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[Page: S3455]  GPO's PDF
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   Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, the hour is late, and I am not going to speak but a couple of minutes, just to lay the predicate for the subject that the distinguished Senator from Nevada has just raised, to which the Republican minority has entered an objection--the bill on providing Federal backup for the terrorism risk the insurance industry would assume.

   I am assuming that eventually we will get some agreement to bring this legislation to the floor. I want the record to reflect that it is the considered judgment of this Senator, with the experience I have had in my former public service as insurance commissioner of Florida, that there needs to be some considerable tightening of this legislation, and the majority leader and the assistant majority leader have been kind enough to indicate that I will be protected in order to offer one of the amendments.

   That amendment would simply be to make sure the rates are frozen on any further rate hike until the actuarial soundness can be determined of what should be the rate with regard to the terrorism risk. The problem for determining that is the fact that there is no data--very little, except for the data we now have from September 11, and that is the only experience we have, save the earlier decade of the nineties and the attempt at bombing the World Trade Center. Therefore, it is very difficult to determine what is an adequate rate. Because it is difficult, it is also easy to jack the rates up sky high.

   So that is the burden I will come to the floor to try to address.

   If the Republican minority ever releases their objection to this legislation, then we need to perfect this legislation so that the ratepayers, the consumers, are not paying a much higher rate for the terrorism risk than is justified by actuarial soundness.

   I thank the assistant majority leader for presiding so I could come down to make this statement. I look forward to working with the leadership on this issue.

   I yield the floor.

   (Mr. NELSON of Florida assumed the chair).

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