The Brief: April 15, 2014
Julián Castro and Dan Patrick square off this evening in a San Antonio television studio in their long-awaited debate over immigration. Here are some things to watch for. Full Story
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![San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, a Democrat, and State Sen. Dan Patrick, a Republican who is running for lieutenant governor, are set to debate immigration policy in Castro's hometown on April 15.]()
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Davis Continues Attacks on Abbott's Education Proposals
At an event in Austin on Monday, Democrat Wendy Davis accused Republican gubernatorial opponent Greg Abbott of proposing increased testing and denying equal access to pre-K education. Full Story
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![Texas gubernatorial candidate, Sen. Wendy Davis speaks to press following an education rally in Austin, Texas on April 14th]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Despite Changes, Driver Surcharge Program Faces Continued Opposition
UPDATED: Lawmakers are unlikely to abolish the Driver Responsibility Program next year, but at a hearing Monday, they encouraged critics of it to submit recommendations for reform. Full Story
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UT Regent Wallace Hall Case Referred to Travis County Prosecutors
Allegations of potential criminal wrongdoing in the handling of private student information on the part of University of Texas System Regent Wallace Hall have been referred to Travis County prosecutors. Full Story
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Analysis: Property Tax Irritation Includes a Fairness Question
Not everybody who is upset with property taxes wants them abolished. A new group that started in Houston wants to increase appraised values on commercial property. Full Story
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Criticism of Water Policy Flows From Conservatives
Many conservative activists in Texas worry that when it comes to state water policy, Republican leaders have not focused on principles like small government, private property rights and local control. Full Story
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![Granbury resident Joe Williams (left) stands with City Council Member Rose Myers and Hood County Commissioner Steve Berry under a Lake Granbury resident's dock in the Waters Edge neighborhood on Lake Granbury's north shore. The lake is 53 percent full.]()
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Medicare Data Shines Light on Billions Paid to Texas Doctors
Texas doctors who treat Medicare patients earned a combined $4.6 billion from the federal insurer of the elderly in 2012, with the state's ophthalmologists and oncologists raking in the most. Full Story
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The Brief: April 14, 2014
The Austin American-Statesman is reporting that Gov. Rick Perry has hired a defense lawyer to represent him in an ongoing investigation into his veto of funding for the Public Integrity Unit housed in the Travis County DA's office. Full Story
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera / Bob Daemmrich -
Inside Texas Politics: Rollouts, Reboots and Acts of Love
On this week's edition of WFAA-TV's Inside Texas Politics, I talked with host Jason Whitely and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Bud Kennedy about embattled UT System Regent Wallace Hall, Greg Abbott's education plan and more. Full Story
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![Texas Tribune Executive Editor Ross Ramsey on WFAA-TV's "Inside Texas Politics" on April 13, 2014.]()
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Railroads Filling Void as Oil Pipeline Falls Short
As drillers produce millions of barrels of crude oil in shale plays in Texas and the Midwest, railroad companies are finding booming business in transporting the oil to Gulf Coast refineries. Full Story
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![The Jefferson Rail Transload Terminal at the Port of Beaumont on April 8, 2014. The terminal offloads oil from rail cars onto barges bound for refineries on the Gulf Coast. (Photo by Michael Stravato)]()
Credit: Michael Stravato -
Davis: Abbott is Backing Away From Pre-K Plan
At the Texas State Teachers Association’s convention in San Marcos on Saturday, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis accused her Republican opponent, Greg Abbott, of retreating from his early education policy proposal. Full Story
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![Senator Wendy Davis addresses the Texas Democratic Women’s Convention in Austin, TX.]()
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The Playlist: Eyes on the Prize
We kick off this week's Texas news-based playlist with "Eyes on the Prize" as sung by Mavis Staples, who participated in the LBJ Presidential Library's three-day summit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Full Story
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Slideshow: Images From the Civil Rights Summit
Four U.S. presidents visited Austin's LBJ Presidential Library this week for a three-day summit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Take a photographic tour of the historic event. Full Story
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![President Obama spoke at the Civil Rights Summit on the University of Texas at Austin campus on Thursday, April 10, 2014.
Laura Skelding / Austin American Statesman]()
Credit: Laura Skelding / Austin American Statesman -
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
The best of our best content from April 7-11, 2014. Full Story
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Report: Air Quality to Worsen in Eagle Ford Shale
A newly released but largely unnoticed study commissioned by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality makes some dire predictions about what will happen to air quality in South Texas as the Eagle Ford Shale boom continues. Full Story
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![An oil & gas drilling rig is drilling a well for Pioneer Natural Resources in the Eagle Ford Shale formation near Yorktown.]()
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Texas Banking Chief Issues Rules for Bitcoin
A new memo from the Texas Department of Banking says that the state will not treat Bitcoin as money but that some companies dealing in Bitcoin transactions will fall under the state's banking regulations. Full Story
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Report: San Antonio, Austin Among Solar Power Leaders
San Antonio ranks sixth among U.S. cities in installed solar power capacity, and Austin ranks 16th, according to a new report. Full Story
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Judge Denies Homeowners' Efforts to Halt Orthodox Worship
A judge has denied an injunction a Plano homeowners association sought to stop orthodox Jews from walking through the neighborhood to attend in-home religious ceremonies. Full Story
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Giving Up on Red Tape, Some Doctors Turn to Cash-Based Model
While efforts are underway to decrease Texas' rate of residents without health coverage, Texas is seeing an increase in primary care practitioners who are no longer accepting any forms of insurance. Full Story
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![A patient pays cash for a visit to Dr. Gustavo Villarreal's office in Laredo. Villarreal no longer accepts any form of health insurance.]()
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Analysis: Smitherman Lost, but Stays in Game
Railroad Commissioner Barry Smitherman lost his bid for attorney general, but he remains an oil and gas regulator and has sought industry help retiring campaign debts and perhaps landing a job. Full Story
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![Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman in his office on May 31, 2013.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman
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