of 

25 policies for flood insurance coverage that are directly man-
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1 aged by the Agency, or by the Agency’s direct servicing 

2 contractor that is not an insurer, to not more than 10 

3 percent of the aggregate number of flood insurance poli4 cies in force as of the expiration of such 12-month period. 

5 (c) CONTINUATION OF CURRENT AGENT RELATION6 SHIPS.—In carrying out subsection (b), the Administrator 

7 shall ensure that— 

8 (1) agents selling or servicing policies described 

9 in such subsection are not prevented from con10 tinuing to sell or service such policies; and 

11 (2) insurance companies are not prevented from 

12 waiving any limitation such companies could other13 wise enforce to limit any such activity. 

14 SEC. 29. STUDIES OF VOLUNTARY COMMUNITY-BASED 

15 FLOOD INSURANCE OPTIONS. 

16 (a) STUDIES.—The Administrator of the Federal 

17 Emergency Management Agency and the Comptroller 

18 General of the United States shall each conduct a separate 

19 study to assess options, methods, and strategies for offer20 ing voluntary community-based flood insurance policy op21 tions and incorporating such options into the national 

22 flood insurance program. Such studies shall take into con23 sideration and analyze how the policy options would affect 

24 communities having varying economic bases, geographic 
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1 locations, flood hazard characteristics or classifications, 

2 and flood management approaches. 

3 (b) REPORTS.—Not later than the expiration of the 

4 18-month period beginning on the date of the enactment 

5 of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 

6 Management Agency and the Comptroller General of the 

7 United States shall each submit a report to the Committee 

8 on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and 

9 the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

10 of the Senate on the results and conclusions of the study 

11 such agency conducted under subsection (a), and each 

12 such report shall include recommendations for the best 

13 manner to incorporate voluntary community-based flood 

14 insurance options into the national flood insurance pro15 gram and for a strategy to implement such options that 

16 would encourage communities to undertake flood mitiga17 tion activities. 

18 SEC. 30. REPORT ON INCLUSION OF BUILDING CODES IN 

19 FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT CRITERIA. 

20 Not later than the expiration of the 6-month period 

21 beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

22 Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 

23 Agency shall conduct a study and submit a report to the 

24 Committee on Financial Services of the House of Rep25 resentatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 
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1 Urban Affairs of the Senate regarding the impact, effec2 tiveness, and feasibility of amending section 1361 of the 

3 National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4102) 

4 to include widely used and nationally recognized building 

5 codes as part of the floodplain management criteria devel6 oped under such section, and shall determine— 

7 (1) the regulatory, financial, and economic im8 pacts of such a building code requirement on home9 owners, States and local communities, local land use 

10 policies, and the Federal Emergency Management 

11 Agency; 

12 (2) the resources required of State and local 

13 communities to administer and enforce such a build14 ing code requirement; 

15 (3) the effectiveness of such a building code re16 quirement in reducing flood-related damage to build17 ings and contents; 

18 (4) the impact of such a building code require19 ment on the actuarial soundness of the National 

20 Flood Insurance Program; 

21 (5) the effectiveness of nationally recognized 

22 codes in allowing innovative materials and systems 

23 for flood-resistant construction; 

24 (6) the feasibility and effectiveness of providing 

25 an incentive in lower premium rates for flood insur-
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1 ance coverage under such Act for structures meeting 

2 whichever of such widely used and nationally recog3 nized building code or any applicable local building 

4 code provides greater protection from flood damage; 

5 (7) the impact of such a building code require6 ment on rural communities with different building 

7 code challenges than more urban environments; and 

8 (8) the impact of such a building code require9 ment on Indian reservations. 

10 SEC. 31. STUDY ON GRADUATED RISK. 

11 (a) STUDY.—The National Academy of Sciences shall 

12 conduct a study exploring methods for understanding 

13 graduated risk behind levees and the associated land de14 velopment, insurance, and risk communication dimensions, 

15 which shall— 

16 (1) research, review, and recommend current 

17 best practices for estimating direct annualized flood 

18 losses behind levees for residential and commercial 

19 structures; 

20 (2) rank such practices based on their best 

21 value, balancing cost, scientific integrity, and the in22 herent uncertainties associated with all aspects of 

23 the loss estimate, including geotechnical engineering, 

24 flood frequency estimates, economic value, and direct 

25 damages; 
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1 (3) research, review, and identify current best 

2 floodplain management and land use practices be3 hind levees that effectively balance social, economic, 

4 and environmental considerations as part of an over5 all flood risk management strategy; 

6 (4) identify examples where such practices have 

7 proven effective and recommend methods and proc8 esses by which they could be applied more broadly 

9 across the United States, given the variety of dif10 ferent flood risks, State and local legal frameworks, 

11 and evolving judicial opinions; 

12 (5) research, review, and identify a variety of 

13 flood insurance pricing options for flood hazards be14 hind levees which are actuarially sound and based on 

15 the flood risk data developed using the top three 

16 best value approaches identified pursuant to para17 graph (1); 

18 (6) evaluate and recommend methods to reduce 

19 insurance costs through creative arrangements be20 tween insureds and insurers while keeping a clear 

21 accounting of how much financial risk is being borne 

22 by various parties such that the entire risk is ac23 counted for, including establishment of explicit limits 

24 on disaster aid or other assistance in the event of a 

25 flood; and 
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1 (7) taking into consideration the recommenda2 tions pursuant to paragraphs (1) through (3), rec3 ommend approaches to communicating the associ4 ated risks to community officials, homeowners, and 

5 other residents. 

6 (b) REPORT.—Not later than the expiration of the 

7 12-month period beginning on the date of the enactment 

8 of this Act, the National Academy of Sciences shall submit 

9 a report to the Committees on Financial Services and 

10 Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep11 resentatives and the Committees on Banking, Housing, 

12 and Urban Affairs and Commerce, Science and Transpor13 tation of the Senate on the study under subsection (a) in14 cluding the information and recommendations required 

15 under such subsection. 

16 SEC. 32. REPORT ON FLOOD-IN-PROGRESS DETERMINA17 TION. 

18 The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Man19 agement Agency shall review the processes and procedures 

20 for determining that a flood event has commenced or is 

21 in progress for purposes of flood insurance coverage made 

22 available under the national flood insurance program 

23 under the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 and for 

24 providing public notification that such an event has com25 menced or is in progress. In such review, the Adminis-
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1 trator shall take into consideration the effects and implica2 tions that weather conditions, such as rainfall, snowfall, 

3 projected snowmelt, existing water levels, and other condi4 tions have on the determination that a flood event has 

5 commenced or is in progress. Not later than the expiration 

6 of the 6-month period beginning upon the date of the en7 actment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit a re8 port to the Congress setting forth the results and conclu9 sions of the review undertaken pursuant to this section 

10 and any actions undertaken or proposed actions to be 

11 taken to provide for a more precise and technical deter12 mination that a flooding event has commenced or is in 

13 progress. 

14 SEC. 33. STUDY ON REPAYING FLOOD INSURANCE DEBT. 

15 Not later than the expiration of the 6-month period 

16 beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

17 Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 

18 Agency shall submit a report to the Congress setting forth 

19 a plan for repaying within 10 years all amounts, including 

20 any amounts previously borrowed but not yet repaid, owed 

21 pursuant to clause (2) of subsection (a) of section 1309 

22 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

23 4016(a)(2)). 
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1 SEC. 34. NO CAUSE OF ACTION. 

2 No cause of action shall exist and no claim may be 

3 brought against the United States for violation of any no4 tification requirement imposed upon the United States by 

5 this Act or any amendment made by this Act. 

6 SEC. 35. AUTHORITY FOR THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS TO 

7 PROVIDE SPECIALIZED OR TECHNICAL SERV8 ICES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi10 sion of law, upon the request of a State or local govern11 ment, the Secretary of the Army may evaluate a levee sys12 tem that was designed or constructed by the Secretary for 

13 the purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program es14 tablished under chapter 1 of the National Flood Insurance 

15 Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4011 et seq.). 

16 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—A levee system evaluation 

17 under subsection (a) shall— 

18 (1) comply with applicable regulations related 

19 to areas protected by a levee system; 

20 (2) be carried out in accordance with such pro21 cedures as the Secretary, in consultation with the 

22 Administrator of the Federal Emergency Manage23 ment Agency, may establish; and 

24 (3) be carried out only if the State or local gov25 ernment agrees to reimburse the Secretary for all 
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1 cost associated with the performance of the activi2 ties. 

Passed the House of Representatives July 12, 2011. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1309 

AN ACT 

To extend the authorization of the national flood 

for other purposes. in the management of flood insurance risk, and gram, and to increase the role of private markets the financial integrity and stability of the proinsurance program, to achieve reforms to improve