The recent shutdown of the federal government came and went without any dire impacts on local people or institutions.

But it carried with it yet another reminder of the vulnerable position our home and business owners face in terms of needing, purchasing and keeping flood insurance.

The National Flood Insurance Program, overseen by FEMA, is the only option for coastal residents who need the coverage.

Across the U.S., the number of people who use the program is more than 5 million. But here in Louisiana, there are hundreds of thousands – and there should be more.

As close as we are to the water, we should all do everything we can to protect our most crucial investments. And the flood insurance program is cheap. Subsidized by the federal government, the coverage doesn’t cost nearly what it would on the private market – even if it were available there.

The problem with it, though, is that it has been saddled with debt by expensive storms that have caused extensive damage.

That problem has made some in Congress leery of extending it long term. So, national politicians have agreed to a series of temporary extensions that have kept the service available and, in spite of cost increases, fairly affordable.

But in times when the program expires or, as happened recently, the government shuts down, it can leave property owners in a difficult position.

Because flood insurance is a requirement for many mortgages, real estate sales can be disrupted if new coverage or policies are not available for extended periods of time.

Fortunately, this shutdown didn’t linger for weeks or months, but the next one could. And if that happened, it could throw our entire real estate market into turmoil. That would happen in low-lying and coastal areas around the nation, creating a much larger problem than the current debt presents.

There must be a long-term solution. And there are several that have been suggested.

First, the banks and mortgage companies that oversee the loan industry should ensure that the people and businesses that are required to carry flood insurance do so. That would broaden the pool of premium payers and supply more revenue for the cash-strapped program.

Second, the federal government should stop giving such a generous portion of the premium to the insurance companies that write the policies but don’t carry any of the risk associated with them.

Those two reforms could make the program much more sustainable and allow national officials to implement a long-term strategy that would set local minds at ease.

This shutdown was just the latest reminder that Congress and the president must address this issue with the urgency it has long deserved.

 

Editorials represent the opinion of the newspaper, not of any individual.