Budget deal preserves flood insurance for Louisiana, other states through hurricane season

Congress’ temporary budget deal to keep the government open for three months also keeps the National Flood Insurance Program from expiring in Louisiana and other states during hurricane season.

President Joe Biden officially signed Congress’ continuing resolution Thursday to avoid a government shutdown until Dec. 20, but sets up another funding battle at the end when both sides know who control the White House.

“Our state is still picking up the pieces that Hurricane Francine left behind, and our communities need all the help they can get,” Louisiana Republican U.S. Sen. John Kennedy said of the CR. “I’m thankful we’ve delivered Louisianians additional disaster aid and protected their flood insurance so that the program doesn’t expire in the middle of hurricane season.”

Louisiana Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy also voted for the temporary budget deal that propped up the flood insurance program again before it expired Sept. 30.

“Nobody wants a shutdown,” Cassidy said. “We must keep the National Flood Insurance Program going, put more money into FEMA’s disaster relief fund, continue to pay our troops and give the Secret Service additional resources to protect (former) President Trump. While I’m disappointed the SAVE Act was not included, this bill gives us the time to find a lasting solution without harming Americans.”

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act) would require people to prove they are U.S. citizens before they can vote. It is already illegal for non-citizens to vote in all federal elections and critics believe it would add barriers for legal voters who can’t easily access their citizenship documents.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Shreveport had proposed a six-month budget extension that would have included the SAVE Act, but it failed to pass, necessitating the final deal.

“The best play under the circumstances was the CR with the SAVE Act,” Johnson said ahead of this week’s final deal. “But we came a little short of the goal line, so we have to go with the last available play.”

Trump urged House Republicans to let the government shut down if they did not get the voting legislation passed along with a funding extension. But Johnson told his conference that it would be “political malpractice” to do that so close to an election, citing polling indicating voters probably would blame Republicans for a shutdown.

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Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.