America's Leading Disaster Experts Urge Action on National Catastrophe Backstop

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (Map) - WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- ProtectingAmerica.org, the nation's largest coalition of first responders, emergency management experts, businesses and insurers today told a hearing of the House Financial Institutions Committee that America needs to strengthen its financial infrastructure and create a comprehensive, integrated public-private partnership to better prepare and protect American families from the devastation of massive hurricanes or earthquakes.

"Improving catastrophe preparation and protection is a nationwide priority that must be addressed immediately, before the next catastrophe strikes," said Admiral James M. Loy, co-chair of ProtectingAmerica.org.

The field hearing of the Financial Institutions Committee was held to discuss H.R.2555, the Homeowners' Defense Act of 2009, sponsored by Rep. Ron Klein (FL-22).

"The fact is that no part of this country is immune from catastrophe. This is clearly a national problem, and the Homeowners' Defense Act of 2009 will help save lives, protect property and reduce costs for homeowners," Loy said.

"It will leverage both the public and private sectors better and forge improved cooperation between the private sector and the government at the local, state and national levels. The result will be to increase capacity, stabilize the market, reduce subsidies and provide more protection at lower cost for consumers," he said.

In his testimony, Loy took aim at critics who have alleged that making homeowners' insurance more affordable and available in high risk states would only encourage people to own homes in those areas.

"Those arguments are the stuff of red herring and straw men.. The fact is that 57 percent of the American people already live-in areas prone to natural disasters.

"If we never built another stick of housing on the East or Gulf Coasts, anywhere in California or anywhere across the heartland, almost 6-in-10 families would still be at risk," Loy said.

He also challenged those who defend the status quo and claim everything is fine.

"The answer is not to just raise rates and hope for the best, the answer is to build a privately-funded backstop so we don't need another taxpayer funded bailout," he said.

ProtectingAmerica.org is a non-profit organization with over 300 members including the American Red Cross and other emergency responders, emergency management officials, police organizations, Allstate and State Farm Insurance, and large and small businesses. The organization is co-chaired by James Lee Witt, former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Admiral James M. Loy, former deputy secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security and former commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.

A Nation Exposed

Loy told the committee members that American families are overwhelmingly exposed to catastrophes like mega-hurricanes or earthquakes.

-- Risk experts and modelers suggest that 57 percent of the American public resides in areas that are prone to earthquakes, hurricanes or other disasters.

-- Twenty states, including Hawaii and every state that borders the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, face the threat of hurricanes every year.

-- The largest earthquake to ever rock the continental US emanated from New Madrid, Missouri in 1811 and affected an area that stretched from Mississippi to Michigan, from Pennsylvania to Nebraska.

-- Eight out of the 11 most costly U.S. natural catastrophes have occurred since 2001.

-- Since 1900, 11 hurricanes have made direct hits on New England; six of them on the New York coastline. The "Long Island Express," a massive hurricane that in 1938 made landfall in Long Island and raced through Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, killed 700 people and left 63,000 people homeless. If the same storm struck today, damages would exceed $100 billion according to risk modelers.

About ProtectingAmerica.org

ProtectingAmerica.org is a non-profit organization consisting of emergency management officials, first responders, disaster relief experts, insurers and others. Its members include the American Red Cross and more than 300 other organizations and businesses.

At the core of ProtectingAmerica.org's mission is the establishment of a comprehensive, integrated national catastrophe management solution that will better prepare and protect American families, communities, consumers and the American economy from catastrophe.