A01475
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
735
Session of
2023
INTRODUCED BY WARREN, BURGOS, MADDEN, T. DAVIS, FREEMAN, VITALI,
BRENNAN, DELLOSO, PICKETT, CIRESI, TAKAC, KHAN, BOROWSKI,
SANCHEZ AND BOYLE, MARCH 28, 2023
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON INSURANCE, MARCH 28, 2023
AN ACT
Establishing the Flood Insurance Premium Assistance Task Force.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Flood
Insurance Premium Assistance Task Force Act.
Section 2. Findings.
The General Assembly finds that:
(1) Many communities within this Commonwealth have faced
devastating floods in recent years.
(2) The provisions of 42 U.S.C. Ch. 50 (relating to
national flood insurance), has caused steep increases in
flood insurance premiums to pay for increased spending in the
Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) flood disaster
assistance program.
(3) In the past several years, FEMA has revised its
flood mapping to include many properties that previously did
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not require flood insurance.
(4) Whole communities along Pennsylvania's rivers and
creeks could be devastated by plummeting property values due
to unaffordable flood insurance premiums.
Section 3. Flood Insurance Premium Assistance Task Force.
(a) Establishment.--The Flood Insurance Premium Assistance
Task Force is established.
(b) Membership.--The task force shall consist of the
following members, appointed within 25 days after the effective
date of this subsection:
(1) One member appointed by the Governor, who shall
serve as the chair of the task force.
(2) One member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor.
(3) One member appointed by the Director of the
Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
(4) One member appointed by the Insurance Commissioner.
(5) One member appointed by the Secretary of Banking and
Securities.
(6) One member appointed by the Majority Leader of the
Senate.
(7) One member appointed by the Minority Leader of the
Senate.
(8) One member appointed by the Majority Leader of the
House of Representatives.
(9) One member appointed by the Minority Leader of the
House of Representatives.
(1) The Insurance Commissioner, or a designee who shall
be an employee of the Insurance Department appointed by the
Insurance Commissioner, shall be the chair of the task force.
(2) The Director of the Pennsylvania Emergency
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Management Agency, or a designee who shall be an employee of
the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency appointed by the
Director of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
(3) The Secretary of Banking and Securities, or a
designee who shall be an employee of the Department of
Banking and Securities appointed by the Secretary of Banking
and Securities.
(4) One member appointed by the President pro tempore of
the Senate.
(5) One member appointed by the Minority Leader of the
Senate.
(6) One member appointed by the Speaker of the House of
Representatives.
(7) One member appointed by the Minority Leader of the
House of Representatives.
(c) Conducting of business.--The task force shall conduct
its business as follows:
(1) The physical presence of a majority of the members
shall constitute a quorum of the task force.
(2) Action of the task force must be authorized or
ratified by a majority vote of its members.
(3) A member not physically present may participate by
teleconference or video conference.
(4) The first meeting shall be convened within 45 days
of the effective date of this paragraph. Additional meetings
may be called by the chair as necessary.
(5) The chair shall schedule a meeting upon written
request of a two-thirds majority of the members of the task
force.
(6) The task force shall hold public hearings as
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necessary to obtain the information required to conduct its
review.
(7) All meetings and hearings held by the task force
shall be subject to 65 Pa.C.S. Ch. 7 (relating to open
meetings).
(8) The Department of Community and Economic
Development, the Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources, the Department of Environmental Protection and the
Insurance Department shall cooperate to provide
administrative or other assistance to the task force.
(9) Members may not receive compensation but shall be
reimbursed for reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in
service of the task force.
(d) Powers and duties.--The task force shall have the
following powers and duties:
(1) To review and analyze the law, procedures,
practices, processes and rules relating to the administration
of flood insurance.
(2) To hold public hearings for the taking of testimony
and the requesting of documents.
(3) Through its chair, to administer oaths and
affirmations to witnesses appearing before the task force.
(4) To accept and review written comments from
individuals and organizations.
(5) To make, by no later than six months after the
effective date of this paragraph, a final report to the
Governor, the Senate and the House of Representatives. In
addition to any information that the task force deems
appropriate, the report shall include recommendations
regarding:
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(i) potential programs that provide premium
discounts;
(ii) potential programs, whether through the
mechanism of premium discounts or other relief, that
create incentives for local governments to undertake or
continue flood mitigation efforts;
(iii) the implementation of necessary changes in
statutes and practices of this Commonwealth, policies and
procedures relating to the administration of flood
insurance;
(iv) how to educate residents of this Commonwealth
about the risk of flooding and ways to mitigate flood
occurrences;
(v) steps that the Commonwealth should take to
inform residents about the options available when
purchasing flood insurance; and
(vi) how to increase the number of people that
purchase flood insurance, either through the National
Flood Insurance Program or the private flood insurance
market.
(e) Report.--The report made under this act shall be:
(1) Adopted at a public meeting.
(2) A public record under the act of February 14, 2008
(P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-Know Law.
(f) Expiration.--The task force shall expire 30 days after
making the final report to the Governor, the Senate and the
House of Representatives under subsection (d)(5).
Section 4. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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