AUSTIN (Nexstar) –  During a Texas Senate Business and Commerce hearing Wednesday, lawmakers heard invited testimony examining soaring property and casualty insurance costs. Testimony focused on the need for more affordable options and the need to address the role of AI.

Increased costs

Amanda Crawford, the Commissioner of Insurance at the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI), acknowledged the reality of rising insurance costs for everyday Texans.

“The past few years have been very, very difficult. The average annual homeowner premium in Texas has increased from under $2,000 in 2020 to over $3,500 today. It’s a 79% increase in six years. That is a tremendous burden for Texans, especially for a necessary product like home insurance,” Crawford told lawmakers Wednesday.

Crawford went on to clarify that this increase can be attributed to increases in home values and claim costs related to severe weather.

“Annual homeowners’ losses averaged 5.5 billion from 2015 to 2020, rising to 9.1 billion from 2021 to 2025.” Crawford went on to say that “Last year alone, the National Weather Service recorded 902 hailstorms in Texas. The next closest state, Kansas, had 375.”

Holding insurance companies accountable

Crawford clarified that the TDI requires insurance companies to elaborate on their filings to ensure that Texans are not subject to unfair practices and prices.

“My expectations are that every rate filing submitted to TDI gets a careful review. We examine every statutory filing for statutory compliance. We verify the math, we scrutinize assumptions, we make them show their work”

According to the Texas Insurance Code, the rate review process conducted by the TDI does not explicitly focus on affordability.

“There is not a purpose in there around affordability. It is about driving market competition. It’s about making sure they’re not excessive, but then they’re also adequate. And it’s about having market forces drive the rates that are filed. So I think that’s an interesting perspective when you look at it, because that really frames the whole rate review process as it has been put into law.”

Insurance company officials say they are also focused on affordable costs.

“Our industry is not just saying, hey, legislators go fix all this. We are working all the time to bring down costs. It’s a good business decision because it helps us be more competitive,” said Scot Kibbe, the Vice President for State Government Relations at the American Property College for Insurance Association.

Concerns of price surveillance

Senator Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, questioned whether insurance companies may be using technological advances, such as AI, to participate in price surveillance, a tactic to maximize profits.

“It sounds like, to some extent, every industry, with the advent of technological advantages we didn’t use to have, is able to create a special price just for you to find out your breaking point,” Johnson said.

David Bolduc with the Office of Public Insurance Counsel noted that there are protections in statute against companies charging different prices for the same coverage. But he added that the practice can be difficult to detect.

“I don’t know that TDI has the ability to monitor that. I mean, we hear about it,” Bolduc said in response to Johnson. “I think, if you could do something in statute that would allow us to report it, or would allow TDI to take action about it, that might be useful in terms of monitoring it,” Bolduc added.

Earlier this month, the TDI released a “use of artificial intelligence” bulletin to set expectations on how “regulated entities will govern the development, acquisition, and the use of AI technologies in their operations.”

Crawford says this bulletin will help address price surveillance concerns by reminding companies of Texas Insurance codes related to unfair discrimination and deceptive practices.

“That’s one of the reasons for putting out the AI bulletin, the expectations and the consumer protection around the use of that data, and what they are using that for,” Crawford said.

Potential solutions

Bolduc called on lawmakers to reexamine AI’s role in the industry. He also asked lawmakers to look into making coverage changes more transparent.

“It might be useful to continue looking for ways to be transparent about coverage changes. Notices of material change don’t seem to be working particularly well in the sense that we get a lot of phone calls from people saying they don’t understand what happened to them,” Bolduc said Wednesday.

Billy Crocker, Senior Vice President of Alliant Insurance Services, says the best way to fix pricing is to drive up competition between insurance companies.

“I think creating a lot of competition is the best way to drive this down, both for personal and business lines,” Crocker told lawmakers. “And then that brings the opportunity for access.”

Forman Capital, a leading private direct commercial real estate lender, has closed a $28,204,026 lot development loan for The Highlands, a planned 253-acre mixed-use community located along Manzano Mile at FM 1431 in Marble Falls, Texas, located on the edge of the broader Austin MSA. The borrower and developer is Rockspring, a Texas-based real estate firm with more than three decades of experience across the state’s most dynamic growth markets.

The Highlands stretches along Manzano Mile, encompassing single-family homes, rental apartments, and retail commercial uses on undeveloped land. The Forman Capital loan will fund horizontal development in advance of vertical construction, which will be performed by other developers and builders, and is expected to start in the fall.

The Forman Capital team that worked on the transaction includes Scott Mehlman, Ty Regnier, Brett Forman and Ben Jacobson.

“Forman Capital has always been drawn to developers who are doing something meaningful — not just building but genuinely adding real value to a community. The Highlands does exactly that, bringing much-needed housing and amenities to a city that has grown faster than its supply could keep pace with. We are proud to support Rockspring’s vision here,” said Brett Forman, Forman Capital Managing Partner.

“Marble Falls and the 71 Highway corridor are benefiting from the same powerful tailwinds driving growth across Texas, with the added advantage of a quality-of-life profile that is attracting both residents and businesses,” said Scott Mehlman, Forman Capital Partner and Chief Investment Officer. “The Highlands is exceptionally well-positioned to meet that demand, and we look forward to seeing this community take shape.”

About Forman Capital

Delray Beach, Florida-based Forman Capital provides private commercial real estate debt and equity financing for transactions ranging from $10 million to $100 million. The firm focuses on short-term construction financing, mezzanine debt, and preferred equity across various real estate asset classes and geographies. Company principals Brett Forman and Ben Jacobson have closed more than $3 billion in commercial real estate transactions since 2004. For more information, visit www.formancap.com.

South Austin hit and run victim returns home

A 23-year-old is finally returning home to Omaha, Nebraska. The active-duty Air Force firefighter was visiting Austin for a brief vacation, but instead, he has spent the last 24 days in a trauma unit on a respirator trying to survive.

AUSTIN, Texas – The 23-year-old, Dominic Dubas, finally returns home to Omaha, Nebraska. The active-duty Air Force firefighter was visiting Austin for a brief vacation, but instead, he has spent the last 24 days in a trauma unit on a respirator trying to survive.

Dominic was left in critical condition after a hit-and-run in South Austin on May 30. The doctors had given him a 1% chance of survival. Weeks later, he had gained enough strength to leave Austin, as an air ambulance officially transported him back home on Tuesday. 

It is a milestone that brings mixed emotions for a family headed into a years-long recovery with no criminal accountability in sight.

“It’s kind of bittersweet,” said his mother, Melissa Dubas. “I mean, I’m happy to have him here, but I just really wish they weren’t under these circumstances.”

The backstory:

Dominic and his friend were staying at an Airbnb near the 6800 block of South Congress Avenue, close to William Cannon Drive. Just before 10 p.m. on a Saturday, he went to a Walgreens across the street to get snacks.

Investigators believe Dominic was walking on the sidewalk when a vehicle going roughly 50 mph hit him. The driver left the scene.

Forty minutes later, a passerby spotted him and called police, initially thinking it was someone sleeping on the curb.

“The moment they choose to run after hitting somebody and injuring them or killing them, it’s a felony no matter what,” said Lt. William White of the Austin Police Department Highway Enforcement Division.

For nearly an hour after the impact, investigators allege the suspect circled the South Austin block for nearly an hour, watching first responders perform life-saving measures on Dubas, before abandoning his Lincoln vehicle just two miles away. The suspect also removed the license plate and registration sticker off the vehicle, which is another felony. 

“Every minute that my son laid there in blood was crucial to his survival,” Melissa Dubas said. “And I just don’t understand how somebody can hit somebody else and leave them for dead.”

Dig deeper:

Police have since identified a suspect, 20-year-old Rafael Guzman Avila, who reportedly entered the country illegally in 2024. According to the affidavit, Avila’s phone records showed him crossing the border back into Mexico that night.

When asked what the extradition process looks like for a local police department, Lt. White explained the complexity.

“You want to have a pretty solid location of where they are, then you go with a district attorney’s office to see if they’ll work with the Justice Department,” White said. “There’s a bunch of processes that they have to go through in order to work with the Justice Department to get that person extradited back to the United States.”

There is a warrant in all 50 states for the arrest of Avila for tampering with evidence and collision involving serious bodily injury. Both acts are third-degree felonies in Texas. However, investigators stated that Mexico will not extradite Avila because they do not penalize those crimes the same way. As long as he remains in Mexico, he will likely never be held accountable. 

Melissa said she is trying to have forgiveness in her heart because she believes that is how her son would respond.

“He would probably say in regard to Rafael that it was an accident and that he forgave him,” Melissa Dubas said. “My guess is that that’s what he would say. And so even though that’s hard for us because we’re in the midst of all the pain, I know that’s what he would think.”

As the investigation extends past the southern border, the focus in Omaha shifts entirely to the tough road ahead and the recovery already defying the odds.

Melissa said Dominic is in what they call a minimally conscious state. He just started communicating through blinks and hand squeezes, which is more than what they thought he would be able to do. She went on to compliment the kindness of Austinites and said the prayers have given her a sense of peace through all of this.