A bipartisan effort is underway in the Senate with the introduction of a bill to extend the federal terrorism risk insurance program for seven years.
A federal backstop for terrorism risk was first initiated late in 2002 by the Terrorism Risk Insur
ance Act (TRIA) to respond to insurers’ exclusions of terrorism risks from commercial property/casu
alty insurance policies following losses from 9/11. The change put construction projects on hold since financiers required the insurance.
This latest reauthorization bill extends the terrorism insurance program for seven years. T
RIA has been reauthorized several times, the latest at the end of 2019. It is due to expire again on Dec. 31, 2027.
Senators Dave McCormick, R-Pa., and Tina Smith, D-Minn., Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Ruben Gallego, DAriz., joined more than 20 Republican and Democratic cosponsors
s to introduce the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2026 on April 28 in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
“TRIA is a proven public-private partnership that helps ensure the continued availability and affordability of terrorism risk insurance, supporting structure
ion, development, and economics
president of federal government relations and political engagement, in a statement. “We urge the
committee to advance this legislation and the full Senate to take action
See more beautiful photo albums Here >>>
on as soon as possible to avoid any potential market disruptions.”
Related: Insurance Industry Reps Back Reauthorization of Federal Terrorism Backstop
To begin the year, a similar bill was introduced in the House.
Some changes to the program at past reauthorizations, plus increases in the insurance prem
ium base, have reduced federal exposure to the risk. The legislation requires warranties to offer terrorism coverage while the industry has the assurance that if losses fr
om a certified terrorism event reach a certain thresholds (the event needs to exceed $5 million in losses and $200 million in industry losses), the government will step in.
“From an underwriter’s point of view, policy conditions and pricing are on our minds,” Greenberg said. Large companies, with capabilities and money to invest in cy
bersecurity, may be better at cyber hygiene. Small companies aren’t targeted as much but “create mo
re systemic concerns.” The sweet spot—the “biggest meatball” as Greenberg describes—are middle-market organizations.
“They are a target,” he said. “They have more money, and they’re less capable at hygiene and focus on it less. They have weaker perimeters.”
The Mythos model has yet to be released to the general public. Anthropic has allowed a select few to experiment with Mythos, which the company admits po
ses security risks while simultaneously identifying “thousands” of vulnerabilities.
