Sid Miller's Style Sparks Blowback at the Capitol
Recent episodes highlight a rapidly deteriorating relationship between the cowboy hat-wearing agriculture commissioner and the Legislature that once counted Sid Miller as one of its own. Full Story
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![New Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller does a fist pump on election night Nov. 4, 2014.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Video: Who Decides What Bills Get Floor Consideration?
Mention the word “calendars” inside the Texas Capitol and some legislators – particularly in the House – are bound to give you a frightened glare. As part of an occasional series explaining the Legislature’s inner workings, we show you how the calendars are set in each chamber. Full Story
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Credit: Todd Wiseman -
Houston Suburb Looks to Lawmakers for Water Fix
Residents of a small unincorporated community outside Houston hope legislation by state Rep. Armando Walle will help them get safe, reliable water service, and shine a light on parts of Texas with similar problems. Full Story
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![Leticia Ramirez, a cook at the Loving Care Learning Center in Castlewood, shows how staff use filtered water to wash their hands during the regular, random water shut-offs this unincorporated community eperiences.]()
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Roundup: Guns, Border Security Among First Floor Debates
In the Roundup: With lawmakers now more than two months into the legislative session, they are not wasting any time passing bills. The Senate has passed an open carry bill and a campus carry bill, while the House endorsed a border security measure. Full Story
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Analysis: Uncertainty on Abbott's Maiden Voyage
Rick Perry, after all of those years as governor, was pretty predictable. With Gov. Greg Abbott two months into his new job, there is a fresh vibe at the state Capitol: uncertainty. The next 10 weeks should be telling. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott delivers his first State of the State speech to a joint session of the Texas Legislature on Feb. 17, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Supplemental Budget Would Cost $433 Million, House Members Learn
House budget writers intend to add $433 million to the current two-year budget with a supplemental bill laid out Thursday, though some lawmakers expressed concern with plans for millions in leftover funds from some state health programs. Full Story
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![State Rep. John Otto, R-Dayton, in the Texas House of Representatives, Feb. 8, 2011.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: Killing a Tax Without Changing Taxpayers' Bills
Senate legislation that cuts property and business margins taxes also includes a clause that would outlaw taxes on real estate transactions. Texas has no such tax. Full Story
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Post-Scandal, Lawmakers Changing Gears on Health Agency
As the state’s largest health agency reels from a scandal over how it awarded contracts to private vendors, lawmakers on Wednesday said they are slowing down on their ambitious — and controversial — plan to restructure it. Full Story
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![Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, wraps up the Sunset Advisory Commission hearing on Jan. 14, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Costco Joins Wal-Mart, Kroger in Liquor Push
Wholesale giant Costco has joined Wal-Mart, Kroger and other retailers in the fight to loosen restrictions on the state liquor market and let public corporations sell hard alcohol in Texas. Full Story
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Audio: Fiscal Hawk Sid Miller on His Need for Cash
Sid Miller voted for deep budget cuts as a member of the Texas House. But now he’s Texas agriculture commissioner, and he wants the Legislature to dramatically increase funding to his cash-strapped agency. Full Story
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![Sid Miller speaks at The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 20, 2014.]()
Credit: Gabriel Cristóver Pérez -
Map: Breast and Cervical Cancer Program Providers
The Senate's proposed changes to the state's breast and cervical cancer screening program — intended to cut funding for Planned Parenthood clinics — could hit low-income women in rural and West Texas hardest. Use our map to see how. Full Story
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Bill Would Bar Doctors From Asking About Guns
State Rep. Stuart Spitzer is afraid the federal government can use medical records to identify gun owners. Over the objections of the medical community, he has filed a bill that would prohibit doctors from asking patients whether they own a firearm. Full Story
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Property and Business Tax Cut Measures Head to Full Senate
The Senate Finance Committee voted Tuesday to send proposals cutting property taxes and business taxes to the full Senate, though some senators questioned whether the property tax cuts could be better spent in other ways. Full Story
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![Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, confers with Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa, D-McAllen, during a March 11, 2015, committee hearing on state contracting issues.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
House Committee Takes Up Open Carry, Campus Carry Bills
One day after the Texas Senate voted to loosen state handgun regulations, a House committee Tuesday considered proposals to allow the open carry of handguns with a license and the concealed carry of handguns on college campuses. Full Story
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![Former House member Suzanna Hupp, who lost her parents in the Killeen Luby's massacre, testifies for open carry bills in House Homeland Security Committee on March 17, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Double-Dipping Ban Sails Out of Committee
Longtime elected officials would no longer be able to use an obscure perk to boost their take-home pay under a bill that sailed out of a House committee Monday. The proposed double-dipping ban now heads to the House floor. Full Story
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Bill Moving Public Integrity Unit to AG's Office is Senate-Bound
A measure that would yank the state's public corruption-fighting unit out of the Travis County district attorney's office and stick it in the Texas attorney general's office is headed for the full Senate. Full Story
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![Sen. Joan Huffman R-Houston]()
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Analysis: When a Disclosure Report Doesn't Do Much Disclosing
State law requires lobbyists to report what they spend on legislators and other state officials. But the loopholes are big: Less than 5 percent of the lobby's reported spending on food and beverage names the eaters and the drinkers. Full Story
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Credit: Todd Wiseman -
Inside Texas Politics: Setting the Stage
On this week's edition of WFAA-TV's Inside Texas Politics, the show is given over to setting the stage for the remainder of the session as the state Legislature moves into a higher gear. Full Story
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![Texas Tribune Executive Editor Ross Ramsey on WFAA's "Inside Texas Politics" on March 15, 2015.]()
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Cruz Heavy on Border Rhetoric, Light on Trips
As he feels out a possible presidential bid, Ted Cruz has made border security and immigration his calling cards. But Texas' first Hispanic U.S. senator has only made three trips to border since taking office. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz holding a press conference at the Anzalduas International Bridge in Mission surrounded by a group of local ranchers who said they've been affected by poor border security.]()
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State Medicaid Probes Produce Paltry Results
Three years ago, the office responsible for rooting out Medicaid fraud and abuse set a goal of finding $1 billion a year in misspent funds. But it's collecting about $995 million less than that. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman