Bush administration threatens to veto TRIA extension

The Senate is unhappy that a 15-year extension will make the terrorism backstop all but permanent

The extension of the federal backstop for the US property insurance market in the event of major terrorist attacks moved a step closer on 19 September when the House of Representatives approved HR 2761, legislation which extends the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act for a period of 15 years. But although the Terrorism Risk Insurance Revision and Extension Act of 2007 (TRIREA) achieved bipartisan support in the House, its fate in the Senate is less certain and the Bush administration has threatened to veto the bill, arguing that it would make TRIA virtually permanent and that the programme stands in the way of the growth of private sector terrorism insurance.