Latest FEMA Headlines
All the headlines from our FEMA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Trump FEMA Chief Backs Reducing Federal Role in Disaster Relief, Flood Insurance
Aug 23 2017 // President Donald Trump’s emergency management director said he’s pushing for an overhaul of disaster relief so that states, cities and homeowners bear more of the costs, and less of the risk falls on the...
FEMA to Reimburse Tennessee Facility Owners for Storm Repairs
Aug 1 2017 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency says it plans to reimburse facility owners in 14 Tennessee counties for repair costs from storm-related damage on May 27 and 28. FEMA says in a news release that the notice applies...
FEMA Says ‘No’ to Taking Back $2B in Katrina Funds from New Orleans
Jul 31 2017 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency should take back $2 billion dollars in grants approved to fix New Orleans sewers and water pipes damaged by Hurricane Katrina, and to repair streets afterward, a federal audit says....
House Committee Adds 5 More Bills to Its Flood Insurance Reform Package
Jun 22 2017 // The House Financial Services Committee advanced five flood insurance proposals on Wednesday, adding to the two bills it passed last week. The House measures seek to reform and reauthorize the National Flood Insurance...
Senate Confirms New FEMA Chief Long
Jun 21 2017 // Brock Long was cleared by the Senate to become President Donald Trump’s emergency-management director Tuesday after gaining the support of one unlikely constituency: environmentalists. While climate advocates panned...
House Panel Gets Down to Business on Flood Insurance Proposals
Jun 15 2017 // House lawmakers are weighing seven proposals to renew and reform the federal flood insurance program, an area where there is a good amount of bipartisan agreement that something should be done and even on what to do. The...
Active Atlantic Hurricane Season Looms – as Odds Drop of El Niño Formation
Jun 9 2017 // Forecasters again lowered the odds of El Niño forming by year’s end, a scenario that may mean more Atlantic hurricanes at a time when federal agencies charged with predicting and responding to natural disasters lack...
Flood Program Reauthorization: Why Congress Must Act
Jun 8 2017 // As the clock ticks down toward expiration of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), the task ahead is clear. Congress must pass an on-time, multi-year reauthorization bill that simplifies the overly complicated NFIP,...
Here’s What the House Has in Mind for Revamping Flood Insurance Program
May 26 2017 // A much-anticipated House subcommittee proposal on flood insurance promises to reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for five years beyond its September 30 expiration date. The proposal would introduce...
Idaho City Assessing Flood Risks Prior to Federal Maps Release
May 15 2017 // Boise, Idaho, officials have expressed concerns with federal maps that propose adding hundreds of acres to a flood plain in the city, which could increase the cost and difficulty of buying or developing nearby...
Storm Damage Assessors Rely on Waffle House’s 24-Hour Service Policy
Apr 28 2017 // The emphasis on 24-hour service at Waffle House — hurricane or shine — has earned the company a reputation among professional emergency managers, who make rough estimates of storm damage by looking to the local eatery....
Senate Bill Would Extend National Flood Insurance Program for 10 Years
Apr 28 2017 // U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Kristen Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) have released draft legislation to reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for 10 years. The NFIP is currently set to expire on Sept. 30,...
Idaho City Assessing Flood Risks Prior to Federal Maps Release
Apr 26 2017 // Boise, Idaho officials have expressed concerns with federal maps that propose adding hundreds of acres to a flood plain in the city, which could increase the cost and difficulty of buying or developing nearby property. The...
Many Still Reeling from NW Louisiana Flood a Year Later
Mar 14 2017 // Floods a year ago took everything from Vivian, La., resident Gwen Smith. “I lost my home completely,” she said. Before the flood hit on March 9, 2016, Smith had lived most of her adult life in the mobile home....
FEMA Disaster Deductible Could Survive Trump Deregulation Drive
Feb 3 2017 // Donald Trump has said he wants to roll back many of Barack Obama’s regulations linked to climate change but there may be one exception: a federal disaster proposal aimed at getting states to prepare for the more...
Coalition Urges Modernization of National Flood Insurance Program
Feb 1 2017 // A U.S. flood insurance program that is drowning in billions of dollars in debt can be modernized to bolster its finances while curbing the public’s exposure to flood risks, a national coalition said in a reform...
Mississippi Tornado Damaged At Least 1,100 Homes
Jan 25 2017 // A tornado that tore a 31-mile path across south Mississippi over the weekend killed four people and damaged or destroyed more than 1,100 homes, state officials said Monday, as the governor assured residents that federal...
National Flood Insurance Program Secures $1 Billion in Reinsurance for 2017; 25 Reinsurers Participate
Jan 3 2017 // For just the second time in its history, the federal government’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has reinsurance to help it weather major storms. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which manages...
Council Bluffs, Iowa Races to Improve Levees in Advance of FEMA Deadline
Dec 19 2016 // Improvements to the Council Bluffs, Iowa, levee system are continuing as city officials hope to beat federal government action that could cost homeowners a boatload of cash in flood insurance. The city council approved the...
Top Florida Stories of 2016: Florida’s Evolving Flood Market
Dec 16 2016 // Before McCarty announced his decision to leave office, he initiated dialogue with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) over the National Flood Insurance Program’s rate making. Citing the fact that the flood...
