he American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) and 38 state lodging associations today sent a letter to the members of the United States Senate calling for swift passage of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (S. 2244). Markup of this bill by the Senate Banking Committee is expected on Tuesday, June 3.

Introduced by Senators Schumer, Blunt, Heller, Johanns, Kirk, Menendez, Murphy, Reed, and Warner, this legislation calls for the reauthorization of TRIA for a period of seven years, until December 31, 2021. Today’s letter stresses the urgent need for continuation of this vital program, stating that failure to extend TRIA poses significant challenges for the lodging industry in obtaining terrorism risk coverage and is a threat to future development projects and economic stability.

“In the coming weeks, the U.S. Senate has the opportunity to take an important step towards providing greater certainty for the lodging industry and the broader economy by passing crucial TRIA reauthorization legislation,” said Katherine Lugar, AH&LA president/CEO. “This program has for the past 12 years provided a valuable backstop for policy holders whose terrorism coverage had become cost prohibitive or in some instances unavailable. In recognition of its vital importance, a bipartisan group of senators came forward with a bill providing for the continuation of a program that will provide hotels and countless other businesses across the country the necessary security to keep growing and creating jobs. We urge the members of the Banking Committee to move this bill swiftly through the markup process and the full Senate to pass this legislation as soon as possible.”

Click here to read a copy of the letter.