Title: Group Flood Insurance Policy Extension Act of 2019
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
Group Flood Insurance Policy Extension Act of 2019
This bill extends the term of certain existing Group Flood Insurance Policies. Specifically, the term is extended for active policies awaiting funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery fund. (Group Flood Insurance Policies are offered through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to certain individuals who do not have flood insurance and have received FEMA assistance after a presidentially declared disaster.)
FEMA must provide financial assistance to individuals with extended-term policies in the amount of the additional required premium.
The Government Accountability Office must report on the costs and benefits of Group Flood Insurance Policies and the rate at which individuals purchase private policies after the term of these policies expire.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2266 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2266

 To extend group flood insurance policy assistance for victims of the 
           2016 West Virginia floods, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 25, 2019

  Mr. Manchin introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To extend group flood insurance policy assistance for victims of the 
           2016 West Virginia floods, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Group Flood Insurance Policy 
Extension Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Nine States and 2 territories are currently awaiting 
        funding for mitigation activities from the Department of 
        Housing and Urban Development.
            (2) Funding for mitigation activities was appropriated to 
        the Department of Housing and Urban Development by Congress in 
        February 2018 under the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (Public 
        Law 115-123; 132 Stat. 64).
            (3) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development told 
        Congress that the funding described in paragraph (2) would be 
        released by May 1, 2019.
            (4) May 1, 2019, has come and gone with no official 
        explanation as to the reason for the continued delay in 
        releasing the funds.

SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF GROUP FLOOD INSURANCE POLICY FOR 2016 WEST 
              VIRGINIA FLOODS.

    (a) Extension of Group Flood Insurance Policy.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 
        Agency (referred to in this section as the ``Administrator'') 
        shall, in accordance with paragraph (2), extend the term of the 
        Group Flood Insurance Policy issued pursuant to section 61.17 
        of title 44, Code of Federal Regulations, for all major 
        disaster declarations awaiting Community Development Block 
        Grant-Disaster Recovery funds from the Department of Housing 
        and Urban Development with an associated active Group Flood 
        Insurance Policy.
            (2) Group flood insurance policy extension defined.--The 
        extension required under paragraph (1) shall be implemented by 
        adding to each Group Flood Insurance Policy the number of days 
        that is equal to the number of days between February 9, 2018, 
        and the date on which the allocation of the Community 
        Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds appropriated 
        under Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-123; 132 
        Stat. 64) is published in the Federal Register.
            (3) Additional premium.--The additional premium for the 
        extended Group Flood Insurance Policy coverage required under 
        paragraph (1) shall be $300 per individual insured.
            (4) Implementation.--The Administrator shall implement 
        paragraph (1) not later than August 24, 2019.
    (b) Payment of Additional Premium.--
            (1) Additional premium necessary expense.--Notwithstanding 
        any other provision of law, the Administrator shall provide 
        additional financial assistance under section 408(e)(2) of the 
        Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 5174(e)(2)) to each individual insured under the 
        Group Flood Insurance Policy extended under subsection (a)(1) 
        in an amount equal to the amount of the additional premium 
        required under subsection (a)(2).
            (2) Payment of additional premium.--Notwithstanding any 
        other provision of law, the Administrator shall withhold the 
        additional financial assistance provided under paragraph (1) 
        and, not later than August 1, 2019, transfer the amount to the 
        National Flood Insurance Fund established pursuant to section 
        1310 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
        4017) on behalf of each individual insured under the Group 
        Flood Insurance Policy extended under subsection (a)(1).

SEC. 4. GAO STUDY AND REPORT.

    (a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct a study of--
            (1) the costs and benefits of Group Flood Insurance 
        Policies, as described in section 61.17 of title 44, Code of 
        Federal Regulations, in communities affected by repeated 
        disasters; and
            (2) the rate at which individuals in communities described 
        in paragraph (1) purchase private insurance policies after the 
        Group Flood Insurance Policy term ends.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit a 
report to Congress on the study conducted under subsection (a).
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