The bill, H.R. 4634, passed in a House vote of 385-22. It was previously passed unanimously in the House Financial Services Committee, where Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., introduced the bill.
“The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act was enacted in the aftermath of the tragic September 11 terrorist attacks, which resulted in the largest insured losses on record from a non-natural event,” Waters said. “Insurance and reinsurance companies reeled from the losses, and terrorism risk insurance became unavailable or extremely expensive, complicating the recovery effort due to the importance of insurance in many business transactions.”
Treasury data show the program has been successful, with nearly 80% of all TRIA-eligible policies including terrorism risk coverage, and policyholders paying an average of only 2.5% of their total premiums for terrorism risk coverage.
The Senate Banking Committee will be considering identical legislation this week – S. 2877.
The housing industry is backing the legislation, saying it is vital to the health of the commercial and multifamily real estate finance sector.
“MBA commends the House for its overwhelmingly bipartisan passage of this legislation to reauthorize the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act program for seven years,” said Robert Broeksmit, Mortgage Bankers Association president and CEO.
“The long-term extension of TRIA is vital to the health of the commercial and multifamily real estate finance sector and the nation as a whole,” Broeksmit said. “With $3.4 trillion in total mortgage debt outstanding, members of the commercial/multifamily real estate finance sector are important end users of the TRIA program and represent a large and integral part of the national economy.”