September 25, 2017 Mr. Gary D. Cohn National Economic Council Mr. Mick Mulvaney Office of Management and Budget Mr. Thomas Bossert Executive Office of the President Dear Mr. Cohn, Mr. Mulvaney and Mr. Bossert: Our organizations represent fiscal conservatives, architects, engineers, insurance businesses, and non-profit organizations. We are writing to express our support for stronger flood-ready standards for federally funded building and rebuilding projects. The recent devastation caused by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma underscore that, now more than ever, the country needs a pragmatic and prudent disaster risk management strategy to safeguard the nation’s infrastructure, protect businesses, communities and homes, and conserve taxpayer resources to ensure we don’t pay to rebuild something twice. While our organizations represent diverse views on a number of issues, we are of one mind in that we need flood-ready infrastructure standards for federally funded building and rebuilding to ensure our communities and infrastructure are tougher and stronger. The pressing need for an updated approach to assessing and managing flood risk is borne out by an increasingly costly cycle of flooding and rebuilding that can and should be broken. Hurricanes Harvey and Irma are the latest glaring examples of how vulnerable our country’s infrastructure is to flood risk, and their damages will only add to the already more than $500 billion in losses caused by flood-related disasters since 2000. Without comprehensive federal action to reduce flood risk, disaster relief and recovery policies will allow for and even encourage unprepared communities to build unwisely and subsequently rely upon federal help when flood disasters hit. We simply cannot afford to allow this pattern to continue. When federal funds are used for development and rebuilding in flood-prone areas, it should be common sense to consider and mitigate those risks upfront in order to ensure the investment will be long lasting. Further, recent polling found that 82 percent of registered voters (Democrats: 92%, Independents: 78% Republicans: 74%) support a requirement that all federally funded infrastructure in flood-prone areas be constructed to better withstand the impacts of flooding. A federal flood-ready standard for federally funded building and rebuilding projects will help protect people and property, reduce federal costs associated with rebuilding after tremendous flood losses, and make communities stronger. We ask the administration to lead the nation in rebuilding after Harvey and Irma by ensuring our communities and infrastructure are strong enough to withstand the next big flood, and would welcome the opportunity to work with the administration on such a standard. Thank you, William B. (BO) Mills, Jr., PWLF, President American Public Works Association Eli Lehrer, President R Street Institute Thomas Santos, Vice President, Federal Affairs American Insurance Association Franklin W. Nutter, President Reinsurance Association of America Sarah Dodge, Senior VP, Advocacy & Relationships American Institute of Architects Julie Shiyou-Woodard, President and CEO Smart Home America Tom Smith, Executive Director American Society of Civil Engineers Ryan Alexander, President Taxpayers for Common Sense Roxanne Blackwell, Director of Federal Government Affairs American Society of Landscape Architects David Williams, President Taxpayer Protection Alliance Chad Berginnis, Executive Director Association of State Floodplain Managers Maj. General Warren C. Edwards, USA (Ret.), Board Chairman The Alliance for National & Community Resilience Jonathan Bydlak, President Coalition to Reduce Spending Lynn Scarlett, Managing Director of Public Policy The Nature Conservancy Rob Sisson, President ConservAmerica Laura Lightbody, Director The Pew Charitable Trusts Ken A. Crerar, President and CEO Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers Ralph F. Boyd, Chief Executive Officer, ULI Americas The Urban Land Institute Leslie Chapman-Henderson, President and CEO Federal Alliance for Safe Homes – FLASH, Inc. Evan Reis, Executive Director and Co-Founder U.S. Resiliency Council Jason Pye, Vice President, Legislative Affairs FreedomWorks Lanita Lloyd, President International Association of Emergency Managers - USA Sara C. Yerkes, Senior Vice President, Government Relations International Code Council Julie Rochman, President and CEO Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety Jimi Grande, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies Wendy Smith-Reeve, President National Emergency Management Association Robert Garbini, P.E., President and CEO National Ready Mixed Concrete Association Henry L. Green, Hon. AIA, President National Institute of Building Sciences Pete Sepp, President National Taxpayers Union