The federal government is currently operating on a continuing resolution (CR) that expires at midnight this Friday, December 3. Notably for PIA members, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is also set to expire on December 3. If Congress cannot pass another CR to fund the federal government beyond that date, the government, including the NFIP, will shut down until funding is restored.
Congress has the option to extend the program apart from passage of a CR to fund the rest of the federal government. If it does not separately extend the program or include its extension in a CR, the NFIP will lapse, in which case it would no longer have the authority to issue new policies or renew existing ones, among other limitations.
Historically, the program continues to adjust and pay claims arising out of flood losses incurred before or during a lapse while the lapse is in progress.
The history of NFIP extensions has been notoriously messy. The program was extended 17 times between 2008 and 2012, at which time the NFIP was reauthorized again for five years. That multi-year reauthorization was the NFIP’s last long-term renewal to date. It expired on September 30, 2017, and the NFIP is now on its 17th short-term extension since then. Every time Congress opts for another short-term extension, the program’s risk of lapse increases, and, predictably, the NFIP briefly lapsed three times in 2018 alone. Unfortunately, even short lapses can have a negative effect on consumers and the economy.
PIA has been encouraging congressional offices to extend the NFIP before it expires and to provide as long an extension as possible. PIA has also issued an action alert encouraging PIA members to ask Congress to extend the NFIP before it expires at midnight on Friday. Make your voices heard by sending this urgent message to your federal representatives today.
PIA Advocacy Blog 