US Reps. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) (pictured above, left) and Maria Salazar (R-Fla.) (pictured above, right) have reintroduced legislation aimed at expanding access to private flood coverage while preserving key pricing benefits under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
The Continuous Coverage for Flood Insurance Act is intended to let policyholders maintain qualifying private flood insurance without losing eligibility for NFIP grandfathered rates if they return to the federal program.
The bill would direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which administers the NFIP, to treat compliant private flood policies as satisfying the program’s “continuous coverage” requirement.
At present, only time insured under an NFIP policy counts toward continuous coverage, which can affect what a homeowner pays if they move back into the program after a period in the private market.
The effort comes as Florida’s broader property market is shifting following litigation and regulatory reforms, with more risk moving back to private carriers. Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state’s insurer of last resort, saw its policy count fall by about one-third year over year to 777,592 by June 2025, while average risk‑adjusted reinsurance pricing at the June 1, 2025 renewal declined 10.7%.
“Families, homeowners and small businesses across Florida – including across the recovering Tampa Bay area – deserve real financial stability, peace of mind and clarity when it comes to flood insurance,” Castor said.
She said the bipartisan legislation “empowers consumers with more options by allowing access to private flood insurance, without penalty” and argued that in coastal communities like Tampa Bay, “healthy competition can lower costs, expand the insurance pool and help bring down flood insurance rates.”
Castor added that she is working with Salazar “to ease cost burdens on hardworking Floridians and expand consumer choice in continuous flood insurance coverage.” The sponsors say recognizing private coverage for continuous-coverage purposes would allow households to move between NFIP and private policies based on price and terms, without a future premium shock if they switch back.
Salazar said the measure is also aimed at limiting federal exposure. “Now more than ever, Miami residents and Americans nationwide deserve real choice and affordable coverage in the flood-insurance market,” she said.
“By opening the door to greater private-sector involvement, the Continuous Coverage for Flood Insurance Act will lower the burden on US taxpayers and provide stronger, more reliable protection.”
The proposal builds on the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012, which required federal lenders to accept certain non-NFIP policies to satisfy the mandatory purchase requirement.
Regulators finalized a rule on private flood acceptance in February 2019, with those standards taking effect July 1, 2019, but NFIP rating rules on continuous coverage have not been aligned.
Lawmakers are also targeting persistent coverage gaps. Recent survey data show that while 32.6% of homeowners say they have flood insurance, industry estimates put national flood participation at roughly 4%, and in key flood states such as Florida, 12.4% of surveyed homeowners reported dropping flood insurance because of cost.
Supporters of the Continuous Coverage for Flood Insurance Act argue that NFIP’s current approach to continuous coverage can discourage some property owners from considering potentially cheaper private options.
They contend that counting compliant private policies toward grandfathered status could remove one barrier to affordability while leaving the NFIP’s mandatory purchase framework intact.
