Sponsors (4)
The bill speeds FEMA flood determinations and final map updates—benefiting homeowners and government planning—but does so by limiting deferrals in ways that could increase flood risk, harm protected species, and raise litigation and costs.
Homeowners and local communities can get faster final flood map updates and quicker removal or adjustment of flood insurance requirements when fill is used, reducing insurance costs and uncertainty.
Local and state governments receive definitive FEMA flood determinations sooner, reducing uncertainty for development, permitting, and infrastructure planning.
Rural and downstream communities and homeowners face increased flood risk if prohibiting deferrals accelerates projects that place fill in floodplains.
Protected species and ecosystems may be harmed because Fish & Wildlife and NOAA could have less time to address endangered-species concerns, increasing ecological risk and the chance of regulatory violations.
Taxpayers, project applicants, and local governments could face increased litigation and administrative disputes between FEMA and wildlife agencies, raising costs and delaying projects.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Prevents FEMA from deferring LOMRs and conditional LOMRs based on placement of fill; repeal when FEMA fully implements ESA biological-opinion requirements.
Official title: To amend the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to prohibit the deferral of the issuance of letters of map revision based on the placement of fill or conditional letters of map revision based on the placement of fill, and for other purposes.
Introduced June 6, 2025 by Doug Lamalfa · Last progress June 6, 2025
Prohibits FEMA from postponing issuance of Letters of Map Revision (LOMRs) and conditional LOMRs when those changes are based on placement of fill in floodplains, while preserving FEMA’s authority to substantively review and decide those requests. The prohibition is temporary: the added restriction is repealed once FEMA’s Administrator fully implements requirements in separate biological opinions issued under the Endangered Species Act by the Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries.