WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., today said he has offered an amendment to the fiscal year 2010 budget resolution that would make it more affordable for home owners to make hurricane mitigation improvements to their homes.  The amendment provides the authority within the budget for Congress to provide residents along the Gulf Coast and Atlantic Ocean a tax credit of up to $5,000 for an amount equal to 25 percent of the cost of hurricane mitigation improvements made to their homes.  For example, if an individual made $15,000 worth of hurricane mitigation improvements to their home, they could claim a $3,750 tax credit on their federal tax return.

“This tax credit would encourage homeowners to build structures that better protect against hurricanes and the damages these storms leave behind,” Sen. Wicker said.  “Increased home mitigation efforts would also provide incentive for the private insurance market to return to the Gulf Coast, which would be a great help for homeowners across South Mississippi.” 

Wicker said research has shown that mitigation is the most cost effective strategy to reduce future government spending resulting from natural disasters.  In 2005, a study by the Multihazard Mitigation Council found that certain mitigation efforts resulted in a reduction of future disaster spending by $4 for every $1 spent.