A property-casualty insurer trade group is continuing its push for the U.S. House of Representatives to vote on a reform and re-authorization bill for the National Flood Insurance Program.

Illinois Republican Rep. Judy Biggert, chairwoman of the Insurance Housing and Community Opportunity Subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee, introduced the bill, HR 1309, the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011, in May. The bill would extend the program for another five years.

“Over 5.6 million Americans rely on flood insurance, said Ben McKay, senior vice president for federal government relations for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI). “The recent floods that have devastated communities throughout the country serve as a reminder that we need a strong, stable flood program to protect homes and businesses.”

The PCI supports changes to the program, including efforts to ensure more adequate rates that will stabilize the program and reduce taxpayers’ liability for costly relief efforts, the group said in a statement.

McKay called the bill “a strong bill that takes significant steps to strengthen and stabilize the NFIP.”

In 2010, the second-largest member of the “Write Your Own” (WYO) Coalition chose to withdraw from the program that administers flood insurance, resulting in about 800,000 policies that will be transferred back to the federal government’s NFIP Direct program. Without congressional action, the federal government’s role in flood insurance will soon increase by 800%, making it the largest administrator of NFIP policies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently entered into a contract to manage these policies that could otherwise be served by private sector companies.

PCI, with more than 1,000 member companies, is urging the House to accept an amendment that will redistribute the NFIP policies to the WYO insurers in the private sector.

The group applauded the Senate Banking Committee for discussing the need to reform and reauthorize the National Flood Insurance Program at a hearing last week.

The NFIP, which is $18 billion in debt, is scheduled to expire Sept. 30.

In 2010, the NFIP lapsed four times and flood coverage could not be purchased or renewed for a total of 53 days. Lapses in NFIP coverage have created uncertainty in the housing market and the economy while leaving homes and businesses even more vulnerable to devastating floods.

H.R. 1309 was marked up by the House Financial Services Committee last month and could be considered on the House floor in the coming weeks.