A Second Disaster Strikes: Will FEMA Pay Again?

ADJUSTERSINTERNATIONAL.COM 7 In February 2007, staff from Adjusters International and their strategic partner, SIGMA Consulting of New Orleans, met with James J. Donelon, Commissioner of Insurance for the State of Louisiana, his staff, and representatives of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, to present the concept of an insurance waiver for the obtain and maintain requirements of the Stafford Act (42 United States Code §5154(a)(2)). Several months of research and discussions resulted from this first meeting and culminated in Commissioner Donelon issuing an Insurance Commissioner’s certification letter addressed to President Bush (see page 8). Louisiana Commissioner’s Actions Will Promote Recovery Unlike previous attempts by state insurance commissioners to completely waive the obtain and maintain requirements for specific projects of individual applicants, Commissioner Donelon’s waiver recognized the magnitude of the Katrina-Rita disasters for Louisiana and established a unique approach: Louisiana’s certification process focuses on certifying the applicant’s insurance program, not just specific projects. The application and certification process takes into account the availability of property insurance, increases in premium costs, deductibles, the type of entity, and budget of the entity. “Whether a disaster is man-made or natural, obtain and maintain requirements continue to pose major hurdles for the operating budgets and risk management decisions of Public Assistance Program applicants.”