flood insurance costs News

Iowa Officials Seek Federal Approval of Levee Repair Plan

Officials in western Iowa are worried that $50 million in levee repairs won’t be completed quickly enough to avoid having an area deemed a flood zone, which would require costly insurance coverage. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is expected to …

Why Federal Flood Program Is Sinking Deeper Into Debt: CBO Report

The federal flood insurance program is on a course to continue falling deeper in debt, even when there is no catastrophic storm like Katrina or Harvey. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is currently on a path that will lead …

Mass. Gov. OKs Bill Tying Required Flood Coverage Amount to Mortgage Balance

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick on Wednesday signed into law legislation that prohibits creditors from requiring residential property owners to buy flood insurance in an amount that exceeds the balance of their mortgage or the value of a home equity line …

Mass. Senate OKs Bill Tying Required Flood Coverage Amount to Mortgage Balance

The Massachusetts state Senate on June 26 passed legislation filed by the state’s attorney general, Martha Coakley, and state House Speaker Robert DeLeo aimed at softening the impact of flood insurance rate increases. The bill, H 3783 (“An Act Relative …

Connecticut Residents Feeling Financial Strain as Flood Insurance Cost Rises

People living on Porter Avenue in Middlebury, Conn., face a threat that could put their homes underwater — but it’s not coming from nearby Long Swamp Brook. The rising cost of flood insurance is putting a financial strain on local …

Massachusetts Lawmakers Seek to Ease Federal Flood Insurance Rules

When Mitch Haddad and his brother began rebuilding their family’s oceanside restaurant in Marshfield, Massachusetts, they decided to take no chances. The restaurant, which had been in the family for more than 70 years, routinely flooded — 25 times in …

Mass. House OKs Bill to Soften Impact of Flood Insurance Rules

The Massachusetts House on Wednesday unanimously approved a bill designed to soften the impact of new federal flood insurance rules on many of the state’s coastal homeowners. The measure, sponsored by Democratic House Speaker Robert DeLeo, would tie the level …

AG Coakley Testifies in Support of Flood Insurance Bill in Massachusetts

Concerned that increased insurance rates caused by new flood zone maps will “tip the balance” for homeowners who weathered the economic downturn but are still feeling its effects, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley testified Thursday in support of proposed state …

Remapping, Subsidy Loss Raising North Dakota Flood Insurance Costs

Had Greg Larson, a realtor and riverside homeowner in Bismarck, N.D., and his family changed their flood insurance policy, their cost would have gone from $705 a year to $4,200. Increases in flood insurance rates are making some of Bismarck-Mandan’s …