"Millions of American property owners get flood insurance from the federal government, and a lot of them get a hefty discount. But over the past decade, the government has paid out huge amounts of money after floods, and the flood insurance program is deeply in the red."
"Congress tried to fix that in 2012 by passing a law to raise insurance premiums. Now that move has created such uproar among property owners that Congress is trying to make the law it passed disappear.
Caught in the middle is the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA provides food, shelter, money and pretty much whatever people need after a disaster. But before a disaster, FEMA helps with flood insurance — cheap flood insurance. You can buy a FEMA flood insurance policy for about half the "actuarial" rate private insurers would offer. (The actuarial rate more accurately reflects the value of a property at risk.)"
Christopher Joyce reports for NPR's Morning Edition January 1, 2014.
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