| February 11, 2008 Catastrophe Experts say Hearings Underscore the Urgent Need for Senate Action
Florida Homeowners would Reap $2.4 Billion in Annual Insurance Savings The field hearing on homeowners’ insurance issues conducted by the House of Representative’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations should send a clarion call to the US Senate that homeowners desperately need to reap the $9.8 billion in annual insurance premium savings that could be provided by enacting legislation that passed the House of Representatives in November, according to the co-chairman of the nation’s leading coalition of catastrophe response and recovery experts. 'The struggle that homeowners have experienced in the face of the annual premium increases that have been driven largely by unregulated foreign reinsurers would be addressed immediately if the US Senate enacts the Homeowners’ Defense Act of 2007, which was sponsored by Reps. Ron Klein, Tim Mahoney and Ginny Brown-Waite,' said Admiral James M. Loy, co-chairman of ProtectingAmerica.org, the nation’s leading coalition of catastrophe experts. 'Florida’s homeowners could immediately see $2.4 billion worth of premium savings if the bill were enacted. That amounts to $376 for every homeowner in Florida,' he said. 'In light of the testimony that the committee heard today, there is an urgent need for Senate action on this critical measure,' he added. The Homeowners’ Defense Act of 2007 would create a privately funded national backstop that would stand behind state catastrophe funds like the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund and provide a stable and predictable source of coverage so that homeowners can repair, rebuild and recover in the aftermath of massive hurricanes, earthquakes and other catastrophic events. 'Floridians would benefit immeasurably from the establishment of a comprehensive and integrated catastrophe response and recovery program that would generate substantial premium savings to homeowners and bring some long-term stability to a market that is vulnerable to collapse following a hurricane of massive proportions,' he said. In addition to the support of Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and every member of the Florida congressional delegation, the Homeowners’ Defense Act was co-sponsored by more than four-dozen representatives, both Democrats and Republicans, from across the country. The bill passed the House of Representatives by a bipartisan vote of 258 – 155 on November 9th. The Senate has yet to take action on the bill. About ProtectingAmerica.org ProtectingAmerica.org is a national, non-profit organization that was formed in 2005 and whose members include the American Red Cross, numerous municipalities, first responder organizations, small businesses, Fortune 500 companies and more than 15,000 individual members from across the country. The primary goals of ProtectingAmerica.org are to improve the financial protection for consumers by establishing catastrophe backstops at the state and national level to provide recovery and rebuilding funds in the case of a major natural catastrophe and to augment first responder funding, improve homeowner education and strengthen mitigation programs. ProtectingAmerica.org is co-chaired by former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency James Lee Witt and Admiral James M. Loy, former deputy secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security. | 
