The latest Texas Legislature news from The Texas Tribune.
After a state Senate committee hearing Thursday in which veterans and others talked about excessive wait times at VA clinics, lawmakers said a plan expanding the Texas Veterans Commission's "strike force" was moving forward. Full Story
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In a letter sent to all House members on Monday, state Rep. David Simpson, R-Longview, shared his criticism of and questions for the House Select Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations. Full Story
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A recommendation from the state's Sunset Advisory Commission to shutter six of Texas' 13 state-supported living centers has reopened a giant divide in the disability community that had seemed to narrow in recent years. Full Story
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Full video of my 5/29 TribLive conversation with State Sen. Glenn Hegar, R-Katy, a candidate for Texas comptroller in 2014. Full Story
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Republican primary voters have already decided one thing for the rest of the state's citizens: The Texas Senate that takes office in January will be more conservative than its predecessor. Full Story
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The conciliatory tone that marked Dan Patrick's victory speech was unlike the fiery immigration rhetoric voters were accustomed to. But it's an approach he will have to take in a general election battle against Leticia Van de Putte. Full Story
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The day after the elections, both the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the House were talking about getting ready for the legislative session in January. But Joe Straus will be there, and David Dewhurst won't. Full Story
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State Sen. Dan Patrick celebrated with supporters on Tuesday upon winning the Republican primary runoff for lieutenant governor. Full Story
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Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst's full remarks to supporters following his loss to state Sen. Dan Patrick Tuesday. Full Story
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House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, enters the next legislative session as a clear favorite for re-election, but the issues raised in the conservative wave in this year's elections could dominate the Legislature's calendar. Full Story
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Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and his challenger Dan Patrick went head to head Tuesday night in a debate hosted by the Central Texas Tea Party. The debate followed last week's release of Patrick's medical records and the ensuing political firestorm over it. Full Story
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The University of Texas System Board of Regents voted Tuesday to keep tuition stable for in-state students at all of the system's academic institutions. Full Story
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University of Texas System Regent Wallace Hall, who was asked to resign last week by the chairman of the board of regents, sent a letter to the chairman on Monday saying he does not intend to do any such thing, according to Hall's lawyer. Full Story
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The election year doesn't end until the first Tuesday in November, but in the Texas Legislature, most of the competition is over, and lawmakers can dig into issues otherwise too dangerous for political season. Full Story
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At a news conference Friday in Austin, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz touched on the state’s bitter Republican primary runoffs, the Benghazi investigation, his argument against a minimum wage hike and Gov. Rick Perry’s efforts to tout the Texas miracle around the country. Full Story
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Three days after a legislative committee said there were grounds to impeach University of Texas System Regent Wallace Hall, the chairman of UT’s board of regents said Hall should resign. Full Story
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LaSalle County, which is in the heart of the Eagle Ford Shale, has sued the Texas Department of Transportation over a $225 million grant program aimed at repairing roads damaged by oilfield traffic. Full Story
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Last year, lawmakers told the Texas Juvenile Justice Department to close a facility, and the agency drew up plans to shutter its aging Corsicana detention center. Now, lawmakers are keeping it open at a cost of $100,000 a month. Full Story
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After voting on Monday that grounds exist to impeach one of the regents of the University of Texas System, members of a legislative committee say they hope to see a proactive response from UT's board of regents, which meets this week. Full Story
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More than six months after a series of earthquakes surprised parts of North Texas, the mayors of two shaken-up towns told a state House subcommittee Monday that the state has moved too slowly in investigating what’s behind the phenomenon. Full Story
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