This provided perfect partisan warfare bookends to the legislative session that put politics ahead of policy. Republican Senator John Carona from Dallas said it best when he described this as Republicans “reaping what we have sown.”

* SB 263 – Texas has more than its fair share of shovel-ready highway improvement projects. This bill relates to the bonds necessary to get these projects moving.

* SB 12 - As hurricane season approaches, it’s imperative that the state has established disaster preparedness and emergency awareness. SB 12 is a vital part of the planning in this vein.

* SB 277 – A bill relating to the Department of Family and Protective Services, SB 277 details protective services and investigations of abuse and/or exploitation of the elderly or disabled.

* SB 388 – The creation of a Public Corruption unit in the Department of Public Safety.

* SB 1022 – The mourning families of passed-on members of the Texas National Guard are entitled to certain benefits. This bill establishes these benefits.

* SB 16 – As the nation’s leading energy producer, Texas certainly has an interest in air quality and energy efficiency in buildings, vehicles and appliances. SB 16 further prepares the state for energy enhancement.

And there are others. The opportunity cost of efforts to disenfranchise voters of far too expensive. Texas lawmakers have much to consider when doing the business of good government. T voter suppression bill is just getting in the way.

The overwhelming majority were consumer friend amendments, with less than 10 seemingly directed at further protecting insurance company profits (this is a logical ratio since the current system is rigged for the insurance interests – they do not need much more help).

Pro-Consumer Amendment Highlights:

Standard Policy Forms, by Chairman John Smithee, would restore a market place mechanism to allow consumers to price shop on an “apples to apples” basis.  This would allow the free market to work to bring prices down.

Prior Approval of Rates by Smithee, Farrar and another by Trey Martinez Fischer would make insurance companies justify their rates before being implemented.  This is incredibly not the law today.

Elected Insurance Commissioner amendments by Abel Herrero and Mark Homer would make this important regulator accountable directly to the voters.

Reasonable Medical Expenses by Brian Hughes would ensure that responsible people who purchased health insurance were not disadvantaged in the legal system.  Incredibly, this is the case under some court interpretations of current law.

Prompt Payment of Claims by Craig Eiland.

Restoration of the “Made Whole Doctrine” by Eiland would make sure that responsible people who purchased health insurance would receive the full benefit of that insurance if they are injured by another party.

Minimum Auto Limits by David Leibowitz would increase the minimum standard coverage amounts in auto policies to reflect the realistic cost of today’s automobiles and health care coverage.

Voters will get to see how their elected State Reps. vote on these and many other amendments.  This will create a clear record of who is protecting insurance company profits and who is working in the interests of Texas’ hard working families.

Partisan Republicans want a voter ID bill and the Republican leadership has put many pieces of important legislation on the calendar behind this bill.  Republicans seem to be trying to force Democrats to accept a disadvantage in future elections in exchange for progressive legislation now.

While this “highly concentrated” business model is hurting families, insurance company profits rose from $2.44 billion in 2000 to $12.8 billion in 2007. The idea that Texans have access to a vibrant, competitive market is just not rational. Only real reform of the state’s insurance industry will bring to bear a market that works for consumers, and not just shareholders.

Democrats regard this legislation as an attempt at voter suppression because elderly, low income and disabled voters do not carry a photo ID as regularly as the more fortunate in society.  After they are turned away at the polls due to lack of formal ID and/or lack of information about the change in policy, Democrats rightly fear that many of these voters will not take the time to secure their ID and return to the polls a second time in the day.  Many Democrats regard this as a return to the days of “Jim Crow” laws when obstacles such as poll taxes were placed between poor voters and the ballot box.

Republican political consultants, on the other hand, see this issue a red meat for base Republican Primary voters who resent illegal immigration and have been misled to believe that these undocumented workers are actually voting in our elections.  Democrats point out that there is literally no evidence of this occurring – no reports of such voting from any of the election officials in our 254 counties and no prosecutions from any County or District Attorney.

So, the TDI sunset bill has been placed on the House calendar behind the most controversial matter before the legislature.  We have the highest insurance rates in the nation and the comprehensive insurance reform bill has been given a back seat, behind partisan concerns.  The clock is rapidly ticking on legislative deadlines.  Stay tuned.

“I think this is a situation where the floor is going to be a very active participant in the process,” the Amarillo representative said.

The chairman is right. The clock is ticking on this session and there are many major bills yet to be considered. Though Smithee’s actions blindsided many Democratic members of the committee, the move may well push the major insurance bill to earlier consideration by the full House. The lively debate process on the floor will also provide the opportunity for many record votes on different aspects of insurance reform.

This process may result in more transparency than we’ve seen in a while. Texas voters will be able to see where their respective officeholders stand. Floor debate is expected to take place before the end of the week.

Claiming that the insurance committee’s handling of the TDI Sunset bill last night provided context for his actions today, Insurance Vice-Chairman Martinez-Fisher challenged the recommendations of the Sunset Commission and called for a “beefing up” of OPIC, rather than letting it roll into the TDI. “OPIC is an advocate, not a regulator. An advocate should be on equal footing with the insurance companies,” Martinez-Fischer argued. This would allow the insurance commissioner to hear both sides then “call balls and strikes.”

Earlier in the debate Rep. Craig Eiland observed that consumer advocates like OPIC should not be expected to take a neutral position in bills affecting consumers. “If they’re supposed to the watch dog, they need to start watching out for the consumer,” he said. Martinez-Fischer keyed off this and inserted language that allows OPIC to argue in favor or against legislation. The leadership of Martinez-Fischer and Eiland today will be a great benefit for consumers across Texas.

This double robbery is depleting Texas families’ pocketbooks, and in turn, hurting the state’s economy. If we are to ever rise from the current economic downturn, the Legislature needs to usher in some accountability. By implementing policies requiring companies justify rate changes before they go into effect, lawmakers can better ensure that insurance is affordable, available and adequate. By failing to pursue this fundamental element of real insurance reform, however, lawmakers will be party to a system that zaps the income of everyday Texans, further hamstringing our economy. And the price of that, both monetary and political, would prove to be too expensive for everyone.

And just a couple weeks ago, we saw a golden opportunity for real reform missed when the Senate voted to renew the flawed file-and-use system that allows companies to raise rates and stack up the cash before TDI even gets a chance to review. The Beaumont Enterprise called the whole thing “backward,” and I think that’s pretty much the last word on that. If only it were that easy, though—calling it out for what it is. In fact it takes courage and common sense from elected leaders to stand up to the insurance companies who see no problem with earning otherworldly profits on the backs of everyday Texans. It’s about time to usher some fairness back into the insurance market.