Texas Senate tentatively approves "bathroom bill"
After several hours of debate, the Texas Senate on Tuesday tentatively signed off on the “bathroom bill” on a 21-10 vote. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick confers with State Sens. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, Royce West, D-Dallas, on March 14, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Senate panel considers bills that would draw Uber and Lyft back to Austin
A Senate committee heard testimony on three bills that would override local regulations concerning ride-hailing companies. Full Story
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![State Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, at a Business and Commerce Committee hearing on March 9, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Legislator: Some Republican men tried to retaliate over “masturbation bill”
After state Rep. Jessica Farrar, D-Houston, filed a bill that would fine men $100 for masturbating, some Republican men in the Texas House, she said, tried to derail a separate and unrelated bill of hers Tuesday. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jessica Farrar, D-Houston, questions Health & Human Services chief Charles Smith regarding state contracts for health clinics during a State Affairs Committee interim hearing on Aug. 15, 2016.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senators grill one another in tense hearing on property tax bill
State Sen. Paul Bettencourt's attempt to limit when cities and counties can increase property tax collections without an election drew bipartisan opposition Tuesday. But many supporters also came to the bill's defense. Full Story
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![State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, listens to testimony on SB2 at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on March 14, 2017.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Will and Beto drive to D.C.: top things we learned from the congressional road trip
U.S. Reps. Beto O'Rourke and Will Hurd talked policy and personal matters while live streaming a road trip to Washington on Tuesday. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, and Beto O'Rourke, D-El Paso, drove across the country when an east coast snowstorm scrambled their flights back to Washington.]()
Credit: Congressman Beto O'Rourke's Facebook page -
Should the Texas Legislature pass a school choice program? (video)
Texas Tribune reporter Aliyya Swaby interviews advocates and opponents of school vouchers at The Texas Tribune's March public education symposium. Full Story
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Here’s what the revised Texas bathroom bill means in plain English
State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, the author of the so-called "bathroom bill," last week unveiled a revised version of Senate Bill 6. We've updated our plain English annotation of the bill to explain how it would impact communities across Texas. Full Story
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![An all-gender restroom at The University of Texas at Austin.]()
Credit: Qiling Wang / The Texas Tribune -
As diverse students fill Frisco schools, learning gaps are a challenge (audio)
As the city of Frisco has morphed from small town to boom town, its schools have transformed, too. These days, the majority of Frisco students are non-white. Full Story
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![Students crowd the hallway after the last bell rings at Liberty High School in Frisco.]()
Credit: Lara Solt for KERA -
The Brief: Bathroom bill debate looms in the Texas Senate
Lawmakers could begin debating the so-called "bathroom bill" on the Senate floor as early as today. Full Story
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![Transgender activists gather in the state Capitol rotunda as SB6 — the so-called "bathroom bill" — is being rolled out in a State Affairs Committee hearing on March 7, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
New in Trib+Health: Sizing impact of GOP health plan
In this week's edition of the Trib+Health newsletter: New analyses demonstrate the impact of GOP health plan on the numbers of uninsured, the return of the 24-hour resident shift and an interview with Jennifer Sanner of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Full Story
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Texas A&M law school cracks U.S. News' top 100 list
Texas A&M University's law school came in at 92 — its first time in the top 100 since A&M took over the school in 2013. The University of Texas at Austin's law school remains the highest-ranked in the state. Full Story
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![Texas A&M University School of Law]()
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Advocates hope to end policy in Texas of jailing poor for unpaid fines
Thousands of Texans are at risk of being arrested at any given moment for not paying fines often related to traffic offenses or other city ordinance violations, according to a recent report. Full Story
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![Inmates in the Harris County Jail in 2011.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman/The Texas Tribune -
Will Senate bill provide tax relief or hamstring local governments?
State Sen. Paul Bettencourt says Texans are tired of seeing their property tax bills increase dramatically year after year. But local government officials say his Senate Bill 2 would limit their abilities to raise necessary revenues. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Proposed law would crowdfund donations to help with rape kit backlog
As Texas faces a backlog of thousands of untested rape kits, lawmakers appear unwilling to spend state dollars to address the problem — but they're considering crowdfunding. Full Story
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![Jenny Black, executive director/coordinator at Austin/Travis County Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners, shows a sexual assault evidence collection kit at St. David's Medical Center in Austin on July 29, 2013.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman -
Texas lost a ruling over its congressional map. So what's next for the state?
Here's what you need to know about Friday night's huge — and incredibly complicated — ruling that effectively invalidated Texas' congressional map. Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
Unicycles and feral hogs: former lawmaker unveils his top bill descriptions
Having trouble classifying your electric unicycle? Want to identify your deer but don't want to get it tattooed? The 85th Texas Legislature is here to help. Full Story
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Senate Committee approves Texas voter ID overhaul
A Texas Senate panel has advanced a bill that would overhaul the state voter identification rules, an effort to comply with court rulings that the current law discriminates against black and Latino voters. Full Story
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![Voters line up outside the Oak Cliff Sub-Courthouse in Dallas, Texas, for the first day of early voting on Monday, Oct. 24, 2016.]()
Credit: Laura Buckman for The Texas Tribune -
House and Senate education chairs weigh in on vouchers, school finance (video)
Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith interviews state Rep. Dan Huberty and state Sen. Larry Taylor — their chambers' respective education chairman — on the 85th Texas Legislature's approach to public ed. Full Story
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The Brief: Some Texas congressional districts are illegal, federal judges say
A handful of Texas' 36 congressional districts violate either the U.S. Constitution or the federal Voting Rights Act, federal judges ruled Friday. Full Story
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![Tourists wander through the state Capitol rotunda in Austin on Jan. 9, 2017, the eve of the 85th Texas Legislative Session.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: A week to test local powers in Texas
The Texas Legislature is going to be busy this week with issues that ordinarily belong to other governments, as it considers the wisdom of local ordinances on restrooms, ride-hailing, short-term rentals, sanctuary cities and plastic bags. Full Story
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![A large crowd of transgender advocates opposed to SB 6 the bathroom bill converge on the Capitol Extension Rotunda during the Senate State Affairs Committee hearing on the bill March 7, 2017.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune