The Brief: March 18, 2015
A bill allowing the carrying of handguns on college and university campuses wasn't heard on the Senate floor on Tuesday because of a paperwork error. But it is expected to be heard today and will likely pass. Full Story
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![Sen. Joan Huffman R-Houston]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
State Could Pay for Special Needs Students to Transfer
Under a bill before lawmakers Tuesday, the state would expand an existing program to pay if special needs students need to transfer out of schools that aren't serving their individual needs. Full Story
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![Stacy Ford taking her daughter, Aurora, who is 11 years old and has Down Syndrome, to school on Tuesday, March 19, 2013.]()
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Botched Toll Bills Prompt $1.7 Millon in Refunds
Billing problems on state toll roads are bigger than TxDOT previously announced, and customers who have been overcharged will be getting about $1.7 million back. Full Story
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Property and Business Tax Cut Measures Head to Full Senate
The Senate Finance Committee voted Tuesday to send proposals cutting property taxes and business taxes to the full Senate, though some senators questioned whether the property tax cuts could be better spent in other ways. Full Story
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![Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, confers with Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa, D-McAllen, during a March 11, 2015, committee hearing on state contracting issues.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Bill Creating High School Graduation Panels Passes Texas Senate
High school seniors who have failed their state exams may still have a shot at earning a diploma. A bill providing them a way around the requirement continues to advance in the Texas Legislature. Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
House Committee Takes Up Open Carry, Campus Carry Bills
One day after the Texas Senate voted to loosen state handgun regulations, a House committee Tuesday considered proposals to allow the open carry of handguns with a license and the concealed carry of handguns on college campuses. Full Story
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![Former House member Suzanna Hupp, who lost her parents in the Killeen Luby's massacre, testifies for open carry bills in House Homeland Security Committee on March 17, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Denton Fracking Ban Tees Up Local Control Fight
Plenty of lawmakers are siding with the oil industry in response to Denton's vote to ban fracking inside city limits. What's surprising this session is how few are weighing in for local control. Full Story
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![Fracking in Fort Worth, Sept. 27, 2013]()
Credit: Mark Graham -
During His Texas Years, a Focused Jeb Bush Stood Out From the Crowd
As former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush gears up for an expected presidential run, longtime friends and colleagues say the native Texan always had the aura of political potential hanging over him. Full Story
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![Jeb Bush, back left, on the University of Texas varsity tennis team as a junior in 1973. The team photo appeared in the 1973 Cactus Yearbook.]()
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Deregulating Tuition Slowed Increase, Universities Say
Lawmakers riled up by higher education costs want to regain their control of setting tuition at state colleges and universities. But at most schools, tuition has gone up more slowly since the schools took over the job, a Tribune analysis shows. Full Story
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![Sen. Charles Schwertner R-Georgetown, at a February Texas Tribune event.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
New in Trib+Health: Healthy Body, Healthy Brain
In this week's edition of the Trib+Health newsletter: How healthy lifestyles lead to a healthier brain, a big milestone in Liberia's fight on Ebola and an interview with Belinda Reininger of the University of Texas School of Public Health Brownsville Regional Campus. Full Story
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The Brief: March 17, 2015
Oil prices are falling again with worries growing anew that the price per barrel might dip below $40. Full Story
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![An oil pump.]()
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Texas A&M Preparing Bid for 2016 Presidential Debate
Texas A&M University is finalizing its application to host a 2016 presidential or vice presidential debate. Full Story
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Credit: Todd Wiseman/The Texas Tribune -
Double-Dipping Ban Sails Out of Committee
Longtime elected officials would no longer be able to use an obscure perk to boost their take-home pay under a bill that sailed out of a House committee Monday. The proposed double-dipping ban now heads to the House floor. Full Story
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Perry and Cruz Deploy Differing Styles in New Hampshire
Both Rick Perry and Ted Cruz are showing New Hampshire voters that they are willing to brave icy weather to travel across the state and get their messages to voters. But the two likely Republican presidential candidates are taking different paths. Full Story
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![Rick Perry and U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and 2014 RedState Gathering at the Worthington Renaissance Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas on August 8, 2014.]()
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Texas Senate Approves Open Carry of Handguns
A bill lifting some of the state's restrictions on handguns passed easily on a 20-11 vote after repeated Democratic efforts to amend it were defeated. Full Story
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![Jason Orsek with Come and Take it America wears a cloth gun holder with a photo of a gun imprinted on it at the Texas Capitol on Feb. 12, 2015, when the Senate Committee on State Affairs heard testimony on gun-related bills.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Sanctuary Cities Bill Back in Play in Senate
After taking a backseat in 2013, legislation to cut off funding to so-called sanctuary cities that don't use local police to enforce federal immigration laws is under debate before a Senate subcommittee. Full Story
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![Sen. Charles Perry during a March 16th, 2015 Senate Subcommittee on border security]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Bill Moving Public Integrity Unit to AG's Office is Senate-Bound
A measure that would yank the state's public corruption-fighting unit out of the Travis County district attorney's office and stick it in the Texas attorney general's office is headed for the full Senate. Full Story
![Sen. Joan Huffman R-Houston]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Going "Where the Talent Is," Paul Opens Austin Outpost
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., on Monday opened the Austin outpost of his likely 2016 presidential campaign. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., speaks at the opening of his Austin office at downtown startup incubator incubator Capital Factory on March 16, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Analysis: When a Disclosure Report Doesn't Do Much Disclosing
State law requires lobbyists to report what they spend on legislators and other state officials. But the loopholes are big: Less than 5 percent of the lobby's reported spending on food and beverage names the eaters and the drinkers. Full Story
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The Brief: March 16, 2015
Legislative activity begins to ramp up in the two chambers this week with speculation rampant that the Senate might take up as early as today legislation that would allow permitted gun owners to carry handguns openly. Full Story
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![Anti-guns advocates inside Texas Capitol where the Senate Committee on State Affairs is listening to testimony SB 11 & SB 17 both related to handguns on Feb. 12th, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera