Congress looks to retroactively fund flood insurance

Democrats said Friday they intend to retroactively fund the national flood insurance program that will lapse during the congressional recess.

The Senate was unable to overcome a partisan stalemate to pass a jobs bill before leaving for the two-week Easter recess. Part of the bill included an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The program is scheduled to lapse by Monday.

"We will work to make sure that programs are retroactive for people who are impacted by Republicans' obstruction of this legislation," said Regan Lachapelle, spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). Republicans argued that the bill did not include offsets to pay for provisions, including the extension of unemployment benefits.

"It's unfortunate that the NFIP has fallen victim to the political process," said Blain Rethmeier, spokesman for the American Insurance Association (AIA).