New Flood Maps Won't Take Effect Till Dec. 2011

Thursday, September 16, 2010 By: Mike Fitzgerald

The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced Wednesday it will delay the implementation of the new flood maps for the St. Louis region until December 2011.
 
This offers an 11-month reprieve to owners of 150,000 properties in the metro-east's American Bottoms flood plain.
 
In May, at the urging of U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Springfield, FEMA announced the deadline had been extended to January 2011.
 
In a news release issued Wednesday, Durbin emphasized the importance of the delay in allowing more time for property owners to understand their flood risk.
 
"I encourage metro-east property owners in newly mapped areas to take advantage of deeply discounted flood insurance -- which could mean a savings of over a thousand dollars a year -- that is available now through December 2013," Durbin stated in the news release.
 
Durbin also called for legislative action to prevent residents and businesses from facing sharp increases in flood insurance rates.
 
Meanwhile, the Senate Banking Committee is considering a request made by Durbin last week to delay by five years the mandatory flood insurance purchase requirement in places with newly designated flood maps nationwide.
 
Durbin had asked the Senate panel to include the five-year delay provision in a bill to re-authorize the federal flood insurance program.
 
A similar measure has passed the House.