The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has a reputation as a dysfunctional government agency–deservedly so. They botched the response to folks in need in Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina under Pres. George W. Bush, and they botched the response to Hurricane (then “super storm”) Sandy in New Jersey and New York under Pres. Barack Obama. Many folks in New Jersey and New York still aren’t back in their homes or in comparable replacement homes–two years later. Now we learn that FEMA continues their losing streak with a new rule (published in May of this year) that if you’re a landowner with a shale drilling lease and you get flooded–you’re outta luck. FEMA will not grant flood insurance for properties, nor will they purchase flooded properties, that have a drilling lease. Landowners Pete and Sharon Morgan from Meshoppen Township (Wyoming County), PA have learned that the hard way…
