Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I am pleased to be a cosponsor of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation seeks to protect homeowners across the country from severe flood insurance rate hikes until Congress is provided assurances from the agency related to flood mapping methodologies and affordability. The long-term solvency of the National Flood Insurance Program is critical to protecting taxpayer investments, communicating perceived flood risk to homeowners, and encouraging communities to invest in mitigation measures. The rates imposed by the legislation we adopted last summer are working against those worthy goals. A constituent from Ocean Springs, MS, contacted my office to give her perspective on the legislation. She wrote: ``Built in 1986, [my house] survived all hurricanes including Katrina. I used my retirement savings to buy the house. Before closing, flood insurance was grandfathered at $245.00 per year. After closing, the rate skyrocketed to $18,450. You can understand my shock.'' If you do the math, her new rates are more than 75 times the rate when she purchased her home. I heard from Thomas Schafer, the Mayor of Diamondhead, MS. This city in Hancock County was ``ground zero'' for Hurricane Katrina in 2005.…”