Plus, the push for flood insurance in “non-flood zones”
A proposed law eases the way for demolition of structures along Florida’s coast that are out of compliance with the National Flood Insurance Program, Citizens Property Insurance enters stage two of its program requiring all homeowners policies have flood insurance, and the new challenge facing Florida residents impacted by recent hurricanes. It’s all in this week’s Flood Digest.
Historic Downtown St. Augustine. Courtesy, Visit St. Augustine
Demolishing Flood Risky Property: A bill is heading to the Governor that would prevent local governments and their historical boards from stopping the demolition of “nonconforming structures” that don’t meet the flood elevation requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The Resiliency and Safe Structures Act (SB 1526) applies to buildings along the state’s barrier beaches and other locations within the coastal construction control line. Exempted are single-family homes, structures on the National Register of Historic Places, and some properties in coastal communities of under 10,000 population, including areas in St. Augustine, Palm Beach, Key West and Miami Beach neighborhoods, including Ocean Drive and the Art Deco District. The bill may also serve to help prevent another tragedy such as the collapse of Champlain Towers South, which claimed the lives of 98 condo residents in Surfside, Florida in June of 2021.
Citizens Flood Control: The Florida Legislature, in its 2022 insurance market reforms, required state-backed Citizens Property Insurance to require personal lines policyholders in flood zones to purchase flood insurance in order to become or remain a Citizens policyholder in 2023. Now, with policies written or renewed in 2024, policyholders not in a flood zone will be required to purchase flood insurance, if their policy value is $600,000 or more. That requirement will be extended downward in value so that all Citizens policyholders by the end of 2027 will have flood insurance, regardless of their flood zone designation. The public policy is generating TV news stories from St. Petersburg (More like Tsunami insurance) to Florida’s east coast (House on stilts owner in Jensen Beach says she’s forced to get flood insurance).
Our position at LMA is that if your driver’s license says Florida, you live in a flood zone. The water doesn’t know to stop at a line on a FEMA map of zones. It is the right thing to do to move folks in the direction of ALWAYS buying flood insurance. As we’ve painfully learned from Hurricanes Ian and Nicole and the horrendous two-day rain event in Broward County last April, floods are real.
Flooded Winter Springs, Florida residents after Hurricane Ian, September 28, 2022. Courtesy, Seminole Co. FD
New Challenges for Hurricane Victims: In part due to the Citizens flood coverage requirement above, in part due to FEMA issuing new flood maps, and in part due to private flood insurance companies’ reticence to provide additional capacity in areas hit from Hurricanes Ian, Nicole, and Idalia, Florida homeowners are scrambling to find flood policies, reports WBBH-TV in Ft. Myers. FEMA has been holding community meetings in Charlotte and Sarasota counties in recent months about its redrawn proposed flood maps. Those previously not in an NFIP flood zone and now are who have federally-backed mortgages, now need to purchase flood insurance, either from the NFIP or the growing number of private flood insurance companies offering it.
LMA Newsletter of 3-11-24
