NFIP extended amid US government shutdown
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The National Flood Insurance Program has been extended through May 31,2019.
The program was set to expire on Friday at midnight, but Congress voted to extend it despite the funding impasse that has shut down much of the federal government. President Donald Trump signed the extension on Friday.
S.3628, the National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act, authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency to enter into new contracts for flood insurance and borrow from the U.S. Treasury up to specified amounts through May 31, according to a White House statement on Friday.
The program will become the responsibility of incoming House Financial Services Chairwoman Maxine Waters, D-Calif. to draft a longer-term reauthorization, according to a statement published on Saturday by the New York-based Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc., which said that such a reauthorization continues to be a legislative priority for the organization.
“Business leaders, especially those located in areas of the country most susceptible to flood disasters, can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that a NFIP lapse has been avoided,” RIMS CEO Mary Roth said in the statement. “While RIMS is happy that the NFIP received an extension, the society will continue to work diligently with elected officials, offering our support to help create a more permanent, long-term solution.”
“An extension to May 31 will allow members of the incoming 116th Congress time to find a way to agree on reforms to the program and to pass a long-term reauthorization," said Jon Gentile, national vice president of government relations for the Washington-based National Association of Professional Insurance Agents, said in a statement.
