A flood insurance reform proposal passed by the House could result in unaffordable cost increases for Louisiana homeowners, Rep. Garret Graves warns.
Graves, R-Baton Rouge, expressed his concerns about the proposal to business leaders and political officials at a luncheon held on Tuesday in Gray, The Courier reports. The luncheon was sponsored by the Houma-Terrebonne, Lafourche and Thibodaux chambers of commerce.
Graves, whose district includes northern Terrebonne and Lafourche, expressed optimism that the Senate will make changes to the flood insurance proposal before it reaches a final vote. The flood insurance program had been set to expire last Friday, but Congress extended it through July 31 as part of a spending bill passed Thursday.
Graves says he is working with Louisiana Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy to ensure the final bill retains affordable prices.
“We’re working with them on bringing better policy to the table to help reflect the conditions in Louisiana,” Graves told those in attendance Tuesday. “Because the House-passed bill would limit your flood insurance rates to $10,000 a year when adjusted for inflation. That’s the cap you have. How many of you can afford that? Ten thousand dollars a year. It begins transitioning us to those types of rates. Completely unacceptable. It would undermine the economy in the region.”
