Natural Hazards and Public Choice

Book excerpt: Natural Hazards and Public Choice: The State and Local Politics of Hazard Mitigation presents a research project that emerged from a concern for estimating the balance of support versus opposition to prospective social policies that aim to reduce the risks of damage or injuries from major natural hazard events via the regulation of land use and establishment of building and occupancy standards in high-risk areas. The volume begins with an overview of the research project and the main findings. Separate chapters describe the study design; assess the views of politically influential people regarding the seriousness of natural hazards; measure the support for federal disaster policies; and consider public opinion on hazards-mitigation issues in California. Subsequent chapters cover the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP); patterns of activity, influence, and power among key positions and groups in local communities with respect to issues involving disasters; and hazard mitigation activities at the state level.