National Flood Insurance Program

The Federal Emergency Management Agency undercounts the humber of homes at substantial risk of flooding by some 70 percent, according to a report released this week.

June 30, 2020 - The Washington Post

An investigation by the New York Times reveals the ongoing neglect of flood considerations in developing parts of the United States—practice that comes with large costs to the taxpaying public.

April 28, 2020 - The New York Times

In Houston, investors are snapping up damaged homes that will be dependent on flood insurance.

May 14, 2018 - Houston Chronicle

Houston's most recent natural disaster is only the latest example of how a program created to help homeowners has been a greater benefit to the industries that profit from them.

December 15, 2017 - Houston Chroncle

Having charged low rates during years of bumper development, the National Flood Insurance Program worked at cross-purposes with itself while development continued on.

September 18, 2017 - Vox

Those were the words President Trump expressed before his first trip to Texas while Hurricane Harvey was ravaging Houston. But experts worry that the rebuilding won't be better due to the recision of an Obama-era environmental regulation.

September 2, 2017 - NPR

Federal legislation and rising sea levels are changing the way homes are insured against flooding. According to this feature article, in fact, flood insurance "is serving as a kind of advance scout into a more difficult future."

April 18, 2017 - The New York Times Magazine

Risk-management experts are seeking creative ways to finance resilience investments that prevent damage from natural disasters. Insurance markets, with their direct stake in protecting homes and businesses, can be key partners in this effort.

March 24, 2017 - Doggerel

Houston headlined the news of flooding this week, but swollen rivers rushed over their banks and onto roads and into homes all over the state of Texas this week. Is the state's infrastructure resilient enough for the effects of a changing climate?

May 29, 2015 - NRDC Switchboard

As federal law shifts to address resilience in post-Hurricane Sandy New York, the Department of City Planning has released a new manual to help residents and landowners understand options for retrofitting their buildings to prepare for floods.

October 13, 2014 - New York Department of City Planning

The National Flood Insurance Program is unable to keep up with the pace of storms and sea level rise since Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and is now $24 billion in debt. Why then, do the same houses receive repeated payouts?

March 10, 2014 - The Boston Globe

With the National Flood Insurance Program deeply in debt, homeowners are struggling to afford new insurance rates resulting from legislation passed in 2012. The House could still block the Senate bill that would delay more rate increases.

January 30, 2014 - The Hill

As a 2012 law aimed reforming the "increasingly unsustainable" National Flood Insurance Program goes into effect, some homeowners in coastal areas are seeing dramatic increases in their insurance rates. Lawmakers are pondering how to ease the pain.

October 16, 2013 - The New York Times

In the "Room for Debate" section of The New York Times, five experts debate whether the federal government should continue to subsidize the cost of coastal reconstruction in the aftermath of storms.

November 28, 2012 - The New York Times

For anyone that's seen the shocking images of boardwalks ripped to shreds and homes and roller coasters now sitting in the ocean, its clear the Jersey Shore bore the brunt of Sandy. The debate has already begun as to whether the area should rebuild.

November 2, 2012 - Salon

Half of the US population lives in coastal areas, but 100% of the population foots a portion of the insurance bill. And as storm event strength is trending upward with global warming, the inlanders are getting less excited about that payment stream.

September 9, 2011 - PlaceShakers