For the seventh time since he became governor in 2000, Gov. Rick Perry will appear before a joint session of the Texas Senate and House on Tuesday to deliver his biennial State of the State speech. 

Thanks to his state pension — the subject of double-dipping controversy — and the sale of an interest in gas wells, Gov. Rick Perry got a pay bump in 2011, according to tax returns he provided to the Tribune.

The legislative session just started, but it seems clear that state leaders are running low on what a former president from Texas once called "the vision thing." 

The budget proposals released by lawmakers this week show an interest in revamping school testing and the state's economic incentive programs.

The White House, responding to calls for secession from Texas and seven other states, has called for healthy debate, but to not let "that debate tear us apart."

In light of the improved economic forecast announced recently by the state comptroller, education advocates are asking for more money to go to Texas' public education system — the state's preschools included.

In a speech calling for tax cuts in the new legislative session, Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday bashed the federal government for its "irresponsible" spending decisions and praised Texas' fiscal restraint.

State Rep. Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie, says he’s found the perfect way for elected officials to put their money where there mouths are when it comes to exercising fiscal restraint: ban "double-dipping" by politicians.

Texas legislators started their 83rd session with leaders who want to focus on water, infrastructure, budget transparency, education — and, perhaps, some tax relief.

Legislators, journalists and others shared thousands of tweets and photos on Tuesday, the first day of the 83rd legislative session. Check out this selection of what they shared.

With improving fiscal conditions and redistricting in the rearview, lawmakers are approaching 2013 with pressing policy questions, from whether to introduce private school vouchers to whether to implement key provisions of federal health reform.

The year began with Rick Perry's first political losses and ends with speculation about his future and about the entire political organization chart in Texas. A last look at what happened in between.

After a botched run for the presidency and with growing disenchantment among Tea Party activists, Gov. Rick Perry is facing some potentially strained policy discussions when the Legislature convenes in January.

Two legislative committees are set to hold hearings on state programs designed to encourage businesses to invest here, about a week after a New York Times series brought increased attention to Texas' approach to such incentives.

In New York on Wednesday, Gov. Rick Perry bragged about his home state's many strengths, praising two of his signature health care initiatives — tort reform and stem cell research — in an interview with Steve Forbes. 

Gov. Rick Perry calls on the Legislature to enact welfare reforms.

When Ken Armbrister, chief legislative aide to Gov. Rick Perry, said last week that Perry had told him he was going to run for re-election in 2014, Armbrister may have done his boss a favor.

In El Paso, Gov. Rick Perry continued what has become a pre-session push for a top item on his policy agenda: higher education reform.