The NFIP: what the National Flood Insurance Program is and where it stands in 2026
Pick a state: the median single-family NFIP bill there on July 31, 2026, the full-risk median, and how far your own bill sits from it.
Single-family flood policies in Louisiana
$1,087
Median yearly cost of the 324,691 policies in force on July 31, 2026.
| Median full-risk price, same policies | $1,493 |
| Still below their full-risk price | 55 % |
| Median paid in August 2023 | $786 |
| Gap left from the bill entered | 3 renewals at 18 % |
| Next five bills from that bill | $7,234 |
Medians of single-family homes; your own premium depends on the building, not on the state.
Compiled by Radif Partners · Where the numbers come from · FEMA and OpenFEMA files, rules read in 42 U.S.C. and 44 CFR · not a quote
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is the federal flood insurance created by the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 and run by FEMA. It writes most of the flood cover on American homes: about 4,500,000 policies of all kinds in April 2026, according to the GAO, down from about 5,500,000 at the March 2010 peak, while private insurers grew from 7 % to 14 % of the market between 2018 and 2025. Single-family policies fell from 3,114,530 on August 31, 2023 to 2,813,889 on July 31, 2026, 10 % fewer, as their median bill rose 39 % to $1,081. Congress must renew the program's authority to sell policies: the current extension, in Public Law 119-103, runs to December 11, 2026. Policies are sold through insurance agents and insurers, at a price FEMA sets. This site is not the NFIP and sells nothing; it reads the program's public files.
A federal program, sold by private hands
The National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 set up the program, run today by FEMA. It does three jobs at once. It sells flood insurance on buildings and their contents in the communities that take part. It publishes the flood maps that show where the hazard is highest. And the same law ties the two together: a lender that is federally regulated, a federal agency lender, or a loan sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac must require a policy on a mortgage in a mapped high-hazard area.
Nobody buys an NFIP policy from FEMA at a counter. The policy is sold through insurance agents and insurers, often the agent who already handles the homeowners policy. The contract, the coverage limits and the rating rules are FEMA's, set for the whole country in its Flood Insurance Manual, so the agent does not make the price. When two quotes differ, compare the coverage amounts and deductibles first, and check whether one of them is a private policy.
Authorization: why the program has an end date
The NFIP's authority to issue new contracts expires on a date written in law, and in recent years Congress has renewed it through short extensions rather than a long reauthorization. In 2026, an extension signed on February 3 carried it to September 30. Then Public Law 119-103, approved on September 2, extended it again to December 11, 2026. As of this page's date, no longer reauthorization has been enacted.
FEMA describes on its reauthorization page what a lapse would mean. Claims on policies in force would still be paid with the funds available. What stops is the sale and renewal of policies: a buyer closing on a house in a high-hazard area, or an owner whose policy comes up for renewal during the gap, could not get federal cover until Congress acts.
Fewer policies, higher bills
| Date | Single-family policies | Median yearly bill |
|---|---|---|
| August 31, 2023 | 3,114,530 | $780 |
| August 31, 2024 | 3,020,686 | $889 |
| August 31, 2025 | 2,968,812 | $971 |
| July 31, 2026 | 2,813,889 | $1,081 |
The program lost 300,641 single-family policies in under three years while the typical bill climbed. Both trends come from the same source. Since October 1, 2021, new policies pay their full-risk premium, and older policies move toward theirs by up to 18 % a year (25 % for second homes, businesses and a few other cases). Over the same years, the GAO found that the private share of the flood market doubled between 2018 and 2025.
Full-risk premium and discounted premium
Every NFIP declarations page shows two prices. The full-risk premium is what FEMA computes for the building under its current pricing approach, from its location, flood types, elevation and rebuilding cost. The discounted premium is what the owner actually pays before fees, after the statutory discounts the law grants: the annual increase cap that limits yearly rises, the Pre-FIRM discount for older primary residences, the Newly Mapped discount for buildings just placed in a high-hazard zone. On top come the Reserve Fund Assessment (18 % of the discounted premium), the HFIAA surcharge and the $47 Federal Policy Fee.
In August 2023, FEMA counted 38 % of single-family policyholders already paying a risk-based premium. On July 31, 2026, 53 % of single-family policies paid at least their full-risk premium and 47 % still paid less. Priced at full risk, the same policies would have a median bill of $1,305 instead of $1,081. From the national median, that gap takes 2 more capped renewals to close.
Renewals left before your full-risk price
Renewals before your bill reaches the full-risk price
2 renewals
| Renewal 1 (capped) | $1,263 |
| Renewal 2 | $1,305 |
| Renewal 3 | $1,305 |
| Renewal 4 | $1,305 |
A discount is tied to continuous NFIP cover. A policy renewed 30 days or more late lapses, and the new one is rated at full risk; the waiting period page gives the detail. The state table shows how far each state's median sits from its full-risk median.