Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep Warren Davidson released the following statement concerning his “NO” vote on the $36.5 billion Disaster Relief Supplemental, which included a $16 billion dollar bailout provision for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a program already roughly $25 billion in debt.

“I fully support the families of Puerto Rico, California, and all those affected by the destructive force of these recent hurricanes and wildfires, but lumping a bailout provision to disaster relief efforts is different. I can't support a bailout for an unreformed program that wildly spends America down a path to bankruptcy. In its current state, the NFIP is an example of a Washington, D.C., band-aid fix to a gaping financial problem which saddles Ohioans and others with billions in debt. We should wholeheartedly respond to help families affected by these natural disasters, but we need to do so responsibly and with a free market approach and make hard choices when we have to.”

The bill, the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act, which passed the House 353-69 under suspension of the House rules spends five times more than was initially requested for efforts that fall outside disaster relief and included provisions like bailing out the NFIP.

The House Financial Services Committee that Rep. Warren Davidson is a member of included provisions to reform the NFIP, but were not included in the disaster relief and NFIP bailout bill. These reforms included provisions such as spending caps, debt reduction planning, and allowing private companies to compete alongside government run flood insurance.