Texas / South Central News

Texas Officials Prepare for Hurricane Season as Pandemic Threat Continues

More hurricanes and tropical storms than usual could make landfall in the United States this summer, forecasters predict. That is sending Texans and officials who are increasingly facing severe weather events scrambling to prepare for another natural disaster while they …

Lawsuit Alleges $100M Katrina Aid Fraud by New Orleans Universities, Archdiocese

Two New Orleans universities, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans and a government contractor are defendants in a whistleblower lawsuit alleging fraud involving more than $100 million in Hurricane Katrina aid. The 2016 federal lawsuit was unsealed Wednesday by …

Republican Lawmakers Add Mistake in Signature Business Bill

BATON ROUGE, La. — After a last-minute scramble to pass the business lobby’s top priority for the regular session, Republican legislators quickly realized they mangled the language of the bill aimed at limiting damage claims against insurance companies in car …

Lexington Insurance Wins Texas Battle of Hurricane Harvey Deductibles

In a case of competing deductibles, a federal appeals court has sided with an insurer and against the owner of two Houston office buildings, holding that a larger windstorm deductible applied to flood damage caused by Hurricane Harvey rather than …

3 Gulf Coast States Get $88M in Disaster Funds for Fisheries Flooding

NEW ORLEANS — Three Gulf Coast states are getting more than $88 million in fisheries disaster funds for damage from last year’s flooding, which included an unprecedented two openings of a spillway west of New Orleans. “These funds will help …

Bid to Force Interruption Insurance to Cover Virus Shelved

BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana lawmakers won’t try to force business interruption insurance policies to cover the widespread closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Sen. Rick Ward, a Port Allen Republican, scrapped the proposal Wednesday amid concerns it could crater …

GOP Lawmakers Look to Limit Car Accident Claims in Louisiana

BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana’s Republican lawmakers Tuesday advanced proposals to limit damage claims against businesses in car wreck lawsuits, pushing ahead with the pre-coronavirus priority as Democrats argued the debate was inappropriate amid a pandemic. House and Senate committees …

Southwest Jet Hits, Kills Man While Landing on Texas Runway

Authorities are investigating how a man managed to get onto a runway at the airport in Austin, Texas, where he was struck and killed by a landing Southwest Airlines Co. jet. No one on the jet was hurt but the …

Split Okla. Supreme Court Sides With Plaintiffs in Attorney Fee Dispute

An insurer that failed to pay a claim within 60 days cannot be considered the prevailing party even if a claimant is eventually awarded less than the carrier’s settlement offer, a divided Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled. The 6-3 opinion marks …

Blue Bell Pleads In Ice Cream Listeria Case; Ex-CEO Charged

AUSTIN — A Texas ice cream company has pleaded guilty to distributing contaminated goods and its former CEO has been charged with conspiracy and attempted wire fraud in connection to a 2015 listeria outbreak that left three people dead, federal …

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