Legislature considers policies for future floods

Always wary of mandates, Iowa legislators are eying measures to encourage property owners to get flood insurance and limit development in flood-prone areas.

With legislative leaders promising cuts to every part of the state budget, chairmen of the House and Senate Rebuild Iowa Committees see this session as a time to build a framework of policies to prevent flooding as much as possible and mitigate the damage when floods do occur.

“The budget challenge makes it difficult to get more money for recovery,” Senate Rebuild Iowa Committee Chairman Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, said Monday. Aside from about $100 million in I-JOBS bonds earmarked for recovery efforts, he and his House Counterpart. Rep. Tom Schueller, D-Maquoketa, don't see much funding for ongoing recovery efforts in the Cedar River corridor and elsewhere across the state.

So both chairmen are looking at using incentives to encourage property owners to buy flood insurance where appropriate and disincentives to development in floodplains.

“We're looking at language to spell out what the state won't do for you if you don't have flood insurance,” Hogg said. “We're not going to say you can't develop in a floodplain, but if you do, don't expect any state economic development help and if you get flooded, you're on your own.”

Schueller pointed out recovery was much faster and smoother in Parkersburg, which was hit by a fatal tornado in May 2008 than in communities that were flooded the next month.

“Why? Because almost everyone has tornado insurance,” he said.

Hogg hopes to win approval of floodplain and watershed management policies that may take as along as 20 years to implement.

To get the ball rolling, the House RebuildI owa Committee will hear recommendations from the co-chairs of the Water Resources Coordination Council's Committee on Flood Plain Management today. The Senate Committee will get the presentation Thursday.

“It's clear to me that not every watershed feels the need to act to mitigate future flooding as much as those on the Cedar River,” he said.

The House committee has scheduled a presentation on smart planning Thursday.