{"id":14433,"date":"2023-05-23T09:36:43","date_gmt":"2023-05-23T13:36:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/?p=14433"},"modified":"2025-10-02T10:07:39","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T14:07:39","slug":"climate-driven-floods-could-displace-millions-of-americans-local-buyout-programs-could-help-them-relocate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/2023\/05\/23\/climate-driven-floods-could-displace-millions-of-americans-local-buyout-programs-could-help-them-relocate\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate-driven floods could displace millions of Americans. Local buyout programs could help them relocate."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Kelly <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Varian, Master of Public Affairs Student at <\/span>UC Berkeley<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Flooding is the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dhs.gov\/natural-disasters\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">most frequent and costly natural disaster<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> in the United States, causing <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41558-021-01265-6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">over $30 billion in damage annually<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, with disproportionate effects on low-income communities. With <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.edf.org\/why-are-floods-hitting-more-places-and-people\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">climate change exacerbating flood risk<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> and population growth continuing in high-risk areas, over <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iopscience.iop.org\/article\/10.1088\/1748-9326\/aaac65\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">40 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Americans living along rivers and inland floodplains, along with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/nclimate2961\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">13 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> more on the coasts, could see their homes inundated with water by the end of the century.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">To help people move out of harm&#8217;s way, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other federal agencies fund state and local governments to purchase repeatedly flood-damaged properties from willing owners and convert them to open space. While this process, known as a \u201c<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nature.org\/content\/dam\/tnc\/nature\/en\/documents\/Buyouts_Lessons_Learned_Siders_Gerber_Chavez_TNC_Full_Report_2021.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">buyout<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">,\u201d can save lives and lower disaster aid costs, there are numerous<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> challenges that disincentivize homeowners and communities from participating.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!-- Begin Tableau embed --><\/p>\n<div id=\"viz1684857623515\" class=\"tableauPlaceholder\" style=\"position: relative\"><a href='#'><img alt='' src='https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/static\/images\/Fl\/FloodProjections\/ProjectedFloodCostsbyUSCounty\/1_rss.png' style='border: none' \/><\/a><br \/>\n<object><\/object><\/div>\n<p><script>\n    var divElement = document.getElementById('viz1684857623515');\n    var vizElement = divElement.getElementsByTagName('object')[0];\n    if ( divElement.offsetWidth &gt; 800 ) {\n        vizElement.style.width='657px';\n        vizElement.style.height='677px';\n    } else if ( divElement.offsetWidth &gt; 500 ) {\n        vizElement.style.width='657px';\n        vizElement.style.height='677px';\n    } else {\n        vizElement.style.width='100%';\n        vizElement.style.height='727px';\n    }\n    var scriptElement = document.createElement('script');\n    scriptElement.src = 'https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/javascripts\/api\/viz_v1.js';\n    vizElement.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, vizElement);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<p><!-- End Tableau embed --><\/p>\n<p><b>The challenges that discourage flood buyout participation<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The average buyout process takes <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nrdc.org\/sites\/default\/files\/going-under-post-flood-buyouts-report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">more than five years<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to complete due to administrative complexity, a lack of capacity in local governments and funding challenges for homeowners and communities. This is too long for many households to wait for relocation and leads participants to drop out.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Even when buyouts are efficient, homeowners may not want to move, may be unable to find affordable alternative housing in a climate-resilient location or may not fully understand the risk they face. Local governments also benefit from maintaining taxable housing stock in high-risk areas, while homeowners and the federal government bear the cost of disaster recovery.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Consequently, too many flood victims rebuild their homes in floodplains and continue to expose themselves to disasters that can destroy lives and livelihoods. This drives up federal disaster aid and insurance costs, with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fema.gov\/flood-insurance\/work-with-nfip\/watermark-financial-statements\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">owing the U.S. Treasury $20.5 billion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> as of April 2022. To prevent <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/ap_21_climate_risk_fy2023.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">rising costs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> and support national climate resilience, we need strong local buyout programs that<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> support households and communities in the highest-risk areas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/52\/files\/2023\/05\/GettyImages-1059434278.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-14438 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/52\/files\/2023\/05\/GettyImages-1059434278.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/52\/files\/2023\/05\/GettyImages-1059434278.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/52\/files\/2023\/05\/GettyImages-1059434278-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/52\/files\/2023\/05\/GettyImages-1059434278-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/52\/files\/2023\/05\/GettyImages-1059434278-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Enable faster buyouts by pre-approving properties and establishing standing acquisition funds\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">State and local governments can speed up buyouts by working with communities to pre-approve homes for voluntary acquisition before disasters hit. Flood District officials in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hcfcd.org\/About\/Flood-Damage-Reduction-Tools\/Non-Structural-Tools\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Harris County, Texas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, for example, are using LiDAR technology to rapidly and economically determine eligibility for entire neighborhoods. In addition, governments can establish right of first refusal agreements with homeowners and processes to acquire properties with federally backed mortgages.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Setting up standing acquisition funds can also accelerate the processes by providing liquidity to cover the non-federal cost of FEMA buyouts or bypassing slow-moving federal programs entirely. For example, the local government in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nrdc.org\/bio\/anna-weber\/blueprint-buyout-charlottemecklenburg-county-nc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Charlotte, North Carolina<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> has financed rapid buyouts with stormwater utility fees for decades. Other local programs leverage a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2071-1050\/12\/23\/10112\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">variety of funding streams<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to buy flood-prone properties, including federal g<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">rants, state government appropriations, revolving loan funds and green bonds.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Encourage buyouts through community-based resilience planning\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Pre-disaster planning can help communities align on where and when to prioritize buyouts given the costs, benefits and alternatives. Education should go beyond sharing FEMA flood maps and include climate projections, flood histories, case studies of successful buyouts and collective visioning for a more resilient future.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Providing wrap-around services through case managers for flood victims can reduce the barriers that lead to buyout attrition and support more equitable recovery. This may include pro bono legal services, financial assistance, help in finding affordable housing in a suitable location and vouchers for temporary accommodation while moving. Federal grants should be designed to cover these costs as well. Local government can explore opportunities to safely relocate residents within the same jurisdiction and consolidate municipalities to address lost tax revenue and support community cohesion. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nrdc.org\/bio\/anna-weber\/blueprint-buyout-blue-acres-program-nj\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">New Jersey&#8217;s Blue Acres Program<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> provides a blueprint for highly supportive six to 12-month buyouts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Create and sustain local programs with expanded flexible funding\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Climate disasters are experienced locally and relocating people involves deeply personal decisions that reshape communities. Buyouts succeed when local governments understand their value and have the will and ability to implement them. FEMA should consider grants and technical assistance to establish or strengthen state and local flood buyout programs that account for a region&#8217;s unique natural infrastructure and political, economic and social dynamics<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Such investments <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">can <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">complement a growing list of potential federal reforms (such as <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/casten.house.gov\/media\/press-releases\/casten-blumenauer-introduce-bill-help-communities-facing-flood-damage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">a bill<\/span><\/a> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">to authorize the use of NFIP payments for buyouts, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fema.gov\/grants\/mitigation\/floods\/swift-current\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">a pilot <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">to speed up flood mitigation assistance and a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/ERP-2023.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">suggestion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to reduce<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> federal aid to communities that fail to reduce disaster exposure<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Expanded flexible funding will also be needed to finance more buyouts if local programs succeed in incentivizing take-up. This may include<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> allowing for <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">proactive buyouts for qualified properties or reimbursement for costs already incurred. An example of innovative funding is <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">FEMA\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fema.gov\/grants\/mitigation\/storm-rlf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Safeguarding Tomorrow through Ongoing Risk Mitigation (STORM) Act<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, which seeds<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> revolving loan programs for state governments and Tribes to make their own funding decisions to mitigate climate risk.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Upfront investments should lead to significant financial savings. Cost-benefit analysis suggests expanding buyout programs in the highest-risk areas ultimately <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">saves $6 for every $1 spent.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">As a warming planet intensifies flooding in the United States and billion-dollar disasters continue to escalate, voluntary relocation could be a critical tool in our climate adaptation <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">toolbox, but only with the proper care and attention to local program design, support and resources<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Federal agencies fund state and local governments to purchase repeatedly flood-damaged properties from willing owners and convert them to open space. This process, known as a buyout, can save lives and lower disaster aid costs, but there are numerous challenges that disincentivize homeowners and communities from participating.\u00a0Discover ways we can improve the process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40200,"featured_media":14438,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[107017],"tags":[107027,120514,120499,92489,120399,92490],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-14433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-coasts-watersheds","tag-climate-resilience","tag-flood-mitigation","tag-flood-resilience","tag-flood-risk","tag-flood-risk-reduction","tag-resilience"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40200"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14433"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14433\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16185,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14433\/revisions\/16185"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14433"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=14433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}