Terrorism insurance backstop vote planned

Less than three months after passing a lengthy extension to the federal backstop to terrorism risk, House Democrats plan to hold a vote this week on a substantially altered version of the legislation, after balking at accepting the Senate’s version of the bill.

“We’re not going to take up their bill because it’s unacceptable,” said Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.), who drafted the new bill along with House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.).

{mosads}Ackerman accused senators of adopting a “take-it-or-leave-it approach” when they refused to conference with the House after passing a far narrower reauthorization of the program.

The new House bill will pull elements from the Senate version, yet the House Democrats insist on provisions the upper chamber rejected.

Ackerman said those provisions include a reset mechanism for insurers, a measure lowering the current program triggers to $50 billion from $100 billion, and coverage for group life insurers to the program.

But House Democrats have agreed to scale back their 15-year extension of the program in favor of the Senate’s seven-year extension, and will drop a measure providing coverage in case of nuclear or other doomsday attacks.

The House will also adopt the Senate’s solution to the pay-go problem that had snagged the bill.

Ackerman urged the Senate to act quickly after the House passes the new version.

“The senators have to do their job. If they don’t have time to go to conference, at least pass this compromise,” he said.