State Representative Andy Schor (D-Lansing) introduced House Resolution 246 today urging the U.S. Congress to renew full federal support of residential and business flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program. Due to recent federal legislation, premiums will start to increase up to 18 percent per year for residential properties and up to 25 percent per year for business properties. These continued increases will create economic hardship for many Michigan families and businesses.
“Flooding risk often happens from circumstances beyond the control of a home or business owner, and yet they feel the full brunt of the financial impact,” Schor said. “Peak flood levels have risen due to higher stormwater runoff from increased development as well as changes in surface water management decisions. All of this has resulted in homes and buildings having little flood risk in the past being forced to pay higher insurance premiums.”
Because of the increased cost, home and business owners may abandon their properties because they cannot afford the increasing insurance rates. This will cause blight in communities and neighborhoods, with vacant storefronts littering the streets and empty homes in our neighborhoods. With a return to past levels of support for the National Flood Insurance Program, home and business owners won’t have to face this economic strain.
“We can’t price home and business owners out of their properties, when no change from their own lives warrants an increase in their insurance premiums,” Schor said. “I urge the U.S. House and Senate to look closely at the hardships these increases will cause, and to act to protect our communities.”