WASHINGTON--The Senate Banking committee's incoming chairman said the panel will work to establish a permanent federal program to backstop insurers against terrorism risk rather than renewing the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act.

Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., who will assume leadership of the committee when the 110th Congress convenes in January, said today that the TRIA legislation has been "very helpful" in maintaining a stable environment for the insurance and real estate industry, although the private market for terrorism risk that the bill was intended to foster has not come to fruition. As a result, he said efforts in the Banking Committee will focus on establishing a permanent program.

"I will not do another extension," he said. "It's going to be a permanent bill, or nothing."

Sen. Dodd said he wanted work to begin on the new legislation soon and did not want to have to resolve the issue during the "crunch time" in November before the bill expires at the end of 2007.

The senator said that he has spoken with members of the insurance and real estate industry, and while he was not letting them "write the bill," he hoped the two industries could reach a consensus in terms of what they would like from the final bill.

Sen. Dodd said there may still be problems in dealing with the administration, which effectively pressed Congress to pass only a limited extension of the original TRIA program in 2005.

Although he noted that Treasury Secretary Robert Paulson "in his previous life was relatively supportive of TRIA," Sen. Dodd said he understood that the secretary "wears a different hat now" and will likely hold the administration's line of opposing an expanded federal backstop.

Discussing another possible measure that is a top priority of the insurance industry--optional federal chartering of insurers--Sen. Dodd said only that the committee "will review the status of the current regime of state regulation of insurance and consider proposals" to establish an OFC, and that he is "open to all arguments both for and against" the concept.

In the near term, Sen. Dodd said he would seek to pass a number of bills that were approved by the committee during 2006 in January after holding a few brief hearings to bring the new members of the committee up to speed.

Among the bills he mentioned to be sped through the committee in this fashion was legislation to reform the National Flood Insurance Program that was approved by the committee in May, but did not make it to the Senate floor.

The flood bill, introduced by current committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., would eliminate subsidies for flood coverage for properties that do not serve as primary residences.

"Chairman Shelby and Senator Sarbanes passed a good bill out of committee earlier this year," he said. "I'd like the committee to pursue this legislation and try to convince colleagues off the committee to support it. There are too many Americans who rely on this law to protect their property during times of natural catastrophe."

Sen. Dodd declined to speculate on his political future, saying he has not decided whether or not he will run for president in 2008, but that he expects to make a decision after the end of the year.

He also said that, should he pursue the nomination, he did not feel he would have to step down from his chairmanship at this time or refuse campaign contributions from entities that might fall under the committee's jurisdiction.

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Sen. Dodd Will Seek Permanent TRIA Program

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