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  • Managed Into the Red?

    By Emily Ramshaw

    Texas hospital administrators aren't thrilled about the 10 percent Medicaid provider rate cut included in the House's proposed budget. But what they fear more is the proposed expansion of Medicaid managed care, which could force them to forgo a combined $1 billion a year in federal funding. Full Story 

    Dr. Carlos Cardenas, chairman of the board at Doctor’s Hospital at Renaissance in Edinburg, performs an exam on a patient on Wednesday December 8, 2010. Many Texas hospitals like this one oppose certain aspects of the proposed expansion of Medicaid managed care.
    Credit: Gabe Hernandez

  • Guest Column: Senator Dewhurst Is Not Inevitable

    By Evan Van Ness

    If the race to succeed Kay Bailey Hutchison is over before it begins — if the lieutenant governor and his vast personal wealth have this locked up — why are so many credible candidates saying they'll run? Because they see an opportunity. Full Story 

    Governor Rick Perry, Speaker Joe Straus and Lt. Governor David Dewhurst after their first weekly breakfast meeting saying they will work together on the state budget.
    Credit: Bob Daemmrich

  • The Power Puzzle

    By Kate Galbraith

    When Texans turn on lights or plug in iPads, they are getting an increasing amount of power from the wind — and from coal plants. Last year, nearly 8 percent of the power on the state's electric grid was generated by wind, far above the national average. And coal plants produced more power than any other electricity source. The big loser was natural gas. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • Why Is Voter ID an Emergency?

    By Justin Dehn

    State Sens. John Whitmire, D-Houston, and Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock, debate the importance of voter ID, which Gov. Rick Perry has declared a legislative emergency. Perry's designation allows lawmakers to consider the measure during the first 60 days of the session. Full Story 

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  • Hinojosa: We Won't Just Play Dead

    By Justin Dehn

    It's a foregone conclusion that the composition of the Texas Senate, 19 Republicans and 12 Democrats, means the controversial voter ID bill will win approval in the upper chamber. State Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa, D-McAllen, explains why Senate Democrats have to keep the fight — despite being outnumbered. Full Story 

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  • TribBlog: Voter ID Fight Set for Tuesday

    By Julián Aguilar

    Most of the drama was saved for another day in the Texas Senate after the first installment of the planned debate over the contentious voter ID bill was postponed. Senate Democrats did their best, however, to derail Republicans’ attempts to fast track the issue, which Gov. Rick Perry declared an emergency item last week. Full Story 

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  • Texplainer: Why Is There a COW in the Capitol?

    By Ross Ramsey

    Legislation has to go through committees before the entire House or Senate can have a look. It's a way of dividing up the work and getting things straightened out as much as possible before they get the full treatment from the Legislature. But there's a pecking order involved. And that's when the COW gets called in. Full Story 

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  • Inside Intelligence: Our Next U.S. Senator is...

    By Ross Ramsey

    For the latest installment of our nonscientific survey of political and policy insiders on issues of the moment, we asked who will succeed Kay Bailey Hutchison in the U.S. Senate, who else might jump into the race, what factors are most likely to affect the outcome and what effect the political maneuvering will have on the legislative session. Full Story 

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  • TribBlog: Charles Miller Has a Plan

    By Reeve Hamilton

    If you were $10 billion in the hole, would you fork over $6 million for a chance at billions in savings? That’s the modest proposal that businessman and former chairman of the UT System regents is offering the state’s public education system. Full Story 

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  • Closing Time

    By Morgan Smith

    Texas public schools are facing what could be $10 billion less in state financing — a stark prospect that could empty school buildings across the state as districts consolidate campuses to reduce costs. What should happen to these structures, which are built with taxpayer money? Full Story 

    Barton Hills Elementary is one of eight that may close in Austin Independent School District.
    Credit: Jacob Villanueva

  • A Chicken Little Budget

    By Ross Ramsey

    Whatever budget lawmakers eventually approve will serve as the working blueprint for the state for the two years starting in September. But the budget released last week isn’t a blueprint — it’s a political document. It marks the shift from the theoretical rhetoric of the campaigns to the reality of government. Full Story 

    State Rep. Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, lays out House Bill 1.

  • The Kids Aren't All Right

    By Matt Largey, KUT News

    The budget draft filed last week provided the first glimpse at the kind of deep cuts that state agencies could see in the next biennium. As Matt Largey of KUT News reports, advocates are particularly worried about what the final budget could hold for the agency that protects children from abuse and neglect. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • Pick Your Poison

    By Ross Ramsey

    In the House, it's the nastiest, ugliest budget anybody's seen in a zillion years. In the Senate, they'll start on Monday with voter ID, the issue that froze the Legislature two years ago. Full Story 

  • In for the Long Haul?

    By Julián Aguilar

    A proposal by the Obama administration that would grant Mexican truckers greater access to Texas roadways would be a boon for business in the state, supporters say, since three of the top five ports for trade between the U.S. and Mexico are Laredo, El Paso and Houston. But unions contend the plan would cost American jobs. “This cheap-labor program comes at too high a risk and at too large a cost to middle-class American workers who work long, hard hours to help maintain a safe commerce system in our nation,” says a spokesman for the Texas AFL-CIO. Full Story 

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    Credit: Mike Miller