{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://salazar.house.gov/media/press-releases/reps-salazar-castor-reintroduce-bipartisan-legislation-lower-flood-insurance", "Reps. Salazar, Castor Reintroduce Bipartisan Legislation to Lower Flood Insurance Costs", "2025-12-15", "2025", "2025-12", "Republican", "House", "FL", "Maria Elvira Salazar", "S000168", "salazar.house.gov", "salazar", "https://salazar.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last week, U.S. Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar (FL-27) and Kathy Castor (FL-14) reintroduced the Continuous Coverage for Flood Insurance Act, legislation that would help lower costs by ensuring the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) allows homeowners to maintain flood insurance coverage outside the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).\n\nThis bill comes at a critical time as homeowners face rising premiums and limited affordable insurance options.\n\n\"Now more than ever, Miami residents and Americans nationwide deserve real choice and affordable coverage in the flood-insurance market,\" said Rep. Maria Salazar. \"By opening the door to greater private-sector involvement, the Continuous Coverage for Flood Insurance Act will lower the burden on U.S. taxpayers and provide stronger, more reliable protection.\u201d\n\n\u201cFamilies, homeowners and small businesses across Florida \u2013 including across the recovering Tampa Bay area \u2013 deserve real financial stability, peace of mind and clarity when it comes to flood insurance,\u201d said Rep. Kathy Castor. \u201cOur bipartisan legislation empowers consumers with more options by allowing access to private flood insurance, without penalty. For coastal communities like Tampa Bay, healthy competition can lower costs, expand the insurance pool and help bring down flood insurance rates. I\u2019m pleased to work with my fellow Floridian, Rep. Maria Salazar, to ease cost burdens on hardworking Floridians and expand consumer choice in continuous flood insurance coverage.\u201d\n\nIn 2012, Congress enacted the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act to reform the NFIP. Among other reforms, the Biggert-Waters Act required federal lending institutions to accept certain non-NFIP insurance policies, reinforcing the fact that other non-NFIP insurance policies can be used to satisfy the NFIP\u2019s mandatory purchase requirement. As a result of this law, in February 2019, a final rule was issued regarding the acceptance of non-NFIP insurance, which took effect on July 1, 2019.\n\nMany consumers are unable to take advantage of these potentially beneficial and cost-effective non-NFIP insurance policies. Currently, the NFIP requires continuous coverage to be eligible for grandfathered rates, but only counts the time in an NFIP policy. If a policyholder chooses to leave the program and return later, the NFIP will charge the full, non-grandfathered rate \u2013 even if the policyholder decides to obtain a non-NFIP insurance policy that complies with the new rule. The prospect of higher insurance rates is not only a deterrent to the marketplace but also a barrier to more affordable flood insurance.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://salazar.house.gov/media/press-releases/reps-salazar-castor-reintroduce-bipartisan-legislation-lower-flood-insurance"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9081191383302212, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}