John Cucci, vice president and Northeast manager for the Downers Grove, Ill.-based Alliance, said the Dangerous Dog Bill, A 1374, has bipartisan support and "it could have legs." He did not say if two or four limbs were involved.

Sponsored by State Sen. Dean Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, and Assemblyman Tony Seminerio, D-Richmond Hill, the legislation was approved last week by the Assembly Insurance Committee.

"They're trying to regulate by fiat and take away the actuary experience and put in a generic law that does more harm than good," Mr. Cucci snapped.

"We oppose requiring insurers to await the outcome of a court proceeding, on a case-by-case basis, before deciding whether or not to provide or continue coverage and at what rate," said Mr. Cucci.

Under current law, homeowners' insurers can decide whether or not to offer a policy and at what cost based upon the presence of a dog or a specific breed of dog on the property.

"The present law recognizes the companies' right to make such decisions based upon sound underwriting and actuarial principles, taking into account the vicious propensities of certain breeds and/or the prior history of an individual animal," Mr. Cucci said.

He noted what he characterized as an alarming increase in the number of vicious injuries and fatal attacks against humans by certain breeds of dogs, mentioning pit bulls and Canary Island varieties.

According to the Alliance, dog attacks take a big chomp out of insurers' profits, with approximately $1 billion paid each year in insurance liability claims based on dog bites.

Insurers defending against dog bite claims are generally in a difficult position, according to plaintiff attorneys, because the injured party is generally a child, which elicits jury sympathy.

Among the 4.7 million dog bite injuries reported in the United States each year, children are more than three times as likely to require medical treatment, comprising 60 percent of all dog bite victims, with 73 percent suffering bites of the face, neck and head, according to government statistics.