Senate Education Panel Considers "Parent Trigger" Bill
A bill that would make it easier for Texas parents to ask school boards to take action against failing schools sparked contentious debate in a Senate committee on Tuesday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/02/14/SchoolFleeing-2.jpg)
-
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman / Chris Cole / Paul Sounders -
Updated: Senate Committee Approves Michael Morton Act
A panel of Senate lawmakers on Tuesday approved a bill that aims to prevent wrongful convictions by requiring prosecutors to share evidence with defense attorneys in criminal trials. Full Story
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera / Bob Daemmrich -
Norwood's Lawyers Rest Their Case in Murder Trial
After calling just three witnesses on Mark Norwood's behalf, lawyers for the man accused of killing Christine Morton in 1986 rested their case Tuesday afternoon. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/19/txtrib-Norwood2-CCR007.jpg)
![Defendant Mark Norwood enters the Tom Green County Courthouse for opening hearings, Mar 19, 2013.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond -
Reynolds Booked Into Montgomery County Jail
State Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, walked into the Montgomery County Jail on Tuesday morning to be booked on two counts of barratry. In a statement released Monday night, he maintained his innocence. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/26/reynolds-ronald_1.jpg)
![Booking photo for State Rep. Ron Reynolds on two counts of barratry into the Montgomery County Jail March 26, 2013.]()
Credit: Illustration by Montgomery County Jail -
Senate Passes Prosecutor Accountability Bill
The Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that attempts to bring more accountability to prosecutors who are accused of withholding evidence in cases that result in a wrongful conviction. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Legislators Take Up Windstorm Insurance Reform Bills
Legislators, coastal residents and insurance leaders agree it will take a dynamic approach to reform the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. The Senate Business and Commerce Committee discussed four TWIA bills Tuesday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/26/Twia-Ike-Damage.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Meg Cheng -
Feds Approve New Vaccine Facility in Bryan-College Station
The federal government has approved a $91 million influenza-vaccine manufacturing facility based in the Bryan-College Station area to be run by the Texas A&M University System and pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Bickering Erupts at Railroad Commission Meeting
A day before a major legislative hearing about the future of the Railroad Commission, interpersonal tensions between the three commissioners boiled over at an open meeting. The commissioners also voted to approve new rules to make recycling oilfield wastewater easier. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/26/TRC.jpg)
![The Texas Railroad Commission, comprised of Chairman Barry T. Smitherman (center), and commissioners David Porter (left) and Christi Craddick (right) hold an open meeting in Austin, Texas on Jan. 15, 2013.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa -
Inside Intelligence: About Those Term Limits...
For this week's nonscientific survey of insiders in government and politics, we asked about term limits for statewide officials, for legislators and members of Congress, and whether officeholders should receive lifetime pensions for 10-12 years of service. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/inside_intelligence-logo-Hahn-sponsorship.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
-
Guest Column: Texas Leads in Testing, but Not in Education
Texas outspends every state in the nation on testing and leads in the number of tests it requires students to pass to graduate from high school. But that has not translated to a lead in students' education performance. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/20/Heinrich_Carolyn.jpg)
![Carolyn Heinrich]()
-
Guest Column: Education in Wonderland
Getting rid of standardized tests in public education would make it impossible to find out whether students have mastered the basics or acquired the skills necessary for success. Tests are the best way to measure results for students. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/21/Spellings.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
-
Moody to Present One-Way Discovery Measure
State Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, on Tuesday plans to present a revised version of his criminal discovery bill that would require only prosecutors to disclose information in criminal trials. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/02/26/EvidenceExchange-1.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
The Polling Center: Texans' View of Gay Marriage Shifts
While the country has been jogging toward its new position on gay marriage, polling numbers show Texans appear to have been moseying along in the same direction. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/TxTrib-GayParents001.JPG)
![Brian Stephens, left, and Andy Miller with their son, Clark, on Jan. 21, 2013, in Austin.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge -
Hot Seat: A Conversation with Fraser and King
At last Friday's Hot Seat conversation at Abilene Christian University, state Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, and state Rep. Susan King, R-Abilene, talked about public education, health care, water, the state budget and other issues in play in the 83rd session. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/image_9.jpeg)
![Article thumbnail]()
-
Judicial Donations Raise Questions of Partiality
Texas Supreme Court justices are elected by voters, and the campaign contributions they receive from law firms with an interest in their decisions have caused some to worry that justice is for sale. Full Story
Credit: Graphic by Tamir Kalifa and Bob Daemmrich -
Battle Lines Forming as Texas House Tackles Education Testing Bill
As House lawmakers prepare for their first major education policy debate, they have pre-filed 165 amendments. Supporters of reform say the current system is too restrictive, but opponents worry proposed changes could reverse advancements. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/StandardTesting-1.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Shannan Muskopf -
Transparency Bills Draw Strange Bedfellows
This session’s effort to make state government more transparent and ethical — spearheaded by some of the Legislature’s most conservative members and its most liberal ones — has attracted the strangest of bedfellows. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/PersonalFinancialStatements_1.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
Lawmaker Hopes to Boost Hispanic Civic Engagement
In an attempt to increase civic participation among the state's growing Hispanic population, state Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, has filed a bill to make legislative information from the state House available on the internet in Spanish. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
The Brief: March 26, 2013
One of the biggest Supreme Court cases in years has cast a cloud of uncertainty over the fate of gay marriage bans still in place throughout most of the country, including Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/PrideFlag.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Jason Pier -
Board Tables Proposal to Put TWIA Into Receivership
The board of the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association voted on Monday to table a proposal by Texas Insurance Commissioner Eleanor Kitzman that would essentially declare the agency bankrupt. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/03/25/TWIA-Ike-House-Damage.jpg)
![Article thumbnail]()
Credit: Meg Cheng
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/0ee7eeb58cd8f863459efe1f6e208623/DO%20NOT%20USE%20Duncan%20Morton%20Ellis%202013)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/bce733f35178779863cded8ff67137d6/BD%20INC%20Morton%20SB825%202013)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/da2166a8f61e0236e516306de49ccd74/BD%20INC%20AM%20Vaccine%20Lab%20095%202013)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/98e2032db2e856f9abb6ecd907f54121/DO%20NOT%20USE%20Bidness%20Supreme%20COurt)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9af90b409b0c866915c660f3d788618a/.dontusevoting)