Nola.com--Robert Rhoden
Congress approved legislation Friday night (Dec. 21) that will extend the National Flood Insurance Program for another five months.
The House approved the measure authored by Louisiana Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy to reauthorize the program through May 2019.
Authorization for the federal program, which provides flood insurance of last resort for storm-prone areas including about 500,000 homes in Louisiana, has been patched together through a series of extensions since the fall of 2017. The solvency of the program has been a problem since Hurricane Katrina.
In a news release, Kennedy said more than 5 million Americans rely on the program to protect their homes and businesses. “This extension gives us some breathing room to work on long-term reforms that will make the program sustainable and affordable.”
Cassidy said the extension sets the stage “to secure long-term reforms.”
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La, spoke in favor of the legislation on the floor Friday night, saying, “It’s incumbent upon us to make sure that this program works. It’s got to be a program that’s fair for ratepayers and fair for taxpayers.”