Gov. Greg Abbott appoints Brett Busby to Texas Supreme Court
If confirmed, Busby, a former U.S. Supreme Court clerk, would replace Justice Phil Johnson, who retired after 13 years on the high court. Full Story
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![Brett Busby appointed to Texas Supreme Court by Gov. Greg Abbott on Feb. 21, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Donald Trump endorses U.S. Sen. John Cornyn for re-election
The president's support comes 21 months before Election Day. Full Story
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![Sen. John Cornyn R-TX during TPPF's annual policy orientation in Austin on January 11, 2019]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Democrats lay out their priorities for Texas school finance as lawmakers await leadership-endorsed bill
The Texas House Democratic Caucus is calling for a $14.5 billion package that includes all-day pre-K, teacher raises and property tax relief. Full Story
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Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Point of Order: The battle over the Texas border
In the latest episode of our podcast about the 86th Legislature, Evan Smith talks to state Rep. Poncho Nevárez, chair of the House Homeland Security & Public Safety Committee, about the president’s emergency declaration — and how the Texas Legislature should address the issue of unauthorized immigration. Full Story
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Watch: A conversation with state Sen. Larry Taylor
Our interview with state Sen. Larry Taylor, chair of the Education Committee, is moderated by Texas Tribune co-founder and CEO Evan Smith. Full Story
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![State Sen. and Senate Education Committee Chairman Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, discusses public education with Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith at a Tribune event in Austin on Feb. 21, 2019.]()
Credit: John Jordan/The Texas Tribune -
Are there restrictions on how U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro can promote his brother for president?
For his 2020 campaign for president, Julián Castro selected his twin brother, a Democratic representative from San Antonio, as his campaign chairman. Full Story
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![HUD Secretary Julián Castro, left, and his twin brother, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, attend a Day of Action on Oct. 29, 2016, at the Travis County Democratic Party headquarters in Austin.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Texas officials call it "property tax relief" — but legislation won't lower tax bills or decrease budgets
The fight over property tax rates is really about state leaders telling local officials how much their revenues can grow before voters get to step in. Full Story
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TribCast: Property taxes, school finance, data centers and a state senator's bid to redefine a crime
On this week’s TribCast, Ross talks to Emma, Aliyya and Edgar about Sen. Angela Paxton's controversial bill that could impact her husband, efforts to get property tax legislation passed, a status check on the promised school finance bill and bidding out the state's data storage to private companies. Full Story
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![Angela Paxton kisses her husband, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, at her primary election night watch party in Allen on Tuesday, March 6, 2018.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
Railroad commissioners voice doubts that Permian Basin flaring is more prevalent than reported
The Environmental Defense Fund concluded that oil producers burned off more natural gas than they reported to the state. But Texas officials expressed skepticism of those findings during a state Senate hearing Wednesday. Full Story
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![A gas flare burns bright on a production site northeast of Andrews, Texas.]()
Credit: Jerod Foster for The Texas Tribune -
After Texas' second Supreme Court loss in a death penalty case, reform bill lands key GOP support
The chairs of two House committees signed on as joint authors of a bill that would set the method of determining if a capital murder defendant is intellectually disabled and therefore ineligible for execution. Full Story
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Analysis: Skirting the rules in the Texas Senate — but doing it by the book
Sometimes, the way around the established traditions of the Texas Senate is to be found in the least obvious place: the Senate's own rulebook. Full Story
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![The Texas Senate during the 86th legislative session. Jan. 9, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune -
How do Texas governments calculate your property taxes? Here’s a primer.
Several government entities — from appraisal districts to city councils — play independent roles that collectively determine how much money Texas landowners owe local governments each year. Full Story
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Beto O'Rourke keeps up suspense with days until anticipated 2020 decision
The former congressman and U.S. Senate nominee is still hoping to make up his mind about the presidential race by the end of the month — which is nine days away. Full Story
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![Former U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke speaks at the El Pasoan of the Year ceremony in El Paso on Feb. 19, 2019.]()
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State lawyers defend handling of Texas voter citizenship review, suggest some county officials broke the law
An assistant attorney general said counties should have reviewed their lists of flagged voters to determine whether they had reason to believe the voters were ineligible before requiring them to prove their citizenship. Full Story
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![Early voters line up to cast their ballot at the LBJ Student Center at Texas State University in San Marcos on Friday, Nov. 2, 2018.]()
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After state leaders’ unified rollout, 2.5 percent rollback rate on property tax bill looks unlikely to stick
Weeks after state leaders trumpeted a consensus property tax reform proposal, few seem married to the bill's pitch to cut the rollback rate to 2.5 percent. Full Story
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![From left: Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston; Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick; Gov. Greg Abbott; House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, R-Angleton; and Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, speak at a Jan 31, 2019, news conference addressing property tax reform.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
A state report says a Texas inmate died from heat last year. Prison officials contest that finding.
A recent in-custody death report said an inmate died from hyperthermia in July, but Texas prison officials said he was in an air-conditioned cell. Full Story
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![Inmates walk down a hallway at Brazoria County's Darrington prison in July 2017.]()
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Texas community colleges warn they may consider tuition hikes in the face of property tax reform
Property taxes are one of three main sources of revenue for community colleges. If growth in those taxes is limited, the colleges say they may have to look elsewhere for revenue. Full Story
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![The Austin Community College Riverside campus on Feb. 27, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune -
For the second time, U.S. Supreme Court reverses death sentence decision for Texas inmate Bobby Moore
This time, the majority of the justices said Moore has shown he is intellectually disabled. Full Story
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![The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case of Bobby Moore, a man who has been on death row since 1980, in March 2017.]()
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Texas lawmakers look to the "cloud" for storing sensitive government data
In hopes of saving money on data storage, legislators are considering downsizing the state's data centers and relying more on private tech companies. Full Story
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Adult migrant from Mexico dies in Border Patrol custody
The 45-year-old undocumented immigrant is the third person to die in the agency's custody since December. Full Story
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![A segment of the border fence in the Rio Grande Valley.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune
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