Activists Rally for Home Health Care
Health care providers who treat profoundly disabled children at home face major budget cuts this session — cuts they say would devastate their industry and cost the state more in the long run. Full Story
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Health care providers who treat profoundly disabled children at home face major budget cuts this session — cuts they say would devastate their industry and cost the state more in the long run. Full Story
In a meeting this morning punctuated by harsh denunciations of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Texas Railroad Commission voted unanimously to clear a natural gas driller, Range Resources, of charges that it contaminated two water wells in Parker County. The EPA, however, said it stands by its charges against the driller. Full Story
The Senate passed a bill today that would streamline the process of obtaining a medical license in Texas for out-of-state doctors. Full Story
To Democrats' momentary relief, House debate on Monday over voter ID stalled before it even seemed to get started. Full Story
With strict immigration bills awaiting debate in the Legislature, thousands of unaccompanied minors continue to head toward the U.S. border. Mario Carrillo of KUT News and Reporting Texas looks at why they come — and what happens if they're caught. Full Story
Texas' environmental regulators, already under fire from green groups for not doing enough to keep air and water pollution in check, are bracing for deep cuts as lawmakers hash out the budget. Full Story
The senior executive editor of Texas Monthly on the biennial list of the Best and Worst Legislators, now coming together for the 20th time, on how he decides who's in and who's out, and on how this crop of lawmakers is shaping up. Full Story
Texas is summoning all of its political firepower to do battle against the Environmental Protection Agency. A newly announced task force of state and federal lawmakers will try to prevent the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases and abolishing the state's flexible permitting system for refineries and other big plants. Full Story
That's what 1,200 gallons of fresh paint will do for a dome. Full Story
One word in the voter ID bill brought debate in the Texas House to a halt today, postponing passage of the measure — one of Gov. Rick Perry's emergency items — for at least a couple of days. Full Story
Your afternoon reading: Democrat's procedural objection sustained, ending voter ID debate for the day; National Review on Tom Leppert Full Story
With voter ID set to hit the House floor today, how hard will Democrats fight? Full Story
For the latest installment of our nonscientific survey of political and policy insiders, we asked whether the full Legislature will go along with a deal to tap the Rainy Day Fund and about how the budget process will finally work out. Full Story
Anglo Democrats — an endangered species when the political mapmakers were working in 2001 — might be a protected species this year. Many of them represent districts full of minority voters they say are protected from disruptive redistricting. Full Story
After running a gantlet of concerned legislators, Gene Powell, the chairman of the University of Texas System Board of Regents, took steps last week to assuage concerns over his direction of the system. Full Story
In our last episode, Appropriations Chairman Jim Pitts was about to open his umbrella for a deal that would use $4.3 billion from the Rainy Day Fund to balance the current year's budget, and that was going to happen at the beginning of the week. Full Story
The former U.S. ambassador to Mexico, South Texas native Antonio Garza, said he thinks his successor’s resignation this weekend was the right move if he felt he was no longer up to task. Full Story
State health officials, searching for solutions to Texas’ budget shortfall, are eying neonatal intensive care units, which they fear are being overbuilt and overused by hospitals eager to profit from the high-cost care. Full Story
Grissom on threats to re-entry programs for criminals, Hamilton on the tempest over the direction of UT, E. Smith's interview with Joe Straus, Stiles and Chang's new lobbying app, M. Smith and Weber on where state officeholders send their children to school, Aaronson on allowing new nuclear power plants, Aguilar on how Hispanic Republicans are handling immigration issues, Ramshaw talks abortion with Planned Parennthood's Cecile Richards, Tan and Dehn on tapping the Rainy Day Fund and Galbraith on San Antonio and its water: The best of our best content from March 14 to 18, 2011. Full Story
Dan Neil conceded to Democrat Donna Howard of Austin in the House District 48 race Friday afternoon, just days after a House committee turned back his challenge to the November election results. Full Story