Rep. Frank Pushes To Redo Senate TRIA Bill

WASHINGTON--The House won't accept the Senate version of legislation providing a federal backup on terrorism risk insurance and will instead vote to extend the current program until April 30, a key congressman said today.

In comments at a trade group meeting in Boston, Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said the current bill will be extended while the House and Senate negotiate a compromise bill. The current extension expires Dec. 31.

Mr. Frank made his comments in an appearance before the annual meeting of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America.

They were immediately confirmed by a spokesperson for Rep. Frank in Washington.

"My concern is that the Senate will pass a bill that is better than nothing right at the end of the year, and then say the House must take it or leave it, even if we believe it is inadequate," Mr. Frank said at the meeting

Continuing, he said, "I will not be subjected to this kind of tactic," explaining that he would propose a "bridge bill" to extend TRIA as is through April 30, 2008, "to allow for further debate and give us plenty of time to do what is best for this country."

A spokesperson for PCI immediately voiced concern with the statement by Rep. Frank.

"The Bush administration has made it clear that it would veto the House bill and that it would oppose any additional program expansion in the Senate bill," said Cliston Brown, a PCI staff official.

"As a result, we think it's clear that the current Senate version of the bill is clearly the most politically viable means of extending the terrorism risk insurance program before its Dec. 31 expiration date."

Rep. Frank clearly had in mind what occurred the week before Christmas in 2005, when the Senate Banking Committee refused to appoint conferees to reconcile differing versions of legislation extending the federal backstop on terrorism risk, forcing the House to accept the Senate version.

Rep. Mike Oxley, R-Ohio, then chairman of the committee, voiced outrage on the House floor at the behavior of the Senate but admitted he could do little about it.

In confirming Rep. Frank's remarks today, Heather Wong, a spokeswoman, clarified that what the committee chairman meant by his remarks today was that accepting the Senate Banking version as a fait accompli was unacceptable to Rep. Frank.

The bill passed by the Senate Banking Committee Oct. 17 and accepted by the Bush administration has few of the bells and whistles contained in the House bill.

It calls for a seven-year extension of the current program and removes the distinctions in the current legislation between domestic and foreign terrorism. It also retained the current "trigger" for federal involvement at $100 million; the House bill reduces the "trigger."

The House bill is much different and more elaborate, and has yielded a veto threat from the White House.

It would extend the program by 15 years; add coverage of nuclear, biological, chemical and radiation risks; and require all insurers to "make available" NBCR coverage if they want to participate in the program.

It would also provide a break to areas hit by a prior terrorist attack, such as New York, and add group life insurance to the program.