TRIA A ?Must' Bill For Insurers, Says PIA Brass
By Arthur D. Postal, Washington Bureau Chief
NU Online News Service, April 7, 3:42 p.m. EDT?Members of the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents were told by their leadership today that extension of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act is "a must for us, indeed a must for the entire insurance industry."[@@]
The comments by Peter Bizzozero, PIA's assistant vice president, federal affairs, were made at the opening of the group's 2005 Federal Legislative Conference. "This issue is the focus of the entire industry now," he said. "Congress cannot afford not to act."
Another speaker, Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee's Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, said that the Financial Services Committee is prepared to move on extending TRIA as soon as the Treasury finishes its report on the usefulness of the current legislation.
That report is expected by the end of June at the latest. "We will move on that [legislation]," Rep. Bachus said. "Hopefully, it will be a good report," he added.
In his comments, Mr. Bizzozero said that PIA has some concerns with the proposed State Modernization and Regulatory Transparency Act (SMART), the federal road map for insurance regulation, and added that "we are unlikely to see a bill."
The PIA also urged members attending the event to lobby Congress not to develop any federal legislation dealing with insurance broker compensation disclosure.
Indeed, his boss, Len Brevik, executive vice president and CEO of PIA National, said at the meeting that the "Spitzer challenge"?i.e., probes of broker compensation practices launched by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer?has resulted in an increase in PIA membership by insurance agents concerned about the probe.
"Commission disclosure should not be a federal priority," Mr. Brevik said. "Congress should not be involved."
Regarding TRIA, Mr. Bizzozero said that even though most terrorism insurance policies will expire at the end of this year, it is unclear whether Congress will extend TRIA. But with the help of PIA members and members of other trade groups, "regardless of that there will be no question [in the minds of Congress] where the insurance industry and policyholders stand."
Mr. Bizzozero added, "We have to move now; we have six months to educate Congress on its importance."
Regarding the SMART act, Mr. Bizzozero said that the legislation is acceptable to the PIA as long as it does not impinge on state regulation.
But PIA "continues to share concern regarding SMART's provision for an advisory council to encourage regulatory modernization, which raises clear constitutional conflicts and risks creating a bureaucracy with a propensity to seek expansion of its authority," the PIA said in a policy statement.
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