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| Staten Island resident Joanna Tierno with 122nd Precinct Community Council President David Beal (left) and Police Captain Joseph Veneziano. |
I asked Joanna how the response to this upcoming rally was coming in her area.
She stated that many people are only just now becoming aware of the enormity of this issue and interest in the rally is increasing but she also mentioned that her local newspaper, the Staten Island Advance, recently published an article "Staten Island Hurricane Sandy Victims: Don't hike insurance rates!".
The article indicated that Staten Island, Brooklyn and New Jersey politicians are calling on Congress to remedy the inequities in the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Act of 2012 and delay the implementation of the new insurance rates by the National Flood Insurance Program to allow impacted homeowners time to get back on their feet.
Joanna was somewhat taken aback by the callousness of the comments to the article in the Advance replete with such admonitions as:
"...time to move out of the swamp, simple stuff people."
"This is not supposed to be a welfare state."
"If you weren't prepared, that's a shame but don't look for a handout."
Joanna was quick to point out that comments like those above, in addition to being misinformed, cannot change the fact that early all 50 states have experienced flood disasters resulting in emergency declarations and FEMA involvement. Flooding is not confined to coastal areas contray to popular belief. Inland flooding from rivers and streams and rain events account for the majority of NFIP claims historically so this issue is not confined as some may think to just Staten Island and other coastal areas of New York City and New Jersey.
As far as the NFIP is concerned, Joanna agreed that we all want that program to be long term sustainable yet actuarially responsible going forward while still protecting home and business owners who have built to required elevations at the time of construction as part of a larger resiliency strategy.
Joanna also pointed the possibility that perhaps those residents whose homes were destroyed by the recent incredible rain and flood waters in Colorado will now have to keep looking over their shoulders for FEMA to start "flood mapping their communities."
Both Joanna and I agreed that the Stop FEMA Now rallies scheduled for September 28th in both our communities present a golden opportunity for all of us to come together with one voice and send one specific message to Congress - Something must be done to address the financial nightmare that Biggert-Waters will precipitate if left unchecked.
Please make it a point to attend this demonstration and assist us in sending that message!
[Note: The top left column of this page offers all pertinent information regarding the September 28th Stop FEMA Rally for all of us here on the peninsula, Broad Channel and Howard Beach.]
Peter J. Mahon
People paid for flood insurance and are being denied payments for verifyable claims of loss. No one is looking for what they have not paid for -- I'd love to see how some of these ill-informed commenters will react when some awful event happens to them and they are denied by insurance after paying premiums for years and thn when told that their monthly premiums will cost as much as a mortgage payment.
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