By Kimberly Hopson
L’Observateur

LAPLACE – The presidents of all three River Parishes join a delegation of more than 20 parish leaders from across south Louisiana, including seven fellow parish presidents, in Washington, D.C., May 7 and 8 to present the detrimental impacts of the Biggert-Waters Act of 2012 and proposed FEMA Digital Flood Insurance Rate Maps on local residents and businesses.
Parish Presidents  Natalie Robottom of St. John the Baptist Parish, Timmy Roussel of St. James Parish and V.J. St. Pierre Jr. of St. Charles Parish will participate in the fly-in, along with the parish presidents of St. Tammany, Terrebone, St. Mary, Lafourche and Jefferson.
At the last meeting of the St. James Parish Council, Roussel even moved to waive policy so he could devote the latter portion of the meeting to discuss the mission.
The trip is being sponsored and organized by Greater New Orleans Inc., a regional economic development organization. The group will meet with the Louisiana Congressional delegation, the Federal Emergency Management Association, officials from the National Flood Insurance Program and members of the House Financial Services Committee to voice concerns over and propose solutions to current issues. The Biggert-Waters Act, as written and signed into law, is a product of that committee.
“The people and businesses of Southeast Louisiana appreciate and support the need for the National Flood Insurance Program to be sustainable over the long-term,” said Michael Hecht, president and CEO of GNO Inc. “At the same time, changes to NFIP designed to ensure such a future must not hurt the very communities NFIP is designed to defend. This is why we have come together, to speak with one voice and work collectively with federal officials toward a solution that protects both the NFIP and Southeast Louisiana.”
Among the possible solutions that will be discussed are requesting that FEMA work with local stakeholders to continue to develop and refine maps to accurately reflect flood risk in the community by taking into account non-accredited levees and other features that afford flood protection and asking Congress to consider reinstating grandfathering for properties currently participating in NFIP.
The Biggert-Waters act phases out grandfathering and subsidized flood insurance rates. This phase-out will result in properties that were legally built according to all applicable codes at the time being considered out of compliance. Additionally, new FEMA flood maps, which outline base flood elevation changes, do not recognize protection offered by nonaccredited levees when calculating actuarial rates.
The combined effects of these policies could drastically increase flood insurance premiums for those living behind nonaccredited levees.
“The increase in flood insurance rates by the National Flood Insurance Program on residents while continuing to deny them flood protection shows a lack of compassion for the people of St. John the Baptist Parish,” said Robottom. “Our residents were some of the hardest hit by Hurricane Isaac after years of paying into the insurance program without accessing benefits. This is not the time for a rate increase.”
“South Louisiana has experienced a tremendous amount of destruction and flooding in recent years from major storms and other natural disasters,” added Roussel. “As we work to continue to rebuild our communities it is very disturbing to see our own federal government willing to impose such a devastating law on our citizens. One can only wonder if the creators of this act took the time to explore or consider the negative effects this will bring to our residents and the average household. To move forward with the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act without any amendments would only force our citizens to abandon their way of living. Increased insurance premiums of this caliber will only cause more harm to those seeking to protect their families. The local government, along with various private entities will be forced to take on these blighted areas deemed unsafe and unlivable. The blame will not be on the citizen looking for protection, but the delegation that ruled in favor of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act in its present state. This is the time to come together to protect our residents and our parishes as a whole.”  
“The recent developments with FEMA flood insurance remapping and the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 make this opportunity to speak directly with our legislators more important than ever before. St. Charles Parish is fighting for its future economic stability, and residents are fighting to stay in their homes,” St. Pierre said.“I intend, with the assistance of other parish presidents, to present a clear picture of what’s at stake in order to affect meaningful changes on this issue.”
The group will request that FEMA work with local stakeholders to continue to develop and refine maps to accurately reflect flood risk by taking into account nonaccredited levees and other features that afford flood protection. The group will also request that Congress consider reinstating grandfathering for properties currently participating in NFIP. Other solutions to these issues will be proposed as well.
In addition, St. Charles Parish Chief Administrative Officer Buddy Boe will meet with the head of the National Flood Insurance Program on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the St. Charles Parish Council is taking action to request that the Louisiana federal legislative delegation amend or revise the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act.
The resolution presented at the May 6 council meeting requests that the release of all new DFIRMs for adoption to communities be temporarily suspended; that grandfathering be reinstated and attached to the property, not the owner; and that all excess annual premiums remain in the NFIP fund balance and not be transferred to the U.S. Treasury.
“As an at-large member of the parish council, this resolution and the parish president’s trip to Washington are important steps in fighting this on behalf of residents,” St. Charles Parish Councilwoman Carolyn Schexnaydre said. “We are all affected by these laws, and they must be amended.”
“This week we took another step in this fight to reduce the horrible impacts of the Biggert-Waters Act and the remapping process,” Councilwoman Julia Fisher-Perrier said. “Our ultimate solution is a complete hurricane protection system, but changing these laws is priority number one right now.”