The Texas Legislature closed out the special session Tuesday night amid a stalemate on property tax reform, leaving unfinished Gov. Greg Abbott’s top priority.
Morgan Smith
Morgan Smith was a reporter at the Tribune from 2009 to 2018, covering politics, public education and inequality.
In 2013, she received a National Education Writers Association award for “Death of a District,” a series on school closures. After earning a bachelor’s degree in English from Wellesley College, she moved to Austin in 2008 to enter law school at the University of Texas.
A San Antonio native, her work has also appeared in Slate, where she spent a year as an editorial intern in Washington D.C.
Posted in
Politics
House Republicans to caucus on speaker rules
Texas House Republicans will meet early Wednesday to discuss whether to require members of their caucus to choose a speaker candidate — then stand behind their pick when the vote goes to the full House in January 2019.
Posted in
Health care
Bill adding abortion reporting requirements on path to governor’s desk
A bill that would require physicians and health care facilities to report more details on abortion complications to the state — and fine those that do not comply — is all but certain to hit the governor’s desk.
Posted inState Government
Senate approves bill restricting abortion insurance
A bill requiring Texas women to pay a separate health insurance premium to get coverage for non-emergency abortions — what opponents have dubbed “rape insurance” — is close to becoming law.
Posted inState Government
Special session bills finally reach Abbott’s desk, but big hurdles remain with 5 days left
Legislation finally began reaching Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk on Friday — with five days left in the special session — but there’s still much progress to be made on Abbott’s 20-item agenda.
Posted inState Government
Texas House passes bill restricting insurance coverage of abortion
Texas women would have to pay a separate health insurance premium to get coverage for non-emergency abortions — what an opponent dubbed “rape insurance” — under a bill given early approval by the Texas House on Tuesday.
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Politics
With 8 days left in special session, Texas House and Senate remain far apart
Not a single measure has made it to the governor’s desk despite a steady drumbeat from his office urging lawmakers to go “20 for 20.” A “bathroom bill” is on life support, but a property tax measure still has momentum, supporters say.
Posted in
State Government
Straus and Patrick meet as special session dwindles
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Speaker Joe Straus had their first one-on-one meeting in months Monday afternoon.
Posted in
Health care
Texas House approves more abortion reporting requirements
Doctors performing abortions on minors would be required to report additional information to the state under a new measure given early approval by the Texas House Thursday.
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Politics
Here are 5 takeaways from the first half of the special session
At the likely halfway point of a 30-day special session, the Texas House and Senate are taking very different approaches to the governor’s sprawling agenda, and they could be headed for another standoff on a so-called “bathroom bill.”