The US Senate has voted to reauthorise the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) through until the year 2020. The vote was 93 in favour and only four against.
This vote comes after 416 members of the House of Representatives voted for the bill to be renewed, with only five in opposition.
President Barack Obama is expected to sign the bill (H.R. 26) into law in the near future.
The Financial Services Roundtable (FSR) has been among the first to congratulate Congress on the decision, which it claimed would reduce the risk to taxpayers by encouraging private insurance coverage following a terrorist attack.
“We applaud a strong collaborative effort by Congress to pass this bipartisan legislation critical to taxpayers and our national economy,” said FSR president and CEO Tim Pawlenty.
“We hope this paves the way for more bipartisan work in Congress and that President Obama will sign the bill quickly into law.”
Insurers such as Marsh & McLennan have also spoken out in support of Congress following what it called the “swift reauthorisation of this critically important public-private partnership”.
Marsh has stated that the renewal will help to ensure a reliable marketplace for terrorism coverage in the event of attack.
In an official statement, Marsh said: “We are pleased that [the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act] directs the Treasury Department to review the protocols for certification which would help to protect the nation’s economic security in the event of a terrorist attack.”
Despite efforts from within the insurance industry, the original incarnation of TRIA was allowed to expire on 31 December 2014.
