Date: 2010-07-15
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Chair. I rise in support of H.R. 5114. "the Flood Insurance Reform Priorities Act of 2010." 1 want to thank Chairwoman WATERS and Chairman FRANK for their hard work on H.R. 5114. This bill will provide enhanced security. better organization. increased participation. and a clear and improved direction for the future of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). By addressing the financial and administrative issues regarding NFIP. this bill will help protect millions of Americans from the potentially devastating economic effects created by a flood. Communities like mine in Houston rely heavily on NFIP to provide security against the risk of flood. Without this national flood insurance program. many communities across the U.S. would cease to exist because it is virtually impossible to buy flood insurance in the private market. The importance of this insurance program has grown significantly over the last decade as more and more communities have increased their dependence on the NFIP. As a direct result of certain natural disasters. including the 2005 hurricanes. and increased annual rain and flooding. NFIP has reached its highest participation rate in its 42year history. Today. over 5 million homes and businesses rely on NFIP for flood coverage security. It is of extreme importance that this program continues to grow and develop to serve this population. Mr. Chair. as you know. the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authority to issue. renew. or increase coverage of flood insurance policies under the NFIP. and this authority will again lapse on September 30. 2010. H.R. 5114 will extend these authorities to fiscal year 2015 and continue this program in a renewed and revitalized direction. This bill represents a great opportunity to improve and redefine NFIP and to provide greater security to the American people. Not only will this bill clean up the NFIP requirements and expand coverage with "phaseins" of actuarial rates to more properties and in newly mapped high flood risk areas. this bill will also address outreach issues. risk analysis. and economic effects. It will initiate studies to report the impact. effectiveness. and feasibility of NFIP policies as well as potential methods. practices. and incentives that would increase participation by lowincome families owning residential properties located within special flood risk areas. The bill will also create an office to oversee and better manage all of the responsibilities of NFIP and provide assistance to communities. businesses. and homeowners with all flood insurance issues. Furthermore. this bill will require a comprehensive strategy assessing the goals of NFIP to ensure that the program has a clear plan to pay off its debt and ensure itself a healthy future. This not only benefits the recipients of the flood insurance coverage. it also benefits the program. the U.S. budget. and the American people. I submitted several amendments to complement the goals of this legislation. One would have required a study to analyze important data regarding the damages resulting from floods. The amendment would have directed the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to conduct a study on the impacts of excessive rainwater on residences located in areas at high risk for flooding from bayous and highways. The results of this study would have been reported to Congress no later than 5 years after the enactment of this bill. Through this study. my amendment would have provided vital information necessary to assess the dangers of an atrisk area and better prepare communities to protect themselves from flood. Mr. Chair. the only way to achieve the maximum security and preparedness for atrisk communities is to understand these risks with updated. relevant data and analysis. In the Houston area. there is already an ongoing study. analyzing the effects of the bayou and rainfall. as flooding and its detrimental consequences are often a concern for the Houston area. The White Oak Bayou Federal Flood Damage Reduction Project is an existing project in Houston which is a partnership project between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) and the Harris County Flood Control District (the District). In developing a flood damage reduction project for White Oak Bayou. the Harris County Flood Control District has performed extensive data collection and analysis. The District has held public meetings within the community several times over the course of developing the project to determine the communitys interests and flood damage reduction needs. Using this information. the District developed the flood damage reduction project for White Oak Bayou. In 1998. the District began a feasibility study for the White Oak Bayou Federal Flood Damage Reduction Project. This investigation has involved an extensive study of the White Oak Bayou watershed. Components to address flooding were analyzed and evaluated in great detail. which generated several alternatives for consideration as part of the project. Some of the components are already being implemented. Unfortunately. there are many other areas in Houston/Harris County. Texas and other communities throughout this country that experience an inordinate amount of flooding. In Houston. these areas that are frequently flooded from excessive rainwater include the Buffalo Bayou. the Greens Bayou. and the Halls Bayou. These areas could greatly benefit from a study and analysis to determine the impact of excessive rainwater on residences located in areas at high risk for flooding from bayous and highways. Such a study would allow for investigators to better determine the amount of flood damage and create and implement measures to prevent such future damage. Another amendment I offered would have stated that it is the sense of Congress that it is important to provide resources to address the devastating effects of flooding. that homeowners are particularly negatively affected by flooding. that excessive rainfall often leads to unsafe and hazardous living conditions. that flooding presents unexpected destruction and damage. and that it is necessary to provide consumers the opportunity to buy flood insurance. This amendment declares to the American people in a loud voice. that Congress understands the seriousness of flooding and the importance of flood insurance. It is important that we candidly illustrate our reasoning for the issuance of this legislation. Mr. Chair. it is clear that we have not been taking this issue as seriously as we should. We have had three lapses of authority this year alone with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). We must not continue to simply extend this program for 30 days at a time. We must not continue to play with the security of the American people when it pertains to an issue so serious and potentially devastating as floods. The people who own homes in these areas and the businesses who own property deserve better. The communities and the many potential homeowners. who cannot purchase homes without access to flood insurance. deserve better. We must take the first step by making it perfectly clear that we as a Congress will no longer play and toil with this issue. We must affirm that we are very serious about protecting our constituents and securing our nation from the devastating consequences of floods. Finally. I also offered a well crafted amendment that would have effectively prohibited states and local governments from misusing new federal flood insurance program requirements to disadvantaged businesses and homeowners in any way. Unfortunately. federal law is often misinterpreted by state and local officials. resulting in unintended consequences in many communities across this country. My amendment was a practical and reasonable response to a previously enacted Houston ordinance that had just such unintended consequences. This ordinance prohibited property construction on vacant land or substantially damaged property located in major floodways and bayous and almost resulted in the wrongful taking of property from innocent homeowners. merely because their property was located in the wrong place. In 2006. I began meeting with hundreds of homeowners in Houston from areas such as Shady Acres. a 100yearold neighborhood. as a result of the implementation of changes to Chapter 19. the City of Houstons floodplain ordinance. Listening to their testimonies and frustration made the impact of this bill very relevant. Just think. in my home district an ordinance was passed that resulted in the massive reduction in property values for almost 10.000 developed and vacant properties. including 2.400 single family homes. The ordinance took advantage of the fact that FEMA would be expected to decrease flood insurance premiums by 5 percent for those areas. Although the communities could pay less for flood insurance. the difference was minimal compared to the losses to their property values. Many owners were afraid that they would have to sell their homes because of the dramatic drop in value. By firmly stating that state and local governments should not misinterpret these flood insurance laws to put property owners at a disadvantage. I believe we could have sent a strong message that Congress will protect the property rights and interests of American citizens and the people this bill is intended to aid. It is important to make it known that the use of any unforeseen circumstances to treat flood insurance program requirements as a proxy for the wrongful taking of property is utterly unacceptable. I truly believe my amendments would have complemented H.R. 5114. However. I still believe the bill is a proactive measure that has been long overdue to address the urgent needs of Americans throughout this country. many of whom experience damage and losses to their homes. property and businesses from flooding. For these reasons. I urge my colleagues to pass this important bill.