A troubling article from the Bolivar Commercial spells out why Mississippi may be removed from the National Flood Insurance Program as early as this spring.
The issue is over a state law prohibiting counties and cities from enforcing building codes, including local floodplain management ordinances, against qualified hunting and fishing camps. The NFIP requires that participating communities regulate development in floodplains.
To be clear: this isn’t about a couple of rural areas. It’s about the entire state of Mississippi. From that article:
“This is not simply a matter of residences in Bolivar County or the Delta Region,” said Bill Quinton, director of the Bolivar County Emergency Management Agency in August. “Everyone across the state, including the Gulf Coast, could lose federal funding needed to help rebuild after flooding disasters.”
Ouch.
Read all about it over on the Bolivar Commercial.