If you don’t recall, NAFSMA is the National Association of Flood and Stormwater Management Agencies, and I am attending NAFSMA’s 46th annual conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Today I had the pleasure of addressing the attendees as part of the legal panel and I chose to use my time to
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
“Live from Colorado Springs, it’s NAFSMA!”
It’s “what?” you might ask. NAFSMA, the National Association of Flood and Stormwater Management Agencies, was formed 46 years ago as a place where public agencies in the flood and stormwater space could come together, learn from each other, and partner with the Federal government to make life better and safer. I…
The Future [of] Flood Risk Data
I had the opportunity this week to attend a National Association of Flood and Stormwater Management Agencies (NAFSMA) Mentoring Session on the Future [of] Flood Risk Data. This session, offered by NAFSMA in partnership with FEMA and including other interested parties, educated folks on several FEMA missions and discussed…
Update on NFIP and Endangered Species Act – FEMA Suspends Map Revision Applications
Back in 2019, we wrote a post about the surprising connection between the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). That post concluded with the following:
It looks like the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will be forced to address ESA compliance on a state-by-state basis…
FEMA Moves Out on New Insurance Ratings
On April 1, 2021, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released an official announcement (Release Number HQ-21-079) and Memorandum for Write Your Own (WYO) Principal Coordinators and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Direct Serving Agent (W-21003) outlining plans for implementing its new NFIP rating system known as Risk Rating…
How Flood Insurance and Endangered Species Are Connected
Most people would not associate flood insurance with the protection of endangered species. But over the past decade, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been the target of multiple lawsuits alleging that the agency has violated the Endangered Species Act by not considering the impacts of its flood insurance…
House Financial Services Committee Schedules First NFIP Hearing of the Year
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) often seems to be the Congressional-stepchild; everyone knows that it deserves some attention but everyone is too busy with their favorite child. Unfortunately, the Program is scheduled to expire in May and when it expires, the consequences can be dire. Financial Services Committee…
No Long-Term Reauthorization Yet; NFIP Extended Through November 30, 2018
In a last minute move to avert a mini-financial disaster, today the Senate passed, and the president signed, a bill to extend the NFIP until November 30, 2018. The House had previously passed a companion bill. Demonstrating the broad support to keep the program running, the Senate passed the bill 86-12 and the president signed it within hours.
Leadership Changes at FEMA’s Flood Insurance Group
Will the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) be reauthorized, extended, or what?
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) will expire at the end of the month. For anyone that has read the newspaper lately, this is a lousy time for the program to expire with two hurricanes bearing down on the Eastern seaboard, and Texas’ largest city recovering from a 100-year storm. But politically, it is a wonderful time for the program to expire. First, there are suddenly many members of Congress motivated to ensure it doesn’t expire. Secondly, the risk of flood, and the shortfalls of the program, are fresh in our minds as we consider changes that might be made to the program as part of the reauthorization. While what will happen is still akin to a drinking game with people placing bets, here’s what we currently know.