WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran’s (R-Kan.) legislation to provide financial relief to homeowners in Kansas and across the country has been adopted by the Senate Banking Committee as an amendment to the Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act of 2011. The Moran Amendment would allow homeowners living behind a levee nearing completion to pay a lower rate for their flood insurance while that levee is in the final stages of construction. While many factors affect the calculation of flood insurance premiums, this could save residents of eligible communities hundreds of dollars per year.

“With fewer dollars flowing from Washington D.C., levee upkeep has become very much a local effort, and communities are digging deep to find the resources necessary to rehabilitate their aging flood protection systems,” Sen. Moran said. “My amendment recognizes those communities who are making significant progress toward improving their levees and lowers the insurance rates for citizens living within that flood plain accordingly."

The maps the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) uses to assess whether or not a home or business lies within a 100-year flood plain are undergoing a massive update effort. As the new maps are completed, many citizens in Kansas and across the country may soon learn they are required to purchase flood insurance for the first time. The Moran Amendment provides financial relief to impacted residents as long as the community has secured the majority of the funding for the levee, more than 50 percent of the flood protection system is complete, and the reconstruction schedule lasts no more than five years.

“Senator Moran's legislation is a big break for residents and businesses in communities like Salina,” said Jason Gage, City Manager of Salina. “We recognize the need for the federal government to update flood plain maps and ensure our flood control levee provides the highest level of protection, but without Sen. Moran’s amendment, the timing of these projects could have resulted in a cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to our community."

The Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization Act of 2011 containing the Moran Amendment was voted out of committee last week and will now move to the full Senate for a vote.

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