On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed bipartisan legislation to avert a government shutdown and fund the federal government through Dec. 11. The bill passed the House with an overwhelming vote of 359-57. The legislation now heads to the U.S. Senate where they have just seven days to consider it before federal funding runs out on Wednesday, Sept. 30.

Included in the legislation is a measure that extends the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through Sept. 30, 2021. The yearlong extension is a win for Big “I" members. In a press release issued on Tuesday, Charles Symington, Big “I" senior vice president of external, industry and government affairs noted that “given that numerous short-term extensions of the program over the last couple of years have lasted in some cases only weeks at a time, the Big 'I' is thankful for the certainty this legislation provides through September of next year."

Congress must periodically reauthorize the NFIP, which is currently set to expire Sept. 30. However, Congress has yet to pass a longer-term extension of the NFIP as the debate continues regarding options for reforming the program. This has already resulted in a series of stop-gap extensions and a few brief lapses in 2017 and 2018.

The Big “I" is confident that the Senate will pass the legislation with a bipartisan vote and that President Trump will sign it into law before the deadline next week. While appreciative of the extension, the Big “I" will continue to call for much-needed reforms to the program in the future.

Joseph Cortina is Big “I" director of federal government affairs.