Have a home near the water?

Friends and Family Barbeque, 419 7th Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids, will be the site of one of 14 protest rallies in several states on Saturday.

            “Over 5.5 million flood insurance policyholders across the country will be socked with huge annual premiums, making their homes unaffordable and virtually unsellable,” asserted George Kasimos of New Jersey, founder of Stop FEMA Now.  “That’s why we’re joining with other citizens’ organizations to raise our voices on September 28th.  Public rallies will be held in several states -- so that we get the attention of Congress.”  

“Washington, we have a problem!” he said.  “Until the 2012 Biggert-Waters Act that empowers FEMA is fixed, we’re not going to go away quietly.”

            Stop FEMA Now has thousands of members and supporters at the New Jersey shore.  It held several meetings in coastal towns that attracted hundreds of people.  Kasimos, a Sandy flood victim who started the grassroots group in January, has addressed similar organizations' meetings in New York and North Jersey.

            That led to Stop FEMA Now’s affiliation with groups from Massachusetts to Louisiana, where millions of other homeowners have been adversely affected by FEMA’s new rules and the expenses of compliance.

            “We will hold more than a dozen simultaneous rallies on September 28th,” Kasimos said.  “Outdoor protests will be held from Vermont to Louisiana and from Iowa to Hawaii.”  Other sites will be announced this week, he noted.                                                                                                                               

            Kasimos’ group has called for Congressional hearings on “the many problems with Biggert-Waters and the National Flood Insurance Program’s unaffordable new premiums.”  It stated that the high annual costs “effectively compel the elevation of existing homes, an expense of $50,000 each and often much more.”   The premiums – as much as $20,000 per year – are aimed at repaying the federal agency’s multi-billion-dollar Hurricane Katrina debt, but “they will lead to mass home abandonments and foreclosures from coast to coast.”

Stop FEMA Now has asked both elected officials and opposition candidates to “support crucial reforms that will protect almost 25 per cent of Americans for years to come.”  Among related issues, it has called for construction of adequate dunes, seawalls and levees, which can reduce insurance premiums. 

“The Biggert-Waters Act is an ongoing disaster that can cause more damage than any storm ever did. September 28th will be the start of national collective action to make Congress correct that misguided legislation,” Kasimos concluded.   

More information is on the organization’s website, StopFemaNow.com.                                     

Stop FEMA Now NEWS, 9/24/13          2

So far, in addition to Friends and Family Barbeque in Cedar Rapids, rallies are set for these other sites on Saturday:                                   

Coffee Gallery, 66-250 Kamehameha Highway, C106, Haleiwa, Hawaii.

Toms River High School North, 1245 Old Freehold Road, Toms River, New Jersey 08753; starting at noon.

Babylon Town Hall, 200 East Sunrise Highway, Lindenhurst, New York 11757; starting at noon.

Netta Architects, 1084 Route 22 West, Mountainside, New Jersey 07092; starting at noon.

Midland Avenue Relief Hub, 481 Midland Avenue, Staten Island, New York 10306; starting at noon.

Broad Channel American Legion Post 1404, 209 Crossbay Blvd, Broad Channel, Queens, New York 11693; starting at noon.

The Alligator Festival, Lulling, Louisiana, Stop Fema Now Booth in Westbank Bridge Park, LA Highway 18 and Interstate 310; all day.

Valley Stream Community Fest, Rockaway Avenue, Valley Stream, Long Island, NY 11580; between Merrick Road and Sunrise Highway; all day.

Lafourche Central Market, 4484 Highway 1, Raceland, Louisiana; starting at 11 am.

Mill Wharf, 23 Mill Wharf Plaza, Scituate, Massachusetts 02066; starting at 9:30 am.

Berkeley Restaurant and Seafood, 24th and Central Avenues (near entrance to Island Beach State Park), South Seaside Park, New Jersey 08752; starting at 2 pm.

Tampa, Florida, and additional locations are being scheduled.  Members of the public are welcome to organize their own rallies on September 28th, Kasimos said.  Information is at StopFemaNow.com         # # #