Manchin Introduces Bill To Extend Flood Insurance Assistance To Protect West Virginians From Losing Assistance

WASHINGTON, July 25 -- Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, issued the following news release:

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) today introduced the Group Flood Insurance Policy Extension Act, legislation that would extend the current Group Flood Insurance Policy (GFIP) under Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to account for the delayed obligation of $106 million in Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery funds provided by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018.

If this bill isn't passed, close to 550 West Virginia households will lose flood insurance assistance in August.

"Not only have many West Virginia families not been able to fully recover from the devastating floods in 2016 because of the delay in disaster recovery funding, but flood insurance assistance is set to be cut off in August. That's why today I'm introducing a bill to extend the deadline for flood insurance assistance equal to the delay in funding which Congress provided. Cutting off West Virginia families from flood insurance assistance would burden many families who are still recovering and repairing from flood damage. We need to make sure these hardworking West Virginians don't lose this important assistance and I will fight to pass this bill," said Senator Manchin.

Senator Manchin also sent a letter to FEMA on April 5, 2019, to request an extension of the GFIP for West Virginians affected by the 2016 flood. To read the letter in full click here (https://www.manchin.senate.gov/download/190405-extension-to-fema-no-cost-insurance).