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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ''Commission on
Natural Catastrophe Risk Management and Insurance Act of 2007''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Establishment.
Sec. 4. Membership.
Sec. 5. Duties of the Commission.
Sec. 6. Report.
Sec. 7. Powers of the Commission.
Sec. 8. Commission personnel matters.
Sec. 9. Termination.
Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--
(1) Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma, which struck the
United States in 2005, caused, by some estimates, in excess of
$200,000,000,000 in total economic losses;
(2) many meteorologists predict that the United States is
in a period of increased hurricane activity;
(3) the Federal Government and State governments have
provided billions of dollars to pay for losses from natural
catastrophes, including hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic
eruptions, tsunamis, tornados, flooding, wildfires, droughts,
and other natural catastrophes;
(4) many Americans are finding it increasingly difficult to
obtain and afford property and casualty insurance coverage;
(5) some insurers are not renewing insurance policies, are
excluding certain risks, such as wind damage, and are
increasing rates and deductibles in some markets;
(6) the inability of property and business owners in
vulnerable areas to obtain and afford property and casualty
insurance coverage endangers the national economy and public
health and safety;
(7) almost every State in the United States is at risk of a
natural catastrophe, including hurricanes, earthquakes,
volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, tornados, flooding, wildfires,
droughts, and other natural catastrophes;
(8) building codes and land use regulations play an
indispensable role in managing catastrophe risks, by preventing
building in high risk areas and ensuring that appropriate
mitigation efforts are completed where building has taken
place;
(9) several proposals have been introduced in Congress to
address the affordability and availability of natural
catastrophe insurance across the United States, but there is no
consensus on what, if any, role the Federal Government should
play; and
(10) an efficient and effective approach to assessing
natural catastrophe risk management and insurance is to
establish a nonpartisan commission to study the management of
natural catastrophe risk, and to require such commission to
timely report to Congress on its findings.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.

There is established a nonpartisan Commission on Natural
Catastrophe Risk Management and Insurance (in this Act referred to as
the ''Commission'').

SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP.

(a) Appointment.--The Commission shall be composed of 16 members,
of whom--
(1) 2 members shall be appointed by the majority leader of
the Senate;
(2) 2 members shall be appointed by the minority leader of
the Senate;
(3) 2 members shall be appointed by the Speaker of the
House of Representatives;
(4) 2 members shall be appointed by the minority leader of
the House of Representatives;
(5) 2 members shall be appointed by the Chairman of the
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate;
(6) 2 members shall be appointed by the Ranking Member of
the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the
Senate;
(7) 2 members shall be appointed by the Chairman of the
Committee on Financial Services of the House of
Representatives; and
(8) 2 members shall be appointed by the Ranking Member of
the Committee on Financial Services of the House of
Representatives.
(b) Qualification of Members.--
(1) In general.--Members of the Commission shall be
appointed under subsection (a) from among persons who--
(A) have expertise in insurance, reinsurance,
insurance regulation, policyholder concerns, emergency
management, risk management, public finance, financial
markets, actuarial analysis, flood mapping and
planning, structural engineering, building standards,
land use planning, natural catastrophes, meteorology,
seismology, environmental issues, or other pertinent
qualifications or experience; and
(B) are not officers or employees of the United
States Government or of any State government.
(2) Diversity.--In making appointments to the Commission--
(A) every effort shall be made to ensure that the
members are representative of a broad cross section of
perspectives within the United States; and
(B) each member of Congress described in subsection
(a) shall appoint not more than 1 person from any
single primary area of expertise described in paragraph
(1)(A) of this subsection.
(c) Period of Appointment.--
(1) In general.--Each member of the Commission shall be
appointed for the duration of the Commission.
(2) Vacancies.--A vacancy on the Commission shall not
affect its powers, but shall be filled in the same manner as
the original appointment.
(d) Quorum.--
(1) Majority.--A majority of the members of the Commission
shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number, as determined
by the Commission, may hold hearings.
(2) Approval actions.--All recommendations and reports of
the Commission required by this Act shall be approved only by a
majority vote of all of the members of the Commission.
(e) Chairperson.--The Commission shall, by majority vote of all of
the members, select 1 member to serve as the Chairperson of the
Commission (in this Act referred to as the ''Chairperson'').
(f) Meetings.--The Commission shall meet at the call of its
Chairperson or a majority of the members.

SEC. 5. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

The Commission shall examine the risks posed to the United States
by natural catastrophes, and means for mitigating those risks and for
paying for losses caused by natural catastrophes, including assessing--
(1) the condition of the property and casualty insurance
and reinsurance markets prior to and in the aftermath of
Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma in 2005, and the 4 major
hurricanes that struck the United States in 2004;
(2) the current condition of, as well as the outlook for,
the availability and affordability of insurance in all regions
of the country;
(3) the current ability of States, communities, and
individuals to mitigate their natural catastrophe risks,
including the affordability and feasibility of such activities;
(4) the ongoing exposure of the United States to natural
catastrophes, including hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic
eruptions, tsunamis, tornados, flooding, wildfires, droughts,
and other natural catastrophes;
(5) the catastrophic insurance and reinsurance markets and
the relevant practices in providing insurance protection to
different sectors of the American population;
(6) implementation of a catastrophic insurance system that
can resolve key obstacles currently impeding broader
implementation of catastrophic risk management and financing
with insurance;
(7) the financial feasibility and sustainability of a
national, regional, or other pooling mechanism designed to
provide adequate insurance coverage and increased underwriting
capacity to insurers and reinsurers, including private-public
partnerships to increase insurance capacity in constrained
markets;
(8) methods to promote public insurance policies to reduce
losses caused by natural catastrophes in the uninsured sectors
of the American population;
(9) approaches for implementing a public or private
insurance scheme for low-income communities, in order to
promote risk reduction and insurance coverage in such
communities;
(10) the impact of Federal and State laws, regulations, and
policies (including rate regulation, market access
requirements, reinsurance regulations, accounting and tax
policies, State residual markets, and State catastrophe funds)
on--
(A) the affordability and availability of
catastrophe insurance;
(B) the capacity of the private insurance market to
cover losses inflicted by natural catastrophes;
(C) the commercial and residential development of
high-risk areas; and
(D) the costs of natural catastrophes to Federal
and State taxpayers;
(11) the present and long-term financial condition of State
residual markets and catastrophe funds in high-risk regions,
including the likelihood of insolvency following a natural
catastrophe, the concentration of risks within such funds, the
reliance on post-event assessments and State funding, and the
adequacy of rates;
(12) the role that innovation in financial services could
play in improving the affordability and availability of natural
catastrophe insurance, specifically addressing measures that
would foster the development of financial products designed to
cover natural catastrophe risk, such as risked-linked
securities;
(13) the need for strengthened land use regulations and
building codes in States at high risk for natural catastrophes,
and methods to strengthen the risk assessment and enforcement
of structural mitigation and vulnerability reduction measures,
such as zoning and building code compliance;
(14) the benefits and costs of proposed Federal natural
catastrophe insurance programs (including the Federal
Government providing reinsurance to State catastrophe funds,
private insurers, or other entities), specifically addressing
the costs to taxpayers, tax equity considerations, and the
record of other government insurance programs (particularly
with regard to charging actuarially sound prices);
(15) the ability of the United States private insurance
market--
(A) to cover insured losses caused by natural
catastrophes, including an estimate of the maximum
amount of insured losses that could be sustained during
a single year and the probability of natural
catastrophes occurring in a single year that would
inflict more insured losses than the United States
insurance and reinsurance markets could sustain; and
(B) to recover after covering substantial insured
losses caused by natural catastrophes;
(16) the impact that demographic trends could have on the
amount of insured losses inflicted by future natural
catastrophes;
(17) the appropriate role, if any, for the Federal
Government in stabilizing the property and casualty insurance
and reinsurance markets; and
(18) the role of the Federal, State, and local governments
in providing incentives for feasible risk mitigation efforts.

SEC. 6. REPORT.

On December 1, 2008, the Commission shall submit to the Committee
on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee
on Financial Services of the House of Representatives a final report
containing--
(1) a detailed statement of the findings and assessments
conducted by the Commission pursuant to section 5; and
(2) any recommendations for legislative, regulatory,
administrative, or other actions at the Federal, State, or
local levels that the Commission considers appropriate, in
accordance with the requirements of section 5.

SEC. 7. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.

(a) Meetings; Hearings.--The Commission may hold such hearings, sit
and act at such times and places, take such testimony, and receive such
evidence as the Commission considers necessary to carry out the
purposes of this Act. Members may attend meetings of the Commission and
vote in person, via telephone conference, or via video conference.
(b) Authority of Members or Agents of the Commission.--Any member
or agent of the Commission may, if authorized by the Commission, take
any action which the Commission is authorized to take by this Act.
(c) Obtaining Official Data.--
(1) Authority.--Notwithstanding any provision of section
552a of title 5, United States Code, the Commission may secure
directly from any department or agency of the United States any
information necessary to enable the Commission to carry out
this Act.
(2) Procedure.--Upon request of the Chairperson, the head
of such department or agency shall furnish to the Commission
the information requested.
(d) Postal Services.--The Commission may use the United States
mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other
departments and agencies of the Federal Government.
(e) Administrative Support Services.--Upon the request of the
Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall provide to the
Commission, on a reimbursable basis, any administrative support
services necessary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities
under this Act.
(f) Acceptance of Gifts.--The Commission may accept, hold,
administer, and utilize gifts, donations, and bequests of property,
both real and personal, for the purposes of aiding or facilitating the
work of the Commission. The Commission shall issue internal guidelines
governing the receipt of donations of services or property.
(g) Volunteer Services.--Notwithstanding the provisions of section
1342 of title 31, United States Code, the Commission may accept and
utilize the services of volunteers serving without compensation. The
Commission may reimburse such volunteers for local travel and office
supplies, and for other travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of
subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5, United States
Code.
(h) Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949.--
Subject to the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of
1949, the Commission may enter into contracts with Federal and State
agencies, private firms, institutions, and individuals for the conduct
of activities necessary to the discharge of its duties and
responsibilities.
(i) Limitation on Contracts.--A contract or other legal agreement
entered into by the Commission may not extend beyond the date of the
termination of the Commission.

SEC. 8. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.

(a) Travel Expenses.--The members of the Commission shall be
allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at
rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of
chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from their homes
or regular places of business in the performance of services for the
Commission.
(b) Subcommittees.--The Commission may establish subcommittees and
appoint members of the Commission to such subcommittees as the
Commission considers appropriate.
(c) Staff.--Subject to such policies as the Commission may
prescribe, the Chairperson may appoint and fix the pay of such
additional personnel as the Chairperson considers appropriate to carry
out the duties of the Commission. The Commission shall confirm the
appointment of the executive director by majority vote of all of the
members of the Commission.
(d) Applicability of Certain Civil Service Laws.--Staff of the
Commission may be--
(1) appointed without regard to the provisions of title 5,
United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive
service; and
(2) paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and
subchapter III of chapter 53 of that title relating to
classification and General Schedule pay rates, except that an
individual so appointed may not receive pay in excess of the
annual rate of basic pay prescribed for GS-15 of the General
Schedule under section 5332 of that title.
(e) Experts and Consultants.--In carrying out its objectives, the
Commission may procure temporary and intermittent services of
consultants and experts under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States
Code, at rates for individuals which do not exceed the daily equivalent
of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for GS-15 of the General
Schedule under section 5332 of that title.
(f) Detail of Government Employees.--Upon request of the
Chairperson, any Federal Government employee may be detailed to the
Commission to assist in carrying out the duties of the Commission--
(1) on a reimbursable basis; and
(2) such detail shall be without interruption or loss of
civil service status or privilege.

SEC. 9. TERMINATION.

The Commission shall terminate 90 days after the date on which the
Commission submits its report under section 6.

SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There are authorized to be appropriated to the Commission, such
sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act, to remain available
until expended.
Commission on Natural Catastrophe Risk Management and Insurance Act of 2007 - Establishes the Commission on Natural Catastrophe Risk Management and Insurance to report to Congress on its findings and assessments regarding the risks posed to the United States by natural catastrophes, and means for mitigating those risks and paying for losses caused by such catastrophes.

Requires the Commission to assess: (1) the condition of the property and casualty insurance and reinsurance markets prior to and in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma in 2005, and the four major hurricanes that struck the United States in 2004; (2) the current condition of, as well as the outlook for, the availability and affordability of insurance in all regions of the country; and (3) the current ability of states, communities, and individuals to mitigate their natural catastrophe risks, including the affordability and feasibility of such activities.

Directs the Commission to report its findings and assessments to certain congressional committees on December 1, 2008.