{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.cassidy.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/icymi-investing-in-flood-prevention-infrastructure-works-heres-what-we-are-doing/", "ICYMI: Investing in Flood Prevention Infrastructure Works. Here\u2019s What We Are Doing.", "2024-10-24", "2024", "2024-10", "Republican", "Senate", "LA", "Bill Cassidy", "C001075", "www.cassidy.senate.gov", "cassidy", "https://www.cassidy.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/?jsf=jet-engine:press-list", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) penned an op-ed in The Advocate highlighting a new report showing flood mitigation investments reduce storm damage and the billions of dollars he\u2019s secured for Louisiana from his Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to do so.\n\n\u201cThe best way to recover from a storm is never to flood at all. A recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report confirmed this, finding that for every dollar spent on federal flood mitigation projects, communities see a return of $2 to $3 in reduced damages. This reality resonates deeply for many families in Louisiana and across the country,\u201d wrote Dr. Cassidy.\n\n\u201cIn my time in Congress, I have been a vocal advocate for federal investment in flood mitigation, working to secure billions of dollars for projects that protect communities and reduce the economic burden of disasters. The funding secured through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a game-changer,\u201d continued Dr. Cassidy.\n\nThis op-ed comes on the heels of a critical report Cassidy released this morning detailing the current state of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and the issues that led to skyrocketing premiums for millions of homeowners.\n\n\u201cAs the new CBO report shows, investment in flood mitigation pays off \u2014 again and again. The IIJA provided billions of dollars to reduce the risk of flooding, and much of this money is heading to Louisiana. It\u2019s a good start, but NFIP reform must come next,\u201d concluded Dr. Cassidy.\n\nRead the full op-ed here or below.\n\nInvesting in Flood Prevention Infrastructure Works. Here\u2019s What We Are Doing.\n\nBy: Senator Bill Cassidy\n\nOctober 24, 2024\n\nAs hurricanes Milton, Helene, and Francine floods homes and communities across the East Coast, Americans are focused on two questions: How do we help those affected to recover and how do we prevent this from happening again?\n\nThe best way to recover from a storm is never to flood at all. A recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report confirmed this, finding that for every dollar spent on federal flood mitigation projects, communities see a return of $2 to $3 in reduced damages. This reality resonates deeply for many families in Louisiana and across the country.\n\nIn my time in Congress, I have been a vocal advocate for federal investment in flood mitigation, working to secure billions of dollars for projects that protect communities and reduce the economic burden of disasters. The funding secured through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is a game-changer. The findings of this CBO report show us this is the right strategy.\n\nThe IIJA allocated over $5.5 billion for disaster mitigation, coastal restoration, and flood risk reduction efforts. In Louisiana alone, it has already delivered hundreds of millions in coastal resiliency grants alone.\n\nLast month, I announced Louisiana will receive a fresh $206 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency\u2019s (FEMA) Flood Mitigation Assistance program. This funding will go toward projects across Louisiana, from Gretna\u2019s green infrastructure network \u2014 set to receive $51.8 million \u2014 to elevation projects in St. John the Baptist Parish and Livingston Parish totaling $27.1 and $11.8 million, respectively.\n\nIn 2023, Louisiana secured over $207 million from FEMA in Building Resilient Infrastructures and Communities grants. These funds have gone toward a variety of projects, from $19 million for hardening and hurricane-proofing Jefferson Parish\u2019s power grid to $4.5 million for residential mitigation programs in Lafayette Parish. The result: stronger resilience for Louisianans as we confront future storms.\n\nThree years in, we have made historic investments in flood infrastructure, providing resources to communities across Louisiana and the country to build stronger, more resilient systems. These efforts not only safeguard communities to prevent catastrophic flooding, they reduce the need for costly recovery efforts and alleviate the pressure on the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which has struggled to stay solvent.\n\nI have repeatedly highlighted the urgent need to reauthorize \u2014 and more importantly, reform \u2014 the NFIP in a series of speeches on the Senate floor. Skyrocketing flood insurance premiums due to Risk Rating 2.0 are leaving families in Louisiana and other flood-prone areas behind. Flood insurance costs impose an unsustainable financial strain placed on both homeowners and the program itself.\n\nAt my request, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on NFIP reform in January, featuring testimony from locals speaking to the program\u2019s challenges. The principles can be stated simply: Make the program affordable to the homeowner, accountable to the taxpayer and sustainable for the future.\n\nThis isn\u2019t just a Louisiana issue, as the devastation of Hurricane Helene has demonstrated. Flooding is a national problem. Forty-four states have had over $50 million in total NFIP claims since 1978. Thirteen states have had more than $1 billion in NFIP claims during that same timeframe. So, I\u2019m confident we can build the big coalition needed to enact this vital legislation.\n\nAs the new CBO report shows, investment in flood mitigation pays off \u2014 again and again. The IIJA provided billions of dollars to reduce the risk of flooding, and much of this money is heading to Louisiana. It\u2019s a good start, but NFIP reform must come next.\n\nBackground\n\nIn January, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on NFIP at the request of Cassidy. The hearing highlighted the urgent need for Congress to act and featured a Louisiana witness. Cassidy also participated in a roundtable hosted by GNO, Inc. and the Coalition for Sustainable Flood Insurance before introducing the bill to hear from community leaders and advocates on the issue.\n\nCassidy traveled St. Bernard Parish last year to talk with residents about their flood insurance premiums, resulting in the second episode of his series Bill on the Hill.\n\nOver the last several months, Cassidy has delivered a series of speeches on the Senate floor calling for action on NFIP. Most recently, he demanded that Congress reauthorize and reform the program just before its authorization expired at the end of the fiscal year on September 30th.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:55:29Z"]], "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://www.cassidy.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/icymi-investing-in-flood-prevention-infrastructure-works-heres-what-we-are-doing/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6916790045797825, "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"}