The latest Texas Legislature news from The Texas Tribune.
Will the Planned Parenthood brouhaha affect elections? Should state officeholders be able to collect retirement while they're still on the job? And should Texas lawmakers have term limits? Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/inside_intelligence-logo.png){kind=logo}
Texas has scored a 68 out of 100, placing 27th in a national state integrity study. The state got high marks for auditing and for monitoring pension funds, but not as high for accountability of the governor and legislators. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/ScalesMoneyTexas.jpg)
Texas Republicans are stuck, having won as many seats as it is possible to win by elections or by creative political mapping. But the solution for them is simple. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a5cdd7016176eb3f8c0bf1b6d5f39e80/BD%20INC%20Lozano%20096%202012)
State agencies have paid fired or resigning state employees more than $500 million in unused vacation time over the last decade. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/VacationHoursPay2.jpg)
The February 2012 University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll shows a riptide of very conservative opinion is exerting a strong pull on state politics. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/f9f1bcf960942fbd3cd27294047dc306/BD%20INC%20CNN%20Debate%20Three%202012)
The federal government will not renew the Women's Health Program, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in Houston on Friday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/_KCB0818.jpg)
New congressional maps reveal splits between lawyers for minority groups over districts in the Metroplex and in the Hill Country. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/RedistrictJudges.jpg)
The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission hopes a pair of apps will increase safety and compliance next year during spring break. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Drinkingbeer-Moody.jpg)
For the state's social conservatives, forgoing family planning funding is a small price to pay to send a powerful message: They want Planned Parenthood out of Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Contraception-3.jpg)
I'm excited to announce that Aman Batheja of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, one of the state's best political reporters, will soon join the Tribune staff. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Aman.jpg)
State Rep. Lon Burnam has been told he can start drawing a government pension without leaving his job. But he wants to stop the hidden perk reserved for lawmakers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/030512_Lon_Burnam.jpg)
A new poll sponsored by Planned Parenthood found that 59 percent of likely Texas voters oppose efforts to keep the health provider's clinics out of the joint state-federal Women's Health Program. But the poll is likely to have critics. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/PlannedParenthood_vs_Feds.jpg)
At our Hot Seat conversation at the University of North Texas in Denton on 2/28, state Sen. Craig Estes, R-Wichita Falls, and state Rep. Myra Crownover, R-Lake Dallas, discussed cuts to public and higher education and other by-products of the 82nd Session. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/HotSeatStill_1.jpg)
Texas Republicans grabbed just about every seat that wasn't protected by the Voting Rights Act. Democrats either have to find more voters or be forced to continue relying on ethnicity to protect the seats they still have. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/HandsOnRedistricting.jpg)
The federal judges in San Antonio unveiled their maps this week, and the analysis started right away. Here's the starter kit. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/PLANC235.png)
We appear to have a break in the redistricting wars that could be just long enough for an election, but the fighting isn't over. Full Story
Greg Abbott's decision to go to the U.S. Supreme Court provided fuel for his supporters and his critics. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c8690890caeda190591291ddd6c7e544/BD%20INC%20Abbott%20211%20CMS%202011)
The new maps issued this week by federal judges in San Antonio bear strong resemblance to the maps drawn last year by the Republican supermajority in the Legislature. On paper, they maintain the GOP advantage in the House, the Senate, and especially in the state's congressional delegation. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/RedistrictingRopes.jpg)
Gov. Rick Perry today added his own voice to the increasingly loud controversy over the expected demise of Texas' Women's Health Program. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/PerryConservatives_Abortion_Rally.jpg)
The Texas primaries will be held, as expected, on May 29, according to a federal court order issued this afternoon. Candidates have a week to file, starting tomorrow. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/RedistrictingAgain.jpg)