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Requires FEMA to operate a flood data exchange that shares specified NFIP and private flood policy and claims information with participating insurance companies and to provide flood-claims and risk information to property purchasers, lessees, and current owners on request. Insurance companies that join the exchange must enter data-sharing agreements that limit use to underwriting, rate-setting, and claims adjustment, prohibit marketing uses, and supply their own policy/claims data in a FEMA-prescribed format. FEMA may charge insurers a fee (deposited into the National Flood Insurance Fund) to run the program but may not charge owners requesting property information. Disclosures under the new rules are treated as a routine use under the Privacy Act.
The bill increases transparency and data-driven pricing for flood risk (helping buyers and improving insurer accuracy) but raises privacy risks and the likelihood that properties with bad flood histories will face higher costs or reduced coverage.
Homebuyers, current owners, and renters gain access to property-level flood claim histories and claim dollar amounts, enabling more informed purchase, sale, and insurance decisions.
Participating insurers can use combined NFIP and private-policy data for underwriting and rate-setting, improving pricing accuracy and potentially reducing cross-subsidization across policyholders.
A centralized data exchange can speed claims adjustment and coordination between the NFIP and private insurers, potentially shortening claim resolution times for policyholders.
Homeowners, renters, and small businesses with costly flood histories could face higher premiums or reduced availability of private coverage as insurers use the disclosed data to raise rates or deny policies.
Expanded data sharing and treating disclosures as a 'routine use' increases the risk that sensitive property and claims data will be exposed, shared more widely within government or with contractors, or otherwise misused, eroding owner privacy and control over their information.
Requirements that insurers provide data in Administrator-prescribed formats create compliance costs for insurers that could be passed on to consumers through higher premiums.
Introduced February 4, 2026 by Madeleine Dean · Last progress February 4, 2026