Csiszar Vows To Kill Asbestos Bill

NEW YORK–The head of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America has vowed to defeat the latest proposal from Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., for a federal fund to pay asbestos injury claims.

“We're going to fight this one. We're going to resist it. We're going to try to kill this one. It deserves to be killed,” Ernie Csiszar, president and chief executive officer of PCI, told executives gathered for Standard & Poor's 23rd annual insurance conference, “Insurance 2006: Rethinking Risk,” Tuesday in New York.

Beginning his remarks with a bit of sarcasm concerning the insurers' contribution called for in the bill, he said, “It's a wonderful piece of legislation. It shows how generous this industry has to be–and can be. You have to write a $48 billion check. Eh.

“That's just chump change” to lawmakers in Washington, he said, noting that companies facing asbestos claims, under certain conditions, would make their contribution to the proposed $140 billion fund over a period of time.

The $48 billion is “what you have in reserves,” he said, adding that in return for writing the huge check, “you get another federal program to pay [that] out.”

He asserted it's probable that the legislation violates the Constitution (in particular, the takings clause of the Constitution). But by the time that issue “makes its way to the Supreme Court, your $48 billion's going to be gone.”

The second problem, he said, is when the asbestos fund runs out of money, “which it will,” the federal government can come back to the industry for more money.

“It's a lousy piece of legislation,” said Mr. Csiszar, adding that it's the kind of proposal that comes out when “there's no leadership from the White House,” which is preoccupied with the war, and the “power vacuum gets sucked up” by the chairmen of powerful Senate committees.