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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
HERE WE GO again.
After several days of political theater, the U.S. Senate approved a bill extending the National Flood Insurance Program to March 28. The extra time was part of a larger measure to extend a variety of federal programs.
The catch was that the NFIP lapsed for a few days. But with another very short-term fix in place, there's no guarantee that the program won't slip into legislative limbo again in the future, something that lawmakers should avoid.
Any lapse, no matter how short, adds to policyholders' uncertainty as to whether claims would be paid. As we've argued before, the NFIP deserves a long-term solution.
The reason the program has been the subject of short-term extensions is simple: The House and Senate cannot agree whether the NFIP should be expanded to provide windstorm coverage.
Given the program's already precarious finances, it shouldn't be expanded to provide cover that's available in the private marketplace.
We believe the best approach is to extend the program in its current form for a reasonable period. That would give lawmakers time to make any needed reforms to the program. We've gone down the road of short-term fixes far too many times. The NFIP's policyholders don't need to go there again.