Mississippi will soon become the latest state to provide wind-mitigation grants for homeowners if the governor signs bills approved by lawmakers this week.
Senate Bill 2049 revives a 20-year-old retrofit plan and creates the Strengthen Mississippi Homes Program, providing grants of as much as $15,000 for mitigation measures. The bill, as approved by the House and the Senate on Wednesday, would not require premium discounts from property insurers but would require carriers to notify policyholders about available discounts and credits.
The state Department of Insurance would also have to provide annual reports to the governor and legislators showing the number of grants awarded, the amount of premium discounts given to grant recipients, and the number of homes that have been certified to meet the vaunted FORTIFIED roof standard developed by the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety.
The DOI may contract with another agency to administer the program, and may adopt rules and criteria for grant recipients, the bill reads. That may have helped smooth final passage of the bill, which had been delayed because of concerns some lawmakers had about the Department of Insurance, Mississippi Today news site reported.
A wind-mitigation program was established in 2007, after the devastation left by Hurricane Katrina on the Mississippi coast, news outlets reported. But the plan was never funded until a pilot program in 2024, funding for which was not renewed last year.
The Strengthen program will likely be funded mostly through a separate, $15 million appropriation bill for the DOI, a bill that is also awaiting the governor’s signature. Other funding would come from fees paid for insurance company and agents’ applications and certificates of authority.
“…After July 1, 2026, of the Fifty Dollar ($50.00) fee charged for the filing and processing of an agent’s certificate of authority, Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) shall be deposited into the State General Fund and Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) shall be deposited into the Strengthen Mississippi Homes Fund,” the bill reads.
Multiple states have now adopted some type of mitigation program for homes and/or commercial properties. Alabama has been widely recognized as having one of the most robust programs, requiring FORTIFIED roofs for many grant recipients. Florida has provided more than $400 million for grants under its program over the last few years.
Photo: Hurricane Katrina on its way to the Mississippi coast in 2005. (AdobeStock)
Topics Legislation Mississippi