Federal flood program loses in Alabama

Tuesday, December 09, 2008
By SEAN REILLY
Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — They may not appreciate it when paying their premiums, but for many Alabamians, the federal flood insurance program has been a sweet deal.

Maybe too sweet, according to a new study that found Alabama policyholders have reaped three times more in claims than they paid in premiums over the last three decades.

From 1978 to last year, the difference amounted to more than $746 million in inflation-adjusted dollars, the Government Accountability Office, a congressional watchdog agency, concluded in the study released this month.

Mobile Press-Register

House Approves Bill to Expand Flood Insurance Program

By Hugh Son and Erik Holm

Sept. 27 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. House voted today to expand a federal flood insurance program to also include coverage for wind damage, a proposal that may reduce the role of private insurers in coastal areas.

The bill, approved 263 to 146, hasn't been voted on by the Senate. President George W. Bush threatened yesterday to veto the proposal, which his Office of Management and Budget called ``fiscally irresponsible.''

Click here to read the full story from Bloomberg.