Senators Tuberville, Britt, Cassidy Urge FEMA to Roll Back Biden-Era Flood Insurance Rate Hikes
Call for transparency and relief for families affected by hikes
Alabama Senators Tommy Tuberville and Katie Britt have joined with Louisiana’s Senator Bill Cassidy today in a firm call to halt FEMA’s flood‑insurance pricing policy, Risk Rating 2.0. The Senators have sent a letter to David Richardson, Acting Administrator of FEMA, urging him to end this Biden‑era approach that’s causing steep premium hikes for homeowners.
“Since the Biden Administration’s rollout of Risk Rating 2.0, premiums under the National Flood Insurance Program increased in every state. By FEMA’s own estimates, 77 percent of all NFIP policies now pay more than under the old system,” the Senators wrote.
The lawmakers say the roll‑out lacked public input. They criticized FEMA for not showing how it got the new cost numbers or letting people question them. That, they say, leaves towns and lenders in the dark—and homeowners stuck paying more. “The lack of transparency surrounding Risk Rating 2.0 is beyond troubling,” they wrote.
Joining Tuberville, Britt and Cassidy were other Republican senators from the South and Midwest: Cindy Hyde‑Smith and Roger Wicker (MS), Shelley Moore Capito and Jim Justice (WV), John Cornyn (TX), and John Kennedy (LA).
Their letter pulls no punches. They point out premium bumps in 2025:
- Alabama: 79% of policyholders saw increases
- rates grew ~106% since 2023
- some 1,200 dropped coverage
- Louisiana: 80% hit
- premiums jumped 234% in 2023
- 52,000 people lost coverage
- West Virginia: 83% felt monthly increases
- ~176% rise by August 2023
- ~600 left the program
- Texas: 86% saw hikes
- ~53% rate increase
- 26,300 left NFIP in last year
- Mississippi: 84% faced higher costs
- ~103% jump
- around 2,200 dropped insurance
The Senators warn these price spikes hurt rural and low‑income families most. When people drop policies, they say, disaster costs fall on taxpayers—and homes may then get abandoned or demolished.
The letter also explains how this all started. After President Biden signed Executive Orders 13990 and 14030 in early 2021, FEMA launched Risk Rating 2.0 on October 1, 2021.
Under FEMA’s new system, premiums are tied to each house’s flood risk: location, elevation, rebuild cost — not just flood maps. The program’s defenders say it’s fairer for those in low‑risk zones. But critics point out that as many as 77% of homes now pay more, sometimes two or three times the old rate.
The letter asks FEMA to:
- Stop Risk Rating 2.0 pricing now.
- Share the data and math behind future hikes above 5%.
- Bring back affordability help for low‑income and coastal communities
The Senators warn, “Each month that Risk Rating 2.0 continues unchecked, more families are forced to abandon their insurance coverage, neighborhoods face economic strain, and entire communities risk collapse after the next disaster”.
