Congressman Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, has offered a bill to delay some flood insurance premium increases. It could get a vote in the House this week. (Brett Duke, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
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WASHINGTON - House Republican leaders are fast-tracking legislation that would delay some of the flood insurance premium increases resulting from the Biggert-Waters law through March, 2015, according to congressional sources.
The lead sponsor is Rep. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge. It appears a vote on the measure will take place before Friday, when the House is scheduled to recess for the Christmas/New Years holidays.
It's uncertain whether the Senate will also act before it recesses, which won't be until next week.
The new House bill would delay increases in rates for existing policyholders who, as a result of remapping, find themselves below elevation, and faced with either sharply higher premiums or raising their homes. Those changes, which call for increases phased in over five years, weren't scheduled to take effect until late 2014, so the relief provided under the House bill isn't likely to cover much more than three to five months.
The legislation will provide more funding to expedite FEMA's required affordability study. In addition, it will require FEMA to be more transparent with proposed rate adjustments and will require the agency to provide policyholders with the option to make monthly installments on their flood insurance premiums.
A bill, now pending in the Senate and also introduced in the House, would delay the premium increases for four years to, according to sponsors, allow FEMA to complete an affordability study to ensure new premiums don't price homeowners out of their homes.
The House bill doesn't deal with Section 205 of Biggert Waters, which allows for increases over four years for business, non-primary residences starting next month. Congressional staffers said Louisiana House members have won assurances from House leaders that the Section 205 concerns will be considered early n next year. Some members are hopeful that they can also getting longer relief for Section 207 increases than the current House's bill extension through March, 2015.
"This legislation is part of a multi-step approach to achieve the goal of flood insurance reform," Cassidy said. "I will be working with my colleagues in a bipartisan manner to get a vote on this relief measure in both the House and Senate before Congress adjourns for the year."
The final details of the House bill were still being negotiated late Tuesday night.
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