Sec. 401. Earth movement fix and engineer standards
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Section 1312 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 ( 42 U.S.C. 4019 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: For the purposes of the Administrator determining coverage under the standard flood insurance policy under the national flood insurance program, a rebuttable presumption that physical damage to the foundation of, or structural damage to, a structure was not caused by earth movement shall apply if— flood caused direct physical change to the structure; and there is damage to the foundation of, or structural damage to, the structure that was not present before the flood, as demonstrated by a certification from the policyholder.
In determining coverage as a result of the rebuttable presumption under paragraph (1), an insurance company may rebut the presumption only by providing the Administrator with an engineering report that— meets standards issued by the Administrator under paragraph (3); and clearly demonstrates that the physical damage to the foundation of, or structural damage to, a structure described in paragraph
(1)was caused directly by earth movement that was not caused by— the horizontal pressure from standing or slow-moving floodwater (commonly known as hydrostatic pressure ); the force of floodwater that causes the vertical uplift from the underside of a horizontal foundation component, such as a concrete slab, footer, or a structural floor assembly (commonly known as buoyancy ); pressure imposed on an object, such as a wall of a building, by high-velocity floodwater or waves flowing against and around the building (commonly known as hydrodynamic force ); floodwater moving along the surface of the ground causing soil to suddenly erode or undermine, resulting in failure of a foundation or to one of the structural components of the foundation (commonly known as scouring ); or earth movement otherwise caused by flood. The Administrator shall issue minimum standards— regarding the form and content of engineering reports used to assist insurance claims adjusters with respect to carrying out this subsection; and which shall— include a requirement that any such engineering report shall be signed and have a seal affixed by an engineer who is licensed in the State in which the property to which the claim relates is located; and be consistent with generally accepted practices in— the field of forensic engineering; and the insurance industry. Nothing in this subsection may be construed to modify the terms and conditions of the standard flood insurance policy. . The amendments made by paragraph
(1)shall apply with respect to a claim with a date of loss that is on or after the date that is 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act. Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue the standards required under subsection (d)(3) of section 1312 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 ( 42 U.S.C. 4019 ), as added by subsection (a)(1).
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Sec. 401
Earth movement fix and engineer standards
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