With the one-year anniversary of the BP oil-rig explosion approaching, Ian Crawford of KUT News spoke with Carter Smith, executive director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, about the state of the Gulf and why researchers may be studying its effects for decades.
February 2011
Posted inState Government
The Brief: Top Texas News for Feb. 25, 2011
School districts, taking a pummeling under current state budget proposals, got to breathe a tiny sigh of relief on Thursday.
Posted in
Economy
Voices of the Mentally Ill
As lawmakers consider cutting community-based mental health care services by about 20 percent in the 2012-2013 budget, the Texas Tribune talks with mentally ill Harris County Jail inmates and with consumers who use community-based services to stay out of jail and off the streets.
Posted in
State Government
Why Gambling’s Odds Have Improved (Hint: We’re Broke)
Like the Republican Party of Texas and many of his core voters, Gov. Rick Perry no longer supports expanded gambling here. This year, that might not make any difference.
Posted in
Public Education
Do Texas Schools Spend Too Much on Administration?
For lawmakers scrutinizing every possible saving, “administrative costs” presents an easy mark. But there may be less to cut than they imagine.
Posted in
Economy
Mental Health Cuts Would Strain Local Jails
Proposed reductions in community-based mental health treatment, experts say, will mean more mentally ill Texans are likely to end up on the streets, in emergency rooms and behind bars, where it will cost local taxpayers even more to care for them.
Posted in
Public Education
Bill Would Shield School Finance System From Lawsuits
Some state lawmakers are hoping a new state constitutional amendment will bring an end to the so-called Robin Hood school finance system, as Texas Public Radio’s David Martin Davies reports.
Posted in
State Government
Voices of the Mentally Ill
As lawmakers consider cutting community-based mental health care services, the Tribune talks with mentally ill Harris County Jail inmates and with consumers who use community-based services to stay out of jail and off the streets.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Cigarroa: Campus Carry Creates “Less-Safe Environment”
Today, University of Texas System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa issued a letter to Gov. Rick Perry weighing in on the touchy issue of allowing concealed handguns in college campus buildings. In short: He’s against it.
Posted in
State Government
TDCJ Bans Thousands of Books in State Prisons
Inmates looking to catch up on their Shakespeare are out of luck. They won’t find Love Poems & Sonnets in any Texas lock-up. The Texas Civil Rights Project released a report today on the list of 11,850 books banned by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.