Latest Texas Headlines
All the headlines from our Texas Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hurricane Laura’s Timing, Direction Bring Harvey, Katrina, Rita to Mind
Aug 25 2020 // Tropical Storm Laura morphed into a hurricane on Aug. 25, 2020 — three years to the day after Hurricane Harvey swept ashore on the Texas Gulf Coast — and is expected to make landfall just days before the 15-year...
Bodies of Remaining 2 Missing in Texas Port Explosion Found
Aug 25 2020 // The bodies of the remaining two crew members of a dredging boat who were missing after an explosion last week in the Port of Corpus Christi in Texas were found on Aug. 24, the U.S. Coast Guard said. Four people died...
Reuters Finds Disparity in How Judges Apply Qualified Immunity
Aug 25 2020 // The May 25 killing of George Floyd, a Black man, by a Minneapolis cop has prompted calls for an end to “qualified immunity,” a legal doctrine that in recent years has increasingly helped cops beat back lawsuits...
Hurricane Laura Expected to Slam Energy Coast; On Track for $5-12B in Losses
Aug 25 2020 // Hurricane Laura is poised to strengthen rapidly and come ashore along the Texas-Louisiana coast as a tree-snapping Category 3 storm, forcing residents to flee their homes despite the threat of Covid-19. Laura’s winds...
Texas Cities Issue Mandatory Evacuation Orders as Hurricane Laura Advances
Aug 25 2020 // The mayor of Galveston, Texas, has called for a mandatory evacuation of the city after Tropical Storm Laura strengthened into a hurricane and its path shifted westward, increasing the chances that it could strike the...
Gulf Coast Fears Tropical Storm Laura Could Become Deadly Hurricane
Aug 24 2020 // Leaders on the U.S. Gulf Coast warned Monday that Tropical Storm Laura could rapidly intensify into one of the most powerful hurricanes to hit the region and urged residents to prepare before landfall in Texas or Louisiana...
Two Bodies Found, Two Missing After Explosion in Texas Port
Aug 24 2020 // The bodies of two missing crew members of a dredging boat were found on Saturday, Aug. 22 following an explosion a day earlier in the Port of Corpus Christi in Texas, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. The search for two...
EPA to OK Use by American Airlines of Surface Coating to Fight COVID-19
Aug 24 2020 // The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is set to announce it will issue an emergency exemption to the state of Texas permitting it to allow American Airlines Group Inc. to use a new surface coating that kills...
Declarations
Aug 24 2020 // The Big One “This announcement means that California’s world-class earthquake early warning system will be a standard function on every Android phone — giving millions precious seconds to drop, cover and...
Texas Insurance Agency Released from Suit by Restaurant Group Over Virus Losses
Aug 21 2020 // A federal judge in Texas has dismissed an independent insurance agency from a lawsuit brought by a Dallas restaurant group seeking reimbursement for business income losses stemming from the civil authority enforced...
Texas Pharmacy Marketer Charged in $60M Kickback Scheme
Aug 21 2020 // A Texas-based pharmacy marketer has been charged by federal in a conjunction to a scheme to collect more than $60 million in healthcare kickbacks. Vinson Woodlee, owner and president of Med Left LLC, has been charged with...
As Texas Restaurant Industry Struggles, So Does Food Supply Chain
Aug 20 2020 // Before the coronavirus hit Texas earlier this year, Eric Silverstein celebrated one year of opening his newest restaurant, Bar Peached, in Austin. But ever since the pandemic led to business shutdowns and the...
Credit Rating of Southern Pioneer Property and Casualty Insurance Upgraded
Aug 19 2020 // The Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of Southern Pioneer Property and Casualty Insurance Co.(Southern Pioneer) in Jonesboro, Arkansas, has been upgraded by AM Best to “bbb+” from...
Dabney Named VP, Corporate Underwriting, at Texas Mutual Insurance Co.
Aug 18 2020 // Richard Dabney has been appointed vice president of corporate underwriting at the Austin-based workers’ compensation insurer, Texas Mutual Insurance Company. In this newly created VP position within the underwriting...
Texas Insurance Commissioner Sullivan Returning to Private Sector
Aug 18 2020 // Texas Insurance Commissioner Kent Sullivan will resign from his post in September and return to the private sector, the Texas Department of Insurance reported. In his three years at the agency, Sullivan, who took the top...
Texas Forest Service Warns of Increased Wildfire Activity, Fuel Dryness
Aug 17 2020 // Continued hot and dry conditions across much of the state have resulted in increased wildfire activity, particularly in north central Texas and in areas along the Interstate-35 corridor, the Texas A&M Forest Service...
Judge Tosses Texas Barbershops’ Suit Against Insurer Over Coronavirus Losses
Aug 16 2020 // A federal judge has agreed with an insurer that a group of barbershops in the San Antonio, Texas-area have no basis for claims seeking coverage under their commercial insurance policies for business interruption losses...
Dallas Doctor Sentenced to 5.5 Years in Prison for Health Care, Insurance Fraud
Aug 14 2020 // A Texas-based anesthesiologist has been sentenced to five and a half years in prison and ordered to pay more than $82.9 million in restitution for his part in a $200 million healthcare and insurance fraud scheme, according...
Texas Mutual Names Strong VP, Underwriting Operations
Aug 13 2020 // Paschal Strong has been appointed vice president of underwriting operations at workers’ compensation insurer, Texas Mutual Insurance Co. In this newly created position within the underwriting division, Strong will be...
Texas to Add New Fee to Insurance Form Filings Starting in September
Aug 11 2020 // There will be an additional $20.50 fee on insurance form filings beginning Sept. 1 in Texas, the state insurance department has reported. The Texas Department of Insurance said fee will support a technology project that...
