Legislature Passes SB 14 - Insurance Reform Legislation Intended to Stabilize the Texas Market
June 25, 2003

Statement from TCAIS Director Beaman Floyd

From the beginning, insurance companies told legislators that they were not afraid to be regulated. We all agreed that we needed to change the way insurance companies are allowed to operate in Texas.

For months we encouraged legislators to not ‘just get mad but get it right’ by focusing insurance regulation on protecting consumers and increasing choices. Many lawmakers worked persistently to achieve this goal by rejecting measures which could have made insurance less affordable and harder to find.

With the final passage of Senate Bill 14, only time will tell whether the legislature succeeded in fixing the underlying problem hurting Texans by creating a regulatory system that attracts more insurance companies and capital to Texas.

Based on the experiences of consumers in other states, we remain concerned that the prior approval regulatory system legislators put in place will not give Texans the kind of competitive market that will further stabilize rates and make insurance more available.

We will continue to work with elected leaders and TDI to ensure that any legislative and regulatory action promotes healthy competition, provides Texans with a greater choice in policy options, and prevents fraud and claims abuse.