May 14, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 80 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages H3763-H3764]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM EXTENSION ACT OF 2019

  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2578) to reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program, 
and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2578

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``National Flood Insurance 
     Program Extension Act of 2019''.

     SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM.

       (a) Financing.--Section 1309(a) of the National Flood 
     Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4016(a)) is amended by 
     striking ``May 31, 2019'' and inserting ``September 30, 
     2019''.
       (b) Program Expiration.--Section 1319 of the National Flood 
     Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4026) is amended by striking 
     ``May 31, 2019'' and inserting ``September 30, 2019''.
       (c) Retroactive Effective Date.--If this Act is enacted 
     after May 31, 2019, the amendments made by subsections (a) 
     and (b) shall take effect as if enacted on May 31, 2019.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Waters) and the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. 
McHenry) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.


                             General Leave

  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on this 
legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 2578, the National 
Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2019.
  Since the National Flood Insurance Programs' multiyear authorization 
expired on September 30, 2017, ideological differences have led 
Congress to pass 10 short-term extensions and even allowed the program 
to briefly lapse twice during government shutdowns.
  Unfortunately, the National Flood Insurance Program is currently set 
to expire May 31. My bill, which I have coauthored with Ranking Member 
McHenry, would extend the program to September 30 because we recognize 
that the NFIP is critical to ensuring access to flood insurance 
coverage across this country. This extension will afford the ranking 
member and me time to complete our work on a long-term, bipartisan 
compromise.
  Mr. Speaker, the NFIP is much more than just an insurance program. 
The NFIP plays an important role in disaster preparedness and 
resiliency by providing flood maps, setting standards for floodplain 
management, and investing in mitigation for our homes, businesses, and 
infrastructure.

                              {time}  1700

  According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, everyone is at 
risk of flooding. That means that this is not just a coastal issue. We 
all have an interest in ensuring a strong National Flood Insurance 
Program. We need a long-term reauthorization to provide certainty to 
homeowners and businesses, and we also need critical reforms to the 
program.
  First and foremost, we must do more to address unaffordable premium 
costs for low-income households; address the program's debt, which is 
unfairly burdening policyholders with millions of dollars in interest; 
and lower costs and fees on policyholders.
  Secondly, we need to invest more heavily in mapping, floodplain 
management, and mitigation, which will save taxpayer dollars in the 
long run by helping to reduce the damage that occurs when floods hit.
  Finally, Superstorm Sandy exposed numerous issues related to claims 
processing, including findings of outright fraud. Going forward, we 
must work to ensure that we have safeguards in place and mechanisms for 
greater accountability and oversight to ensure that claims are handled 
fairly and efficiently to provide relief for policyholders.

[[Page H3764]]

  Mr. Speaker, passing H.R. 2578 is not just a stopgap measure to kick 
the can down the road. I have every confidence that, with this 
extension, Democrats and Republicans will finally break the cycle of 
haphazard extensions. I intend to work in a bipartisan manner with Mr. 
McHenry to provide a long-term reauthorization to restore stability and 
confidence in the market. Through a thoughtful, bipartisan process, 
Congress can provide real relief to families, communities, and 
businesses.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of the bill, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2578, a bill to enact a short-
term extension of the National Flood Insurance Program. This program 
has over 5 million policyholders who have come to rely upon it, but it 
is also a flawed program that is in need of a customer-based set of 
reforms.
  Flooding is the most common, destructive, and expensive of the 
natural disasters we face. I am confident in saying what worked in the 
Lyndon Johnson administration on disasters doesn't really work this 
year, in 2019.
  The Financial Services Committee has held numerous hearings on this 
matter over the last decade, hearing from dozens and dozens of 
witnesses from all points of view, including consumers, local 
communities, and the insurance industry. The data we have accumulated 
from those hearings, or lack thereof, suggests that there is great need 
for programmatic reforms, reforms that include better data, increased 
transparency, better technology, and more innovation. These can be 
bipartisan reforms.
  Moreover, the NFIP owes more than $20 billion in debt to the American 
taxpayer. This is a major issue, despite the fact that last Congress 
$16 billion of that debt was canceled. So it is a program in need of 
systemic reforms.
  So what kind of National Flood Insurance Program do we want to have 
for Americans going forward? An insurance program that is equipped with 
the tools it needs to perform its insurance functions, pay claims, 
incentivize mitigation, and ultimately reduce our Nation's flood risk, 
or should the NFIP continue the current system of distributing benefits 
as needed, ultimately requiring annual appropriations as flood risk 
grows?
  I hope that Members of this House will choose to support important 
reforms to modernize an outdated program. There are reasonable steps 
that we can take to reform and innovate in a bipartisan fashion. 
Strengthening the NFIP and giving policyholders 21st century options to 
match their 21st century expectations, I think, should be our outcome.
  Private insurance, better technology, more mapping data, faster 
claims processing, and rethinking old underwriting models are just a 
few of the tools readily available for modernizing the NFIP.
  At the same time, we must also consider how we can use risk sharing 
to offload some of the NFIP burdens and the cost savings that come from 
spreading risk to others who are qualified, capable, and willing to 
manage it off the backs of the taxpayers and more broadly distributed 
to those who are willing to take that risk.
  Building a more resilient and cost-effective NFIP are goals that will 
benefit all consumers and the American people, but these are long-term 
goals to which we can only aspire by passing this short-term extension 
today.
  Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for Chairwoman Waters' engaging and 
reaching out to committee Republicans to work together on this measure 
to give us space and time so that we can have the bipartisan reforms 
that I think we can come to terms on later this year. But I also want 
to thank Chairwoman Waters for agreeing to sit down with me as the 
ranking Republican on the committee and committee Republicans, roll up 
our sleeves, and get to work over the next few weeks and really 
collaborate on a full reauthorization bill that addresses her concerns, 
my concerns, committee Democrat and Republican concerns, and the needs 
of the public. I think we can come to that conclusion.
  I think we can bring a bipartisan bill to the floor, and I appreciate 
that Chairwoman Waters has had that appropriate outreach to committee 
Republicans. That is a hopeful sign for our opportunity to legislate 
this Congress.
  The American people deserve an effective and efficient Flood 
Insurance Program that they can rely on. By working together in a 
bipartisan way, this Congress can ensure that that continues to happen, 
and I am sure we can meet that expectation.
  Mr. Speaker, I would encourage my colleagues to support this short-
term extension with the hope and the goal of our bringing a bipartisan 
bill back before the House that can get the wide support of this 
Chamber.
  Mr. Speaker, I also commend the engagement of Chairwoman Waters on 
this matter and a number of other matters where we have been able to 
work together in a bipartisan way. I am hopeful and it is my 
expectation that we will be able to work together on this matter over 
the coming weeks.

  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this bill, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to stand with the millions of families across 
the country who rely on the National Flood Insurance Program by 
offering H.R. 2578 here today.
  My bill will provide continuity for the NFIP without which these 
families would be left unprotected in the face of increasing flood 
risk. What is more, without the NFIP, the stability of the housing 
market would be put at risk.
  My coauthor, Mr. McHenry, and I offer this bill today not as a 
permanent solution, but as a step towards a broader plan that will 
reauthorize the program for the long term and make reforms to ensure 
continued availability, affordability, and fairness in flood insurance.
  Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased for the coming together of Mr. McHenry 
and myself to present a bipartisan bill on behalf of all of our 
citizens. I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 2578, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2578.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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