Thomas Mott Osborne: “I rise in support of H.R. 253, which is a reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, introduced by my…”

“I rise in support of H.R. 253, which is a reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, introduced by my colleagues Congressmen Doug Bereuter and Earl Blumenauer. The legislation reauthorizes the National Flood Insurance Program and reforms it to ensure the availability of flood insurance while reducing the amount of money spent on frequently flooded properties. H.R. 253 creates a pilot program to mitigate the severe repetitive loss properties in the National Flood Insurance Program and sets up an equitable process for the treatment of policyholders who refuse mitigation. This legislation also uses the existing Flood Mitigation Assistance Program to further mitigate repetitive claims properties. H.R. 253 authorizes funds to be transferred from the National Flood Insurance Fund into the National Mitigation Fund for both the pilot program and the FMA program for purposes of mitigation. Mr. Speaker, numerous communities in my district participate in the National Flood Insurance Program, including the community of North Platte, NE. This community is surrounded by the North and South Platte rivers which merge together to form the Platte River east of North Platte. The citizens in North Platte have been paying substantial premiums for flood insurance without experiencing the flood events that other communities encounter. In fact, collectively they have paid over a $1 million in premiums each year, but collected a total of $26,000 in settlements.”