TIFIA, a popular transportation-focused federal loan program, has $17 billion ready to dole out and Texas is jumping at the chance to tap billions of dollars in credit.
Aman Batheja
Aman Batheja was a political reporter and editor for the Tribune from 2012 to 2019. Previously he worked for eight years at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, most of that time covering state and local politics. A native of Cedarhurst, New York, he has an undergraduate degree in journalism and psychology from New York University and a master's in economics from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Posted in
State Government
Straus Says He’s Ready for “Serious” Session
Despite organized efforts to unseat him, Texas House Speaker Joe Straus said Wednesday he is confident his colleagues will re-elect him to the post so he can focus the 2013 legislative session on “serious issues” for a fast-growing state.
Posted inState Government
Push to Reform Incentive Programs Gains Strength
Business leaders and state senators agreed Tuesday that lawmakers should add some accountability mechanisms to the state’s network of business incentive programs.
Posted in
Politics
Incentives for Business Scrutinized in Texas
Two legislative committees are set to hold hearings on state programs designed to encourage businesses to invest here, about a week after a New York Times series brought increased attention to Texas’ approach to such incentives.
Posted inState Government
Interactive: Billions of Dedicated Funds Unspent
Lawmakers have stockpiled nearly $5 billion in more than 200 dedicated revenue funds, using the money to help balance the budget rather than for its intended purposes, according to estimates from the Texas comptroller’s office. Our interactive shows you which accounts hold all the money.
Posted inState Government
Tarrant County May Point to Texas’ Political Future
Just like in 2008, Tarrant County voters favored Mitt Romney and President Obama in the same proportion as Texas voters did overall.
Posted in
Transportation
Tolling Texans: Impact of Trans-Texas Corridor Seen in Road Projects
Though the controversial proposal to build a 4,000-mile network of highways and rail lines across Texas never came to fruition, the Trans-Texas Corridor proposal helped usher a change in how the state builds roads.
Posted in
Transportation
Tolling Texans: More Cities Planning Toll Lanes
Already a fixture in Houston, toll lane projects are set to spread to cities across Texas. Officials in urban areas say the lanes are a key way to address congestion, but some deride the projects as “Lexus lanes.”
Posted in
Transportation
Tolling Texans: Toll Projects Proliferate as State Coffers Fall Short
Amid a lack of public financing to meet the state’s transportation needs, Texas officials are increasingly looking to toll projects, some boosted by investments by private firms.
Posted inTransportation
Interactive: Mapping Texas’ Toll Projects
Our interactive map highlights every existing toll road in Texas and all toll projects currently in development. Charging drivers for the ability to avoid traffic is spreading from the state’s biggest cities to every corner of the state.
