The Bush administration is opposing both the idea of adding group life to the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act program and efforts to extend the program for a long period.
“The program should not be expanded to introduce new lines or types of coverage willingly provided by the private market,” David Nason, an assistant secretary at the Treasury Department, testified today before the House Financial Services Committee capital markets subcommittee, at a hearing on H.R. 2671, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Revision and Extension Act of 2007.
H.R. 2671 would extend TRIA for 10 years, bring group life into the program and add protection against domestic terrorism.
The Bush administration is insisting that TRIA not be expanded, that it remain temporary and short-term, and that private retentions increase, Nason said.
“Unfortunately, H.R. 2761 does not meet these critical elements,” Nason said. “Without these critical elements, we would not be supportive of extending TRIA as, in our view, the program would be moving in the wrong direction…. In Treasury’s view, from both a market and economic perspective, it would be better to have no TRIA than a bad TRIA.”