Latest Texas Headlines
All the headlines from our Texas Topic Page, ordered by recency.
New Texas Law Aims to Crack Down on Roof Repair Scams
Aug 8 2019 // A new law in Texas that goes into effect on Sept. 1 makes it clear that it’s illegal for a contractor or roofer to waive an insurance deductible, according to the state insurance department. “This new law will...
Low Unemployment Rates a Problem for San Antonio Hotels
Aug 7 2019 // With San Antonio’s unemployment rate hitting historic lows, hoteliers in the city’s $15.2 billion tourism industry are struggling to find housekeepers, dishwashers and waiters. The San Antonio Express-News...
Texas Windstorm Insurer: No Rate Hike for 2020
Aug 6 2019 // Texas’ provider of last resort for wind and hail insurance for Texas coastal properties won’t be raising its residential and commercial property rates next year. The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA)...
Next Level Acquires North Texas Employee Benefits Provider, A&H Benefits
Aug 6 2019 // Next Level Insurance Agency, a Dallas-based healthcare consulting and employee benefits brokerage firm, has acquired A&H Benefits, also based in North Texas. A&H was formed in 1997 as a corporation to provide...
Texas Considering $600M in Upgrades to Prevent Highway Deaths
Aug 6 2019 // State transportation officials are considering a plan that would earmark $390 million to help reduce highway deaths by straightening roads, improving lighting and adding guardrails. On May 30, the Texas Transportation...
Walmart Has Mandatory Active Shooter Training for Employees
Aug 5 2019 // Days before Saturday’s mass shooting that killed 20 people at a Walmart Inc. store in El Paso, Texas, another shooting erupted at a Walmart in Southaven, Mississippi. In that case, Walmart’s mandatory...
Business Moves
Aug 5 2019 // East The Hilb Group, 360 Corporate Benefit Advisors The Hilb Group LLC has acquired New England-based 360 Corporate Benefit Advisors. The transaction became effective May 1, 2019. With offices in Fairfield, Conn., and...
Texas High Court Clarifies Bad Faith in Appraisal Process
Aug 2 2019 // An insurer’s payment of the appraisal value after disputing a claim does not establish that it was liable, nor does that payment prevent a policyholder from pursuing penalties under the Prompt Payment of Claims Act,...
Official: Harris County Sues Exxon Over Air Pollution from Petrochemical Fire
Aug 1 2019 // Exxon Mobil Corp. was hit with a lawsuit on Thursday over pollution from a fire at the company’s Baytown Olefins Plant, according to an attorney for Harris County, Texas, which filed the suit. The fire was being...
Fourth Death in Eight Months at Texas Hospital Blamed on Faulty Care
Aug 1 2019 // Officials have reported another patient death in a Houston medical complex, the fourth such death in the last eight months due to apparent deficiencies in care. The Houston Chronicle reports the patient died at Ben Taub...
Gas Line Explosion in Kentucky Neighborhood Kills 1, Ignites Homes
Aug 1 2019 // A gas line explosion shortly after midnight on Thursday in a residential community in rural Kentucky sent up a ball of flame that could be seen for miles, killing one person and setting several houses on fire, a local...
Fire at Texas Plant Could Disrupt Exxon’s Chemical Business
Aug 1 2019 // Exxon Mobil Corp.’s suburban Houston refining and chemicals complex erupted in flames on Wednesday, prompting municipal leaders to order residents to seek shelter indoors, shut their windows and turn off air...
2 Texas Workers Killed by Toxic Fumes From Fertilizer Truck
Jul 31 2019 // Authorities say two men have died after being overcome by toxic fumes while working with a mobile fertilizer truck near a Houston high school. Houston Fire Department Deputy Chief Richard Galvan says one worker had opened...
Rice U. Says Its Hurricane Plan for Houston Better Than $20B Coastal Barrier
Jul 30 2019 // For about a decade, two of Texas’ top universities have pushed dueling plans to protect the Houston-Galveston region from hurricanes. A concept championed by Texas A&M University at Galveston appears to be...
Texas Windstorm Insurer: Rate Inadequacy Up Year Over Year
Jul 29 2019 // In advance of its Aug. 6 board meeting in Galveston, the insurer of last resort for wind and hail in counties along the Texas coast said it has determined its residential coverage rates are inadequate by 41.7 percent and...
Post-Harvey Flood Mitigation Effort Ongoing in Dickinson, Texas
Jul 29 2019 // Crews are working to unclog tributaries and bayous snaking through Dickinson to reduce the risk of flooding nearly two years after Hurricane Harvey caused significant damage to the Houston suburb. The August 2017 storm...
Authorities: Texas Woman Cooked Up Raw Beef Insurance Scam
Jul 29 2019 // Authorities are accusing a Texas woman of taking part in an undercooked scheme in which she claimed she was served raw hamburger meat at two different locations of a fast food chain. Cassandra Brooks, a former lieutenant...
OPIC Highlights Insurance Consumer Protections from Texas 2019 Legislative Session
Jul 26 2019 // The Texas Office of Public Insurance Counsel (OPIC) has released a list highlighting some of insurance-related bills passed by the Texas Legislature this year that contain protections for consumers. Some of the consumer...
Company to Settle Federal Suit Over Sex Harassment at Texas Plant for $55K
Jul 25 2019 // G2 Corporation, doing business as Screen Tight, has agreed to pay $55,000 and furnish significant relief to settle a sex discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC...
Report: Millions of Gallons of Waste Created by Texas Petrochemical Fire
Jul 24 2019 // The cleanup of millions of gallons of waste and polluted water is far from over four months after a large fire burned for days at a Houston-area petrochemical storage site. Intercontinental Terminals Company, the...
