Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Fire victims exempt from 30-day waiting period for flood insurance coverage

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today announced, based on consultation with the U.S. Forest Service, that residents in Colorado affected by flooding as a result of the uncontained wildfire in Waldo Canyon in the Pike National Forest and the contained wildfire in High Park in the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forest could be eligible for an exception from the 30-day waiting period usually required for flood insurance coverage. The Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012, signed into law Friday by President Obama, increases access to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for some residents whose homes were impacted by flooding from federal land that resulted from wildfires. The new law exempts these residents from a 30-day waiting period for flood insurance coverage to become effective. Eligibility for the exception is determined on a case-by-case basis...more

Let's look into the "minds" of the DC Deep Thinkers:


--The feds poor management of their lands leads to hot fires followed by flooding which damages federal and private property
--The feds are critical of those building close to forests, saying they put themselves in harms way and increase the costs of firefighting 


And the response is:


--Create a subsidized federal insurance policy for those having property close to the poorly managed forests, thereby creating an incentive for others to build close to the federal property


Pretty clear thinking from the DC types, ain't it.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

the incentives provided by these types of insurance programs are well-known in coastal development. Federal flood insurance covers the mansions on stilts prevalent in so many barrier islands and coastal communities. It was about the only way original landowners, land development corporation, and their real estate allies could build induce people to buy into subdivided developments with something other than a seasonal fish shack or beach hut. Once the constituency is cemented in place, the program continue and expand. It really is a bipartisan issue, most legislators from coastal districts support the program because of the well-off constituency it benefits.