The Evening Brief: Feb. 17, 2012
Your evening reading: Perry to make first appearance on behalf of Gingrich; Texas Education Agency delays STAAR's 15 percent rule; longtime Austin advisers re-joining Perry's inner circle Full Story
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Texas Education Agency Delays STAAR's 15 Percent Rule
Education Commissioner Robert Scott said today that he will postpone for a year a controversial requirement that new exams count for 15 percent of students' final grades. Full Story
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Video: How Late Texas Primary Could Affect Voters, Candidates
Federal judges have set May 29 as a tentative state primary date. The Tribune's Thanh Tan explains what that date could mean for candidates, voters and the election process. Full Story
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The Brief: Feb. 17, 2012
Rick Perry seems to want back in the presidential race — on the money side, that is. Full Story
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Turf for Sale: Schools Turn to Ads for Money
Texas school districts are getting into the advertising game as they look for ways to make ends meet after major state budget cuts. But some researchers question whether schools fully grasp the consequences of creeping commercialism. Full Story
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![Eanes ISD school bus mechanic Chase Roberts washes the dirt off the advertising on buses in West Lake Hills, Texas, on Feb. 14, 2012.]()
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Keystone Pipeline Sparks Property Rights Backlash
The Canadian company that wants to build the Keystone XL pipeline is using its land seizure powers to get property easements for the project. And it’s causing frustration in a conservative patch of Texas. Full Story
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A Rush for Water Wells as Texas Drought Drags On
As the drought drags on, many Texans are getting their own water wells drilled. But the growing demand has some worried that the groundwater could start drying up, too. Full Story
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![Workers with Bee Cave Drilling install a jackhammer bit on the drilling rig while putting in a water well on a private lot in Spicewood, Texas on February 6, 2012.]()
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Unsettled District Lines Hurting Some Candidates' Finances
Texas' state Senate maps were finalized this week, but the protracted court battle has left state House and congressional districts without boundaries. And as Andy Uhler of KUT News reports, the district-line confusion is costing some candidates time and money. Full Story
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Texans Leave the Voting to a Small Minority
With redistricting fights pushing the state's primary closer to summer, voter turnout could be even lower than normal. Full Story
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The Never-Ending Story
There is a date for primary elections, but it's uncertain. And there is one redistricting map done, with two to go. And for what it's worth, the judges seem to be in a hurry. Full Story
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Trying to Change the Subject
Elizabeth Ames Jones sent Gov. Rick Perry a letter this week quitting the Railroad Commission, but that didn't stop Sen. Jeff Wentworth's questions about whether she was eligible to serve there. Full Story
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Inside Intelligence: Predicting the Outcomes
How will the Republican primary elections for president and U.S. Senate actually turn out? Does it matter than one candidate is Mormon? Does the Tea Party have too much influence on Republicans? Full Story
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High Marks for UT Plan
A report issuing recommendations on how to raise the University of Texas at Austin's four-year graduation rate to 70 percent has received positive reviews from key players on various sides of the higher education reform issue. Full Story
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Group Aims to Bring God Into Politics
God and Country, a new Texas-based organization, will hold a rally Saturday at a Tyler church to “draw a line in the sand and aggressively and publicly defend those certain unalienable rights endowed by our creator.” Full Story
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The Evening Brief: Feb. 16, 2012
Your evening reading: Perry seeks permission to create PAC with unused campaign money; Hutchison praises Romney but stops short of an endorsement; judge to face court of inquiry over wrongful conviction Full Story
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Campaign Chatter
Gov. Rick Perry wants his campaign to go on — perhaps as a Super PAC. Full Story
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![Gov. Rick Perry with supporters at Williamson County Republican dinner in Round Rock, his first public speech since leaving the presidential race.]()
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Perry's Out, but National Campaign Could Live On
In a letter to the Federal Election Commission, Gov. Rick Perry's presidential campaign treasurer is asking for permission to use donated funds to create a new PAC, possibly even a Super PAC. Full Story
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Weekend Insider: Ads on School Property, Tobacco-Free Universities
Morgan Smith on the placement of ads on school property and Reeve Hamilton on the possibility that some Texas universities will go tobacco-free. Full Story
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Investigation Sought Into Violence at Youth Prisons
A Tribune report on increasing youth-on-youth violence at Texas Juvenile Justice Department facilities has advocates calling for an investigation into systemic problems at the agency. Full Story
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Fort Worth Judge Will Preside Over Ken Anderson Court of Inquiry
Tarrant County state district Judge Louis Sturns will lead a court of inquiry to investigate allegations of criminal misconduct against former prosecutor Ken Anderson in the wrongful murder conviction of Michael Morton. Full Story
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![Michael Morton hearing on February 10, 2012 at the Williamson Co. Courthouse.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge
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