Marcy Kaptur: “I rise in opposition the gentleman's amendment. It doesn't take a mental giant to see that floods are among the most…”

“I rise in opposition the gentleman's amendment. It doesn't take a mental giant to see that floods are among the most costly and frequent of all nature's hazards. Between 1980 and 2013, the United States suffered more than $260 billion worth of flood-related damages. Flooding accounts for approximately 85 percent of all disaster declarations in the country. And on average, more people die annually from flooding than any other natural disaster. I can tell you that even in the Midwest, which isn't one of the coastal communities, we have more significant storms of late and more rainfall and more flooding to deal with. The costs borne by the Federal taxpayer by flooding exceed any other natural hazard. Losses caused by flooding impact our economic prosperity, public health and safety, and our national security by straining disaster response resources and increasing the frequency and cost of disaster relief. When you look at the cost of what FEMA has to spend to try to clean up everything from basements to neighborhoods, oh, my goodness. The millions and millions of dollars that go out, the billions of dollars that go out the door because of these disasters around the country related to flooding is huge. Flooding risks are anticipated to increase over time due to the continued occupation of flood-prone areas, the impacts of climate change, and other threats.…”