PEARL, MS – July 2, 2010 – (RealEstateRama) — President Barak Obama signed the National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2010 which Congress passed yesterday. This now extends the NFIP through September 30 and is retroactive to cover the lapse period which began June 1.
This is the fourth extension of the program since last December. During the lapse no new flood insurance policies could be issued or renewed. This caused complications in the real estate industry where federally backed mortgages often require flood insurance for home and property located in high-risk areas.
“This is good news for homeowners and business owners in our state,” said Mississippi Emergency Management Agency Director Mike Womack. “With hurricane season already underway a lot of our residents were very uneasy with the latest lapse in coverage. However, this is just another extension and we hope lawmakers in Washington will put in place long-term funding of this critical program.”
Since Hurricane Katrina struck the Mississippi Gulf Coast nearly five years ago the number of polices in our state has increased from nearly 47,000 to more than 76,000 policies. The program has paid more than $2.8 billion for damages to Mississippi policy holders since Katrina.
The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency administers the National Flood Insurance Program for the state.
For more information, contact MEMA External Affairs at 866-920-MEMA (6362), or visit us online at www.msema.org.
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