CSFI’s white paper – “An Evaluation of Risk Rating 2.0 Impact on National Flood Insurance Program Affordability” – was released on September 30, 2022.  Attendees at CSFI’s launch event included Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon, St. Charles Parish President Matthew Jewell, and Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng, who shared comments about their communities’ concerns on flood insurance affordability, despite resilience investments made statewide.

Covering the release event, The Advocate highlighted the white paper’s recommendations of “ lowering the annual cap on increases, offering help to homeowners who can’t afford them and developing a publicly available tool to allow residents to see their rates and correct potential errors in what they’re being charged.”   FOX8 quoted Michael Hecht, who stated that “we need to understand what’s in the Risk Rating so that we can take actions to reduce our costs.”

Newell Normand of WWL Radio conducted a subsequent interview with the white paper’s lead, C. Scott Canady of Tambala Strategy, to discuss findings in more depth.  Mr. Canady shared takeaways, including evidence that cost of flood of insurance is directly related to amount of flood insurance purchased and number of policies purchased.  Premium increases drive policyholders out of the program.  Mr. Canady reiterated the need for FEMA to publicly share information on annual increases and full-risk rate premiums.

To learn more, CSFI’s white paper, and its executive summary, are now available online.