Reform of the Texas homeowners’ insurance market in 2003 called for a file-and-use regulatory system. However, in 2009, the Sunset Advisory Commission’s Staff Report on the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) rightly concluded that the “Legislature cannot judge the success of the shift to file-and-use rate regulation because the system has not been fully implemented.” Conditions have little improved since the report was issued.
Taxes & Spending
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of Austin
Does history suggest that property taxes are too high in the city of Austin? And, if so, have local decision-makers actively helped or hurt the situation? To help answer these questions, let’s review the city’s 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) and gather four types of data—i.e., tax levies, local population, total tax rates, and taxable values—over a 10-year time horizon. Using these audited estimates, we can gauge the growth of government (i.e., tax levy trends), assess its reasonability...
February 19, 2026