The letter from the governors was addressed to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., Senate Republican Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi, Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and House Democratic Leader Richard Gephardt of Missouri.

Rodger S. Lawson, president of the Alliance, based in Downers Grove, Ill., said, "governors know better than anyone that insurance is fundamental to a sound economy."

But as each day goes by without federal backstop legislation, he noted, more and more businesses are lacking terrorism coverage or are relying on policies that insurers in some instances are being forced to write in some states without a clear guarantee of reinsurance.

The governors' letter states that as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, U.S. property and casualty insurance companies are on the hook for more than $35 billion in losses.

Further, since Jan. 1, many insurers, self-insurers and states have been "unable to spread the risk that they insure because of the unavailability of reinsurance protection," the letter says.

The letter warns that the current lack of a financial backstop poses a serious threat to the solvency of the insurance industry, state insurance facilities and economic development initiatives, as well as to the ability of the economy to recover from the recession.

The governors stress in the letter that providing an insurance backstop is an important congressional goal that should not be hampered by peripheral issues, as has been the case with legislation pending in both Houses.

As Mr. Lawson pointed out, the General Accounting Office already has reported to Congress that construction projects are at a standstill, new buildings are not going up, and shopping malls, stadiums and public facilities are doing without terrorism coverage or are paying soaring premium rates.

The signatories to the letter, which reportedly circulated for only a week prior to its send-off, are the governors of Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.