LaMantia: Legislature must do more to help lower property insurance costs along Gulf Coast

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – State Sen. Morgan LaMantia believes homeowners and businesses based along the Texas Gulf Coast are having to pay too much for property insurance.

Because of the threat of hurricanes and severe storms, regular insurance premiums are very high. So, the Sate of Texas provided an alternative way to have property along the coast insured.

The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) is the insurer of last resort, offering windstorm and hail insurance to home and commercial property owners who cannot get this coverage in the regular market due to the risk of catastrophic hurricanes.

LaMantia, D-South Padre Island, spoke about TWIA at a 88th Legislature Update Luncheon hosted recently by Brownsville Chamber of Commerce. She admitted that efforts to put more money into TWIA – so that property insurance rates along the coast could drop – had failed during the recent legislative session.

LaMantia said: "We also worked on the cost of living. TWIA is a huge issue for our areas on the coast. And it's another cost that the rest of the state doesn't have. And we're trying to bring those costs down and, no, we weren't as successful as we wanted to be in really reestablishing how TWIA is funded."

LaMantia said the Legislature will revisit the issue next session.

"And so it is something we will continue to work on next session. Because when your wind insurance costs are higher than your property taxes… it is a huge burden not just for our families and homeowners, but for local businesses and for other businesses that can't come into our community as well."

LaMantia said the State of Texas should do more to help homeowners and businesses based on the coast.

"With so much tourism going on in our coastal communities, that benefits the rest of the state. We need the rest of the state's help funding TWIA and bringing those costs down for us as well," she said.

Here is an audio recording of everything Sen. LaMantia said at the Brownsville Chamber event:

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