I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7836 
To amend the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to facilitate community 
action to address repetitively flooded areas, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 19, 2022 
Mr. BLUMENAUER (for himself and Mr. CASTEN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To amend the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to 
facilitate community action to address repetitively flooded 
areas, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Repeatedly Flooded 
Communities Planning Assistance Act of 2022’’. 
SEC. 2. COMMUNITY ACTION TO ADDRESS REPETITIVELY 
FLOODED AREAS. 
Section 1361 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 
1968 (42 U.S.C. 4102) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection: 
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‘‘(e) COMMUNITY ACTION FOR REPEATEDLY FLOOD-
ED AREAS.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub-
section, the following definitions shall apply: 
‘‘(A) COVERED
COMMUNITY.—The term 
‘covered community’ means a community— 
‘‘(i) that is participating in the na-
tional flood insurance program under sec-
tion 1315 (42 U.S.C. 4022); 
‘‘(ii) within which are located— 
‘‘(I) not fewer than 50 repetitive 
loss structures; or 
‘‘(II) not fewer than 5 severe re-
petitive loss structures for which miti-
gation activities meeting the stand-
ards 
for 
approval 
under 
section 
1366(c)(2)(A) 
(42 
U.S.C. 
4101c(c)(2)(A)) have not been con-
ducted; and 
‘‘(iii) which has been identified by the 
Administrator as a priority for assessment 
and mitigation in accordance with the reg-
ulations authorized by this section. 
‘‘(B) REPETITIVE LOSS STRUCTURE.—The 
term ‘repetitive loss structure’ has the meaning 
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given such term in section 1370 (42 U.S.C. 
4121). 
‘‘(C) SEVERE
REPETITIVE
LOSS
STRUC-
TURE.—The term ‘severe repetitive loss struc-
ture’ has the meaning given such term in sec-
tion 1366(h) (42 U.S.C. 4101c(h)). 
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS
FOR
COVERED
COMMU-
NITIES.—The Administrator shall, by regulation, re-
quire a covered community to— 
‘‘(A) determine, with assistance from the 
Administrator, the areas within the covered 
community in which properties described in 
paragraph (1)(A)(ii) are located in order to 
identify areas that are repeatedly damaged by 
floods; 
‘‘(B) assess, with assistance from the Ad-
ministrator, future conditions which may rep-
resent continuing risks to the repeatedly dam-
aged areas identified pursuant to subparagraph 
(A); 
‘‘(C) develop a community-specific plan for 
mitigating continuing flood risks to the repeat-
edly damaged areas identified pursuant to sub-
paragraph (A); 
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‘‘(D) submit the plan described in subpara-
graph (C) and any plan updates to the Admin-
istrator at appropriate intervals; 
‘‘(E) implement the plan described in sub-
paragraph (C); and 
‘‘(F) subject to section 552a of title 5, 
United States Code, make the plan described in 
subparagraph (C), any updates to the plan, and 
reports on progress in reducing flood risk avail-
able to the public. 
‘‘(3) COORDINATION WITH EXISTING PLANNING 
EFFORTS.—As determined by the Administrator, a 
covered community may address the planning re-
quirements of this subsection in coordination with 
other planning efforts, including— 
‘‘(A) a plan developed under section 1366 
of this title (42 U.S.C. 4104c); 
‘‘(B) a plan developed under section 322 of 
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5165); or 
‘‘(C) a plan completed for, conducted for, 
and consistent with criteria for the community 
rating system authorized under section 1315(b) 
of this title (42 U.S.C. 4022(b)). 
‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION AND ASSISTANCE.— 
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‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator 
may issue appropriate policies and regulations 
to assist covered communities in identification 
of repeatedly flooded areas and in implementing 
practical plans for addressing the identified 
flooding problems. 
‘‘(B) TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.—Assistance 
authorized under this section may include— 
‘‘(i) sharing of information in accord-
ance with the requirements of section 552a 
of title 5, United States Code, and the sub-
chapter II of chapter 35 of title 44, United 
States Code; 
‘‘(ii) consideration of possible sources 
of financial assistance to communities, in-
cluding— 
‘‘(I) potential waiver or lowering 
of non-Federal cost shares for mitiga-
tion of properties; and 
‘‘(II) potential priority for appli-
cable grant mitigation funding man-
aged by the Administrator; 
‘‘(iii) additional technical assistance to 
communities the Administrator may deem 
most at-risk for repeated flooding events; 
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‘‘(iv) reasonable considerations and 
targeted assistance for communities de-
fined as small and impoverished or high- 
risk under section 203(a) of the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C 5133(a)); and 
‘‘(v) special assistance aimed at imple-
menting Executive Order 13985 (January 
20, 2021) on Advancing Racial Equity and 
Support for Underserved Communities 
Through the Federal Government, as de-
fined by the Administrator. 
‘‘(C) SPECIAL
CONSIDERATIONS.—In de-
termining an appropriate level of assistance for 
a covered community, as provided in subpara-
graph (B), the Administrator shall consider the 
extent to which the community is working to 
remedy problems associated with repeated 
flooding and the resources available to the cov-
ered community, including— 
‘‘(i) any Federal or State funding re-
ceived by the covered community; 
‘‘(ii) the portion of the covered com-
munity that is located within areas having 
special flood hazards; and 
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‘‘(iii) any other factor that makes it 
difficult for the covered community to con-
duct mitigation activities for flood-prone 
structures. 
‘‘(5) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 
3 years after the date of enactment of this sub-
section, and not less frequently than once every 2 
years thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to 
the Congress a report regarding the progress made 
by covered communities with respect to imple-
menting plans developed under paragraph (2)(C) 
and, to the extent possible, the trends in numbers of 
repetitive loss and severe repetitive loss properties.’’. 
Æ 
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