Berkeley Officials Denounce Potential Flood Insurance Rate Hikes

BERKELEY, NJ — Berkeley politicians officially denounced potential flood insurance premium increases in a June 24 resolution. Mayor Carmen Amato and Township Council called for national legislators to avoid potential 18-25 percent increases.

Amato urged mayors across the country to pass similar resolutions and forward them to Congress and their senators.

“Berkeley NJ has thousands of homes situated in the flood plain and the planned Compounded Yearly increases will destroy values of these homes, will force many into foreclosure and will shrink the tax ratables to our town," Amato said in a statement.

The National Flood Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2019 reauthorizes the NFIP for five years and includes several "reforms to increase affordability, enhance mitigation, and modernize the NFIP," according to the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services.

The bill advanced out of the committee on a 59-0 bipartisan vote June 12. The NFIP is set to expire Sept. 30.

Berkeley officials criticized several aspects of the House bill, stating in a resolution that the bill would do the following:

• increase primary homeowners' rates up to 18 percent annually until they reach their actuary rate (meaning every four years, premiums may double)
• increase the rates of secondary homeowners up to 25 percent annually until they reach their actuary rate (premiums may double every three years)
• implement risk rating 2.0 mapping, which results in higher premiums the closer you live to water

Stop FEMA Now, a concerned-citizens organization with objectives that include preventing the Federal Emergency Management Agency from raising flood insurance rates, praised Berkeley officials' decision.

"Thank You Mayor Amato, Council President Grosse and Councilmen James Byrnes, Keith Buscio, Angelo Guadagno, Judy Noonan, John Bocchione and Sophia Gingrich," Stop FEMA Now wrote. "Please forward this to your mayor and encourage them to pass a similar resolution and sent it to StopFemaNow@gmail.com. We will promote it."

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