The Federal Emergency Management Agency has announced that some of the residents of Lafayette Parish and its incorporated parts will see a drop in their flood insurance premiums by up to 10 percent.
The reason for the savings is that the Lafayette Consolidated Government is now taking an active role in the Community Rating System for the National Flood Insurance Program. This means that business and homeowners, as well as renters in Lafayette city and the unincorporated areas of Lafayette Parish may qualify for a decrease of between five and ten percent in their flood insurance rates.
According to the Community Rating System coordinator with the Department of Planning, Zoning, and Codes at LCG, as well as the flood plain administrator, Kerwin Woodard, “This is the culmination of probably several years of effort by the administration and this department.”
The residents of this area within the flood zones that start with A, will be seeing a reduction of 10 percent in their annual premiums for flood insurance. The rest will be receiving a decrease of 5 percent.
According to a news release by FEMA, this lowered insurance rate will be put into effect at the next renewal for a flood insurance policy, or upon the writing of a new policy. Woodard explained that LCG had to meet a certain minimum requirement so that the parish residents would be able to qualify for flood insurance coverage. However, he also said that the new program “recognizes efforts that go above and beyond that.”