Senate to consider flood extension after House bill passes
WASHINGTON – July 26, 2018 – The U.S. House passed a short-term flood-insurance extension bill on Wednesday, which now goes to the Senate. If the Senate passes the bill and the president signs it – both of which are generally expected – the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) won't expire as scheduled on July 31.
However, the bill passed by the House via an amendment process, S. 1182, is yet-another short-term extension that doesn't solve the NFIP problem – it simply extends the current program another four months until Nov. 30, 2018.
The National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) "is pleased that the House acted to keep NFIP flood insurance available to homeowners and businessowners," says PIA National Vice President of Government Relations Jon Gentile. "A lapse in the middle of the hurricane season could be disastrous."
A number of organizations, including the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), have been advocating for a longer-term extension of NFIP, which is torn between a need to offer affordable flood insurance policies and simultaneously deal with a large financial deficit.
NAR issued a Call for Action – a drive to get as many members as possible to write to their U.S. representatives – in June, and thousands of Realtors responded.