Report: Cost of Obesity Rising
Obesity cost Texas businesses $9.5 billion in 2009, according to a report released today by Comptroller Susan Combs. It could cost them $32.5 billion annually by 2030. Full Story
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Credit: Callie Richmond -
Veteran Who Shot Baby Seeks Clemency
He was an Army veteran and a Houston security guard who had never been arrested until February 2002, when a fight with his wife sent Timothy Adams into a suicidal spiral. During a stand-off with police, Adams fatally shot his 19-month-old son twice in the chest — landing him a spot on death row. Full Story
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![Timothy Wayne Adams, convicted of murdering his 19-month-old son, is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Feb. 22, 2011.]()
Credit: Courtesy www.timothywayneadams.com -
A Conversation with Rob Eissler
For our latest TribLive conversation, I sat down with the chairman of the House Public Education Committee to talk about the coming cuts to public ed: how big they're likely to be, the prospect of tens of thousands of teacher and non-instructional-staff layoffs and whether new revenue sources are on the table. Full Story
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A Trio of Bills on Student Ticketing
State Rep. Armando Walle, D-Houston, has filed three bills aimed at regulating the practice of ticketing students for misbehavior in public schools. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
El Paso's Water Crisis
El Pasoans are not supposed to shower today. Or wash dishes, or do the laundry. The city is in the third day of a severe water shortage, which was partly caused by last week's rolling blackouts. Restrictions may be lifted tonight. Full Story
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The Midday Brief: Top Texas Headlines for Feb. 7, 2011
Your afternoon reading: Texas faces lawsuits over education cuts; bill targets "sexting"; and El Paso nears end of water crisis Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
Watson Files Bill to Make Sexting Illegal
"Sexting" — sending or receiving pornographic images via cell phones — should be a criminal offense for teenagers, say Attorney General Greg Abbott and Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin. Full Story
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Heflin: Most Sensible Solution Is Reduced Spending
More money is not the answer to our current woes. Just as anyone managing a household budget knows, when a family’s expenses grow beyond its income, the solution is to cut back — particularly if its spending habits resemble the state's. Full Story
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![Former state Rep. Talmadge Heflin is the director of the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Center for Fiscal Policy.]()
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Castro: Start by Casting Aside Wishful Thinking
We need a balanced approach that uses our reserves and adds revenue. And we have to start by casting aside wishful thinking; we are writing the 2012-13 budget, with higher costs and increased enrollment in education and health care services — not some past budget. Full Story
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What They'd Do About the Budget Shortfall
We asked three big thinkers in the Capitol community — Talmadge Heflin, Eva DeLuna Castro and Bill Hammond — to tell us what they'd do if they had the power to take on the budget shortfall themselves. Full Story
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Hammond: No Time to Be Penny-Wise, Pound-Foolish
We must continue to fight to ensure that we implement cost-saving reforms that reflect Texas' commitment to prosperity and to economic growth. But our current budget shortfall isn't a time to be penny-wise and pound-foolish. Full Story
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![Bill Hammond is the CEO of the Texas Association of Business.]()
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The Brief: Top Texas News for Feb. 7, 2011
The causes may have been explained away, but the fallout from last week's rolling blackouts may just be heating up. Full Story
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Credit: Callie Richmond -
In West Texas, a Town's Fate Tied to Its School
With just 56 students, Marathon ISD is one of the state's smallest. But its fate is critical to the West Texas town's survival. And if what is happening here works, it could serve as a model for other towns looking to shield their way of life from the death knell of school closures. Full Story
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Can a Pro-Choice Republican Win in Texas?
State Comptroller Susan Combs may test that question. She is considering a run for lieutenant governor in 2014. Full Story
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Inside Intelligence: A Pro-Choice GOP Candidate Will...
For the latest installment of our nonscientific survey of political and policy insiders on issues of the moment, we asked whether a Republican who supports abortion rights can survive a statewide primary, whether the sonogram bill on the governor's list of emergency items addresses a real or a political problem, whether it will pass and what other issues of interest to social conservatives might win approval from this Legislature this year. Full Story
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Pretty Good Forecasting
The keepers of numbers over in the LBJ Building, north of the Capitol, have confirmed to lawmakers what they warned them about in 2006: The legislation that cut local school property taxes and revised the state's corporate franchise tax didn't balance, to the tune of $10 billion a biennium. Full Story
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Will Europe Thwart Texas Executions?
Texas has enough supplies of a key drug to carry out only two more executions. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is exploring its options, including what other states are doing. But the drug alternatives are limited and would most likely still leave Texas reliant on nations that oppose the death penalty. Full Story
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Last Words: "All Right, Warden, Let's Do It."
Before prison officials administer the lethal cocktail of drugs used to carry out executions, the condemned may say their final piece. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice keeps a record of these last statements. Full Story
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Texplainer: Could Texas Fire Up Old Sparky?
The short answer is yes — and no. It's still around, and would work if it was plugged in. But it can't be used for executions in Texas anymore. Full Story
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TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
The best of our best from January 31 to February 4. Full Story
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