WASHINGTON–The controversial National Flood Insurance Programwould be extended in its current form until Sept. 28 under theomnibus spending bill revealed by House Democrats Monday.

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House FinancialServices Committee, earlier this month said the extension isdesigned to provide time for the House and Senate to reconciletheir differences over the future of the program, especially theHouse demand that the program be expanded to include windcoverage.

The program was initially extended in its present form untilMarch 6 after the House and Senate could not reconcile substantivedifferences between bills designed to reform and extend the programfor several years.

The bill introduced by House Democrats would combine nine annualappropriations bills left over from last year until the end of thecurrent fiscal year. Total spending on the programs would grow by$32 billion, or about 8.5 percent, from last year.

The House plans to vote on the measure on Feb. 25 and the Senatewill consider it before March 6, according to sources.

The decision to extend the program without major changes wascriticized by Eli Lehrer, a fellow at the conservative CompetitiveEnterprise Institute. He charged that the decision merely kickssensitive decisions down the road for a second time.

“Given the current economic crisis, it's not surprising thatCongress has decided to punt on this issue for now,” Mr. Lehrersaid. “But I am disappointed. This simply puts off the absolutelynecessary action of changing the program in a fundamental way.”

The omnibus extension fails to deal with several othercontroversies swirling around the NFIP, including the request fromFlorida officials for a $17 billion federal line of credit to helpout its underfunded Hurricane Catastrophe Fund.

Another controversial plan calls for the creation of a nationalcatastrophe plan designed to aid Florida and other coastal areasthat is under considerable criticism from outside groups.

One bill that passed the House in the last Congress, and issupported by coastal areas, would have created new federal naturalcatastrophe loan, insurance and reinsurance programs.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty met withrepresentatives of two Palm Beach-area legislators Feb. 10 in aneffort to secure a $17 billion letter of credit to help replenishthe Florida catastrophe fund.

State officials are proposing a federal line of credit, forwhich the state would pay a premium and would recoup any advancesthrough bonding and statutory assessments within Florida.

Under the proposal Commissioner McCarty is promoting, the lineof credit “would be triggered only in the extremely unlikely eventthat a storm exceeding the claims paying ability of the Cat Fundwere to hit Florida and the credit markets were still indisruption,” according to a department spokesman.

Critics complain that Republican Florida Gov. Charles Crist hasbecome an outspoken supporter of federal aid programs, includingthe recently passed stimulus package, despite Republicanopposition, because he is likely to need a lot of federal help ifand when a major hurricane strikes the state.

Mr. Lehrer believes that is the case.

“Gov. Crist doesn't have a choice but as to take every penny hecan get from Washington,” Mr. Lehrer said. “Unless the statechanges its property insurance system, Florida is, to use atechnical term, screwed.”

A spokesman for the Florida OIR said the visit by the insurancecommissioner was not an effort to get support for catastrophefunding in the stimulus package.

A spokesman for the governor was not immediately available forcomment.

(This story was updated at 9:29 a.m. on Feb. 25.)