Daily Comet – May 6, 2014
FEMA has fully repealed a provision that made it impossible for new buyers of homes or businesses to assume a property’s existing flood insurance policy, U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said.
She said she received word of the action during a phone call with National Flood Insurance Program Associate Administrator David Miller today,
The provision was repealed by the Homeland Flood Insurance Affordability Act passed by Congress in March. It is among provisions in the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Act of 2012 that local and state officials had claimed would devastate real estate markets locally and throughout the nation and severely reduce the value of many homes in flood-prone areas.
Up to 82,000 properties in Louisiana — and 1.1 million nationwide — will benefit from today’s announcement, Landrieu said.
Landrieu said she also pressed Miller to quickly implement an efficient and transparent system to update FEMA’s flood insurance rate tables and process refunds approved for home and business owners hit by cost increases under Biggert-Waters.
“For many middle class families, the single-most important investment is their home. Biggert-Waters threatened to eliminate the equity they had built and rob them of their most valuable asset,” she said in a news release.
“While I am encouraged by today’s announcement,” Landrieu added. “FEMA must continue to implement the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act quickly and bring essential relief to the 400,000 families in Louisiana and millions more across the country who rely on accessible and affordable flood insurance.”
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