National Flood Conference In New Orleans Will Focus On Economic Benefits
Release Date: May 10, 2002
Release Number: HQ-02-051
Washington, D.C.-- More than 700 bankers, insurance executives, local and state officials, and top officials of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will gather in New Orleans May 19-22 to discuss the importance of flood insurance to a community's economic recovery following a flood disaster.
The four-day National Flood Conference at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans--held in a city whose economic vitality is particularly vulnerable to major flooding--will emphasize the importance of a successful federal program that pays for itself and even saves taxpayers money: the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which is managed by the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration, a part of FEMA, in cooperation with the insurance and lending industries.
Floods resulting from severe storms and other events are by far the most common type of natural disaster in this country--and the most costly. Last year, the NFIP paid flood victims $1.5 billion in claims--more than $1 billion from Tropical Storm Allison flooding alone. Those claims, paid from policyholder premiums, reduced the need for federal disaster assistance, which is funded by tax dollars. Furthermore, the program's required floodplain management ordinances, adopted and enforced at the community level, result in an estimated $1 billion annual reduction in flood damage nationwide.
A principal theme of the 2002 National Flood Conference will be the need for insurance agents and mortgage lenders to encourage property owners to maintain their flood insurance coverage and not become complacent because no floods have occurred recently--because they will happen again.
The conference will include more than forty technical/educational workshops and seminars of special interest to insurance agents, lenders and state and local officials. They will include updates on technological advances in flood-hazard map modernization, pre-disaster mitigation and loss prevention, risk management, land use, NFIP coverages and lender compliance. Among the many subjects are floodplain management tools for local and state governments, repetitive-loss-property strategies, realtors' perspectives on the NFIP, claims lessons learned, and legal issues facing lenders, insurance companies and flood zone determination companies.
There will be ample opportunity for attendees to exchange ideas, ask questions and seek information about the NFIP. Floodplain management, mapping, marketing, lending, claims, underwriting and legal issues will be discussed in "town hall" meetings. Speakers at the opening plenary session beginning at 8:30 a.m. Monday, May 20, include.
Robert F. Shea, Jr., Acting Administrator of FEMA's Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration; former Congresswoman Corinne "Lindy" Boggs, the first woman to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana and former U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican; and Albert E. Haines, Chief Administrator of Houston, Texas, the city hit hardest by Tropical Storm Allison.
The keynote speaker is Timothy P. Ryan, Professor of Economics and Dean of the College of Business Administration at the University of New Orleans. A nationally-known economist, Dr. Ryan co-chaired Governor Roemer's Economic Development Advisory Panel in l988, co-chaired Mayor Morial's Economic Development Transition Team in 1995, and is currently the President of the Metropolitan Area Committee and serves on that organization's Executive Committee and Board of Directors.
Speakers at the Tuesday general session will include Howard Leikin, Deputy Administrator of FEMA's Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration with oversight responsibility for the NFIP.
Gaspar J. "Buddy" Stall is the speaker at Wednesday's closing general session. Through his writings, radio and television appearances, guest lectures at almost every university and college in Louisiana and countless personal appearances, Stall has taught the history of Louisiana to more people than anyone else.
The U.S. Congress established the NFIP in 1968 to make flood insurance available to property owners in communities that adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinances to reduce future flood losses by regulating new construction. Currently, nearly 4.4 million policies are in force in nearly 20,000 communities nationwide, representing more than $602 billion worth of coverage.
Last Modified: Wednesday, 20-Aug-2003 17:16:39