Controversy continues to swirl around
Texas Mutual Insurance Company and its relationship with the Travis County, Texas District Attorney’s Office.
Since it came to light that Texas Mutual was paying the District Attorney’s office more than $400,000 a year since around 2000 to prosecute the insurance company’s fraud cases, there have been many calls for the practice to stop. District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg has indicated she will not renew the contract at least until after the dust settles. It had been set to automatically renew Oct. 1.
Two newspapers—The Texas Tribune and the Austin American-Statesman--have requested emails and other records related to the case, and state Attorney General Ken Paxton sided with the newspapers and ordered the county to turn over the records. Now, though, Lehmberg is suing to block the release of the records. She has already released the contracts themselves, but claims she is protecting public interest in keeping the rest of the records secret.
Lehmberg claims her office and Texas Mutual share a “privity of interest” in the prosecution of the company’s fraud cases. She says there are exceptions to transparency laws that shield the records of private companies working with the government. She says records of negotiations over the public contract with the insurer must remain secret.
