Final HUD Federal Flood Risk Management Standard Will Protect Homes and Taxpayer Dollars

"After many years in the making, this is the best possible standard that HUD could have issued.

"For decades, the federal government has been relying on a standard based on the past climate. This rule will change that business-as-usual practice, which wasted taxpayer dollars, put people in harm's way and allowed for the limited affordable public housing stock to be flooded, in some cases again and again. This puts an end to that foolhardy cycle.

"As we bear witness to the increasing flood frequency from climate change-related rising tides and heavy rainfall events, this standard will help to ensure safe and resilient affordable housing. We hope this rule will be a model for federal agencies across the board.

"HUD's standard will protect property owners, buyers, developers, and renters by requiring that they are notified of the flood risk, flood insurance requirements and options, and past insurance claims, among other critical safety information.

"I'm heartened that the rule will require HUD or other responsible entities to engage environmental justice communities during the decision-making processes and protect floodplains and wetlands that serve critical functions for communities and wildlife."

See Udvardy's public comments on HUD's proposed rule here.

For more information about how tidal flooding driven by climate-induced sea level rise is affecting homes, see the UCS study "Underwater: Rising Seas, Chronic Floods, and the Implications for US Coastal Real Estate," which found more than 2.4 million homes are at risk of chronic flooding by the end of the century.