Trump watched for reform of US flood insurance programme
President-elect Trump could reform the flood insurance industry to rectify the $23bn debt the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) owes taxpaying citizens, as part of his “drain the swamp” revamp of federal systems. Flood insurance was nationalised in 1978, with private insurers used to offer federally-backed insurance, meaning all underwriting loss was transferred to the taxpayer. The new Trump administration, in its bid to cut losses, will likely pass the Flood Insurance Market Parity and Modernisation Act, as well as getting rid of related ill-used regulations. The NFIP’s charter will expire in September 2017, making it a target for reform.

The expiration of the National Flood Insurance Program in September 2017 has led to much speculation about whether the Trump Administration would support an expansion of the private flood insurance market. (Photo: iStock)

When President-elect Donald Trump said, he wanted to “drain the swamp,” he may not have been referring to the sinking federal flood insurance program.

However, it is likely the nationalization of the flood insurance industry and years of federal interference in the sale of private flood insurance will not go unnoticed.