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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 64 August 2025 J O U R N A L According to Government Executive, agencies that had already sent out RIF notices—use Illston's order, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer came to the Supreme Court in early June, asking the justices to intervene. Sauer contended that the order "inflicts ongoing and severe harm on the government" because it "interferes with the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services and Educa- tion—can now finalize the offboarding of thousands of staff. Other federal departments, including the Departments of Interior, Agriculture, and State, are ex- pected to quickly send out notices of their own to thousands of employees. "The plans themselves are not be- fore this Court, at this stage, and we thus have no occasion to consider whether they can and will be carried out consis- tent with the constraints of law," Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote. REPORT WARNS FEMA CUTS COULD ENDANGER DISASTER READINESS E ver since U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced in a cab- inet meeting, "We're going to eliminate FEMA," the future of the Federal Emer- gency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has been in jeopardy. With FEMA's role in emergency management, flood mapping, and flood insurance under pressure from the Trump administration, an escalation in climate-related events has financial expo- sure for homeowners, lenders, and local governments at a near all-time high. First Street, a provider of climate risk financial modeling, calculating climate risk for properties globally, has released a new report, "High Water, High Stakes: FEMA, Flood Risk, and the NFIP," highlighting the consequences faced by property owners nationwide in high flood risk areas without sufficient coverage. According to First Street, as the prima- ry flood insurance source in the United States, the NFIP currently encompasses 4.7 million policies across 22,594 communities, totaling $1.28 trillion in property coverage. Any disruption in the flood insurance market, whether due to lapses in the NFIP or reductions in FEMA's mapping and in- surance capacity, could cause great ripples across local housing markets, thus stalling transactions and eroding market liquidity. The report claims that disrupting FEMA operations and NFIP stability could force an additional 4.7 million policies currently administered by the NFIP to transition to private insurance. Takeaways of the Report In the report, First Street highlights five major takeaways, including: • FEMA cuts threaten national resilience: Eliminating or restructuring FEMA would disrupt disaster response, flood mapping, and mitigation funding, undermining resilience for 22,594 com- munities as climate risks escalate. • NFIP stability is critical for mort- gage markets: The NFIP covers 4.7 million policies totaling $1.28 trillion in property value, anchoring mort- gage eligibility in flood zones and preventing credit market disruptions. • Approximately 13 million properties lack flood insurance: Data shows that nearly 13 million high-risk properties are underinsured or uninsured, including 10 million outside Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs) and 3.2 million within, exposing homeowners and lenders to sudden financial shocks. "June is National Homeownership Month, a time to recognize the vital role that homeownership plays in building stronger communities, expanding access to economic opportunity, and empowering individuals and families through financial stability and generational wealth." —Rodney E. Hood, Former Acting Comptroller of the Currency for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency